Tag Archives: explains

Motorsport

You Can Buy Toyota’s Tiny $13,000 Work Truck But Not In The US

Toyota’s affordable truck is now available for purchase in Thailand. Meanwhile, Mercedes’ heritage boss clarifies that ICE is not the firm’s heritage.

This is AM Drive, Motor1’s daily look at the news you need before you get in your car.

2024 Toyota Hilux Champ Is An Impressively Cheap Truck

Fed up with hearing about luxury trucks with exorbitant price tags? Toyota now offers a remarkably inexpensive pickup truck for sale in Thailand. Dubbed the Hilux Champ, it is essentially a production model of the IMV 0 concept showcased at the 2023 Japan Mobility Show. The starting price is a pleasantly low 459,000 baht, equivalent to $13,070 or €11,930 at current exchange rates. Even the highest-priced configuration only reaches 577,000 baht ($16,430 or €15,000).

While paint choices are limited to white, silver, or grey, there are multiple body styles available to choose from. This utilitarian vehicle can be converted into an RV, a food truck, a medical van (complete with a refrigerator), or a camper with a roof-mounted tent. Depending on the desired transformation, costs range from 80,000 baht (about $2,300) for the van to as high as 2,000,000 baht ($57,000) for the RV.


Smartphones

The Unpleasant Truth About iPhone Repairs

In a recent blog post, iFixit has revealed an important aspect of iPhone repairability that was previously overlooked. The repairability score, traditionally based on physical design, did not account for Apple’s software-based parts pairing.

In essence, when a part is replaced on an iPhone 14, it connects to Apple’s servers to verify whether the repair has been authorized. This verification is only granted if the replacement part was acquired directly from Apple. Even if the part is an authentic Apple component from a recycled phone, it will not be validated.

What happens when a part is not validated? The consequences vary depending on the specific component. As reported by iFixit in October 2022, a non-validated replacement screen would still function but with certain features disabled, such as True Tone and Auto-Brightness. Additionally, a warning message would notify the user about the possibility of the screen not being genuine. When it comes to the battery, a warning message would appear and access to battery health and statistics menus would be disabled. The front-facing camera, on the other hand, would cease to function entirely, while the rear cameras would continue operating normally but display a warning message about using non-genuine parts during phone startup. The logic board, due to its serial number not matching the other components, would trigger various “genuine parts” warnings.