Taiwanese Man Bumps into a Traffic Officer…with his Truck

True, accidents can happen any time and at virtually any place, but we think the driver of the small truck seen in this video from Taiwan is unforgivably careless. How on earth can you not see the police officer with the distinctive yellow markings in broad daylight?

Even though he was literally hit by a truck, the officer managed to get up by himself and trot to the sidewalk before another motorist had the chance to finish the job. And yes, that's definitely going to hurt for a while…

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Volkswagen Begins Assembly of T5 Passenger and Commercial Vans in Indonesia

The strong economic growth in the Asia region continues to interest the Volkswagen Group, which has decided to begin “Semi Knocked Down” [SKD] assembly of its T5 Transporter passenger and Multivan commercial vehicles in Indonesia

The German firm will assemble the T5 models in Indonesia for the local market together with the importer Garuda Mataram Motor.

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Definitely, Chuck Norris Approved: Biker Does a Ninja Flip in Crash

You know they say that Chuck Norris is so tough that when he fell off his bike, he broke the road. We can't say whether or not this motorcyclist in Asia (we're not sure about the country) is as tough as Chuck, but he might as well star in one of his movies after what he accomplished here…

Don't believe us? Well then just flip over the jump and land your mouse on the video player button.

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U Film: New Ford Ranger Spotted in Malaysia Pulling Four Trucks from the Competition

In what looks like some sort of a publicity stunt from Ford Malaysia, Carscoop reader Hafiz Zainal filmed the brand new Ford Ranger tugging four rivaling pickup trucks including (from back to front) the previous generation of the Ranger, the Mitsubishi Triton (called L200 in Europe), the Toyota HiLux and an Isuzu D-Max.

Both Rangers had an "On Tow" sign at the front and at the back and seemed to be just riding around - obviously to pique the interest of local buyers.

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Watch a Lexus IS-F Drifter Drive On Top of a Set of Concrete Blocks

After watching the following videos over and over again, the kindest explanation we can give about this incident that took place during the demo drift run at last week's Tokyo Auto Salon is that something went wrong and all of a sudden the driver of the Lexus was confronted with a locked steering wheel and stuck gas pedal.

Now, if that's not the case, then the driver of the IS-F racer not only has a lot of explaining to do but he should probably also avoid making any public appearances for the near future…

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Malaysian Government Sells 42.7% Proton Stake to DRB-Hicom

There’s been a lot of speculation these past few weeks about the future of Proton. The Malaysian carmaker, which also owns Lotus, was reportedly looking to sell the loss-making British sportscar maker to SAIC or Genii Capital, something that Lotus CEO, Danny Bahar, dismissed as a rumor.

Last week, Proton released an official statement saying that it was negotiating with General Motors about selling a stake in its Tanjuing Malim factory.

Its board of directors also confirmed that the company’s chariman, Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, was interested in buying the 42.7 percent stake held by the state-owned investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd.

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Sorry Dad: 10 Year-Old Boy Takes $206k Maserati for a Joyride then Crashes

The idea of swiping the keys of your father's car is something we probably all thought about at some point in our adolescent years. But how many of us really went ahead with the plan? Okay, you can put your hands down now…

One 10-year-old American boy in Hong Kong actually realized the idea and took his father's Maserati Gran Coupe, which was purportedly bought in 2009 for HK$1.6 million (US$206,000), for a crazy joyride near central Hong Kong.

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Tesla Tweaks Roadster for its Final Run in Europe, Asia and Australia

While the Tesla Roadster is no longer in production for the North American market, the pure-electric open-top model will continue to be available for a little longer in other regions.

To mark the final year of production for Europe, Asia and Australia, Tesla introduced a revised version of the Roadster with new options and enhanced features.

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Toyota's Gloomy New Forecast Cuts Annual Profits by More than Half

After losing the top spot as the world's largest automaker, Toyota is now halving its profit forecast due to a number of factors, the most important of which are the production disruptions caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan in March and the recent floods in Thailand, as well as the strong yen.

Toyota said that it expects to bring in a net profit of 180 billion Yen [US$2.3 billion] for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012, down 53.8 percent from the 390 billion yen [US$5.04 billion] it projected in August.

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Taiwan's Luxgen Launches its First Sedan Model, the Luxgen5 [Videos and Gallery]

Mazda isn't the only automaker to use its name as a designation for its model series. Taiwan's aspiring new automotive brand Luxgen has adopted the same nomenclature for its range of models that has now been expanded with its first ever four-door sedan, the Luxgen5 that joins the Luxgen7 MPV and Luxgen7 SUV.

The newly revealed Luxgen5 is the production version of the Neora EV concept study that was exhibited at the Auto Shanghai 2011 in China earlier this year.

The Taiwanese automaker says it is targeting the medium-large sedan market with the new Luxgen5 that will make its world premiere at the 2012 Taipei Auto Show next April.

According to Luxgen, the four-door model has been created for global markets in mind since its inception. The chassis has been designed with the support of US engineering analysts Altair, while the car was tested by UK safety organization Mira to meet the chassis configuration requirements of local and overseas markets.

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New Mitsubishi Mirage is a No Frills - Low Cost Entry in the Small Car Segment

You'd think that with the rise of the Korean auto industry, a troubled Japanese carmaker like Mitsubishi would up its game and even take some risks to gain a competitive edge.

Instead, Mitsubishi goes and creates the Mirage – quite possibly, the most bland looking city car in the market today…

But perhaps that was Mitsubishi's plan all along […] as the company claims that the design of the small subcompact model "was focused on compactness, affordability, and high fuel efficiency in order to fit the needs of emerging markets as an affordable entry-level model as well as needs of advanced markets for fuel efficiency and low-CO2 emission."

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Just Some Drifting Fun at the Local Parking Lot [Video]

Skilled drivers with a certain amount of experience behind the wheel don't need a lot of space to have some fun with their cars - and without getting into the same trouble as the owner of this white Corvette C6...

The video that follows after the break was shot in Taiwan and it shows a couple of dozen local drivers with their modded cars practicing their drifting skills on a relatively small parking lot marked with cones.

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Lexus Reveals New Entry Level GS 250 with 209HP 2.5-liter V6 Engine

The new generation of the Lexus GS premium saloon will soon become more attainable –at least in certain markets around the world- as the Japanese carmaker revealed the new entry-level GS 250 today at the China International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, which will be open to the public from November 22 through 28.

The GS 250 is the third model in the new GS lineup, after the previously revealed GS 350, which is powered by a 3.5-liter V6 delivering 306-ponies and the GS 450h top-end model that links a 3.5-liter Atkinson-cycle V6 to the Lexus Hybrid Drive for a combined system output of 338-horsespower.

At the heart of the new GS 250 lies Lexus' 2.5-litre V6 gasoline engine with D-4S direct port injection and Dual VVT-i intelligent valve timing.

It produces a maximum output of 209HP (154 kW/206bhp) at 6,400rpm and 253Nm (187 lb-ft) of peak torque at 4,800rpm, accelerating the GS 250 from 0-100km/h (62mph) in 8.6 seconds en route to a top speed of 230km/h (143mph).

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From 0 to Crash in 18 Seconds: Subaru Impreza STI Track Racer Bummer

Imagine this: you're all suited up, complete with racing helmet, gloves and shoes, bolted in the racing bucket seat of a Subaru Impreza WRX STI with your buddy by your side to experience the thrill of a life time on the race track.

But alas; as soon as the flag goes down your STI stalls and the engine shuts off. Your friend chuckles but no worries, just turn the key and fire up the turbocharged flat four and let's take it from the start.

Okay, we're ready now and yes, 18 seconds later you've reached the final cone and you can unleash the awesome power of Subaru's boxer engine only to…crash into a wall! On the bright side, you may have just set a new track record for the fastest crash ever…

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Are they for Real? Carry-On Folding Boat to Tackle Thai Floods…[Video]

As the old adage goes, necessity is the mother of all inventions. For almost half a year now, Thailand's residents have been experiencing some of the worst floods ever recorded in the country in the last 50 years.

But while there has been widespread human suffering, loss of life and damage to products and properties, the natural disaster has also offered plenty of opportunity for business inventiveness – from motorcycle and automobile snorkels to makeshift ladders and fashionable water boots.

However, none of the above comes close to what you're about to watch in the commercial below. In fact, the idea is so absurd that we're thinking it may be some kind of video prank – albeit a very well executed one, if that's the case.

The advert says the Ready Boat is a foldable, lightweight carry-on vessel with a single row included and which can transfer up to two people with a combined weight of up to 150kg or 330 pounds.

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Chaos: Flooded Road in Thailand Causes One Accident after the Other [Video]

Ask any experienced driver and he or she will tell you that one of the worst things that can happen to you on the road is aquaplaning or hydroplaning.

This occurs when water in front of your car's tires builds up faster than the tires can pump out through their grooves and most often results in losing traction and control of your vehicle.

We can't say for sure, but this seems to be culprit for a series of accidents that purportedly took place on a flooded highway in Thailand. The slippery road caused more accidents than we could count. You can watch the scary video right after the jump.

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Mitsubishi's New Low Cost Mirage Supermini Pops up Ahead of Tokyo Motor Show

Standing alongside the Mitsubishi Concept PX-MiEV at the 2011 edition of the Tokyo Motor Show will be the production version of the Japanese firm's Global Small Concept that was first shown in Geneva earlier this year.

The Mirage is a new B-segment size model developed for emerging markets. The low-cost five-door hatchback measures 3,710mm long, 1,665mm wide and 1490mm high, with the company claiming that, it provides "a comfortable interior space for five adults".

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Thai Floods Could Spell Delays in Toyota and Honda Production well into 2012

In 2011, only the Saab saga has surpassed that of the Japanese car manufacturers’ problems. Just when they were on their way to recuperate from the disruption caused by the March earthquake in Japan, the recent floods in Thailand have curtailed their plans - probably for much longer than originally anticipated.

IHS Automotive analyst Tracy Handler said: “Both Toyota and Honda won’t be able to expand production as planned until the first quarter of 2012. They’ve been really unlucky this year.”

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Video: Cadillac Owner Pushes Newbie in VW to Safety

Let's face it; we all need a helping hand sometime in our life and luckily, there are people out there willing to step in.

Like the owner of this Cadillac crossover that was captured on film in an underground parking helping out the driver of what looks to be a previous generation Volkswagen Polo hatchback.

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Infiniti to Locate its New Global Headquarters in Hong Kong

In a somewhat surprising move, Nissan today announced that its Infiniti luxury brand would establish its new global headquarters in Hong Kong.

Nissan originally launched the Infiniti brand in 1989 exclusively for the North American market but has since expanded its marketing operations to include the Middle East, Russia, Europe, South East Asia and other regions.

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