INDUSTRY NEWS: Volvo Trucks advances talent development with Technical Education Programme (TEP) for TAFE College

Mats Nilsson, Managing Director, Volvo Malaysia and Tan Sri Dato G Vadiveloo, Chief Executive Officer, TAFE College, Seremban signing the collaboration.

One of the most important things in nation building is the development of human capital. I sometimes think that this is very rarely done in this country. You can tell this from the fact that over the last fifteen or so years there have been no real technological or innovative breakthroughs here. You could put the blame on various factors including the lack of a proper education vision by the government as well as the lack of private institutions and individuals who have the monetary strength but somehow are so 'kedekut' or stingy to help develop others. 

If a fish was the inspiration for a car's design....

....don't ever, ever use the Parrot Fish.

Beetle CLUB Now Available in Malaysia at RM152,888

I was at the launch of the limited to 50 units Volkswagen Beetle Club yesterday. The car is priced from RM152,888 and quite like the previous limited run Beetle 'Bug' Edition, it gets basically a cosmetic touch up only and no extra performance enhancing items like a sports exhaust, larger turbo for it's 1.2liter TSI engine, machine guns, rocket launchers and anti-aircraft guns.

Shell Confirmed as Title Sponsor of Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix

Something to take note  folks... its the 2015 SHELL MALAYSIA MOTORCYCLE GRAND PRIX. .....

PRESS RELEASE
Shell is pleased to confirm it has renewed its title sponsorship of the Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix, having reached an agreement with Dorna Sports, the MotoGP™ rights holder, to support the FIM MotoGP World Championship and the Sepang International Circuit’s hosting of the Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix for the 2015 and 2016 championship seasons.

Volkwagen Malaysia collaborates with Alia Bastamam at Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week Ready to Wear 2015

Every year, there is something called the Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week. Of course not every motorhead or petrolhead is aware of this or truly bothers about this as they are usually in love with their cars instead of clothes. But anyway, the Fashion Week happens every year and it showcases Malaysian fashion. Not many cars involved usually but this year, Volkswagen has decided to connect directly into the fashion crowd by collaborating with homegrown couturier Alia Bastamam at Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week Ready to Wear 2015 (KLFW RTW 2015). 

NEW LAND ROVER DISCOVERY SPORT OPEN DAY AT 1 UTAMA SHOPPING CENTRE - 22nd & 23rd August 2015

The all-new Land Rover Discovery Sport, the world’s most versatile premium compact SUV, and the first member of the new Discovery family, is officially here in Malaysia. This 22nd and 23rd of August, 2015, Land Rover will preview it at the One Utama Shopping Centre for all to see.

All-New Mercedes Benz C-Class Coupe photos previewed

The official global launch (somewhere in Europe most probably) will be in September 2015.The all-new 2017 (model year) Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe is modern luxury manifested. Its soulful design echoes the agile driving dynamics made possible by advanced lightweight construction and standard sport suspension. The new C-Class Coupe will hit European and U.S. dealerships by spring of 2016.

SCANIA MALAYSIA HOSTS TOP TEAMS FROM SOUTHEAST ASIA IN PREPARATION FOR REGIONAL CHALLENGE IN CHINA 4

A few weeks ago, Scania Malaysia hosted the Southeast Asian leg of the Top Technical Team Competition. This is in preparation for the regional challenge which will take place in Guangzhou, China on 19th September 2015.

The Electrical Station of Scania Southeast Asia Top Team being worked on by the best team of Scania Malaysia

Road Test: 2015 Hyundai Elantra 1.6 A/T Elegance

Lots of people buy cars in the RM50,000-RM90,000 price range. This range includes a variety of cars ranging from small hatchbacks to small sized family sedans. The most popular would be the 4 door sedan. We Malaysians love cars with 4 doors and a boot. This car concept still holds true even though Perodua and other manufacturers have made inroads with popular small hatchbacks. But do note that you do see a large number of B segment sedans out there.

Spotted for Sale: Unregistered Fiat Punto

Here we have something quite unique for sale. It is a Fiat Grande Punto from 2007-2008. It has not been registered and the ones pictured in the advertisement are from the remaining cars on sale by the official Fiat distributor here in Malaysia. The company closed its doors sometime in 2008-2009 and these, along with some Fiat Panda, Multipla and the ancient Stilo are still on sale. I say ancient Stilo because the distributors managed to clear all of the Stilo's replacement, the new (at the time) Bravo. 

Anyway, this here is a Fiat Grande Punto for you to consider as your first brand new, delivery mileage only, Italian car. At around the price offered, one can indulge in Italian motoring. Now whether that's a good thing or not is arguable but you do get a car that is actually European, not German or French. It is also nicely styled for a hatchback. It has that front end that makes it look like a baby Maserati GT. It does look good.

R170 Mercedes Benz SLK230 Kompressor...

Two pics of the 1990s SLK230 Kompressor. I will eventually write about the drive experience soon. Stay tuned for more updates!

Something on Bangkok, Travel, Malaysia and Top Gear style of travel

Hello folks! I have been busy vacationing this Id-ul-Fitr celebrations and was firstly at the Missus' kampung in Muar, Johor and then up north to Bangkok, Thailand. A fair bit of travel and R&R you may say but one has to actually travel to see more of our surroundings. With travel, one's point of view differs and with travel, one actually gets to see how things actually happen and what progress actually is. 

Take for example Bangkok. It is a heck of a city. Six million people within the city and another fourteen million in the surrounding area of Greater Bangkok makes it one of the busiest cities in the world. It is a mega-city, like Jakarta. It is slightly more organised than Jakarta in that there is more than a semblance of a public transport system with its Tuk-tuks, taxis, buses, water taxis and the rail transit system. But in a city with so many people, it merely helps instead of totally alleviate the massive traffic in Bangkok.

TOP 5 JUNIOR HOT HATCHES YOU CAN BUY BRAND NEW IN MALAYSIA (2015)

Welcome back! This is the first posting after the 2015 Id Fitr celebrations in Malaysia. I'm technically still on vacation but I think it has been a while since we had a 100%  Motoring-Malaysia posting instead of just the news. Well, I suppose there was that 'Spotted For Sale' Alfa 4C, but of course, the more the better. So now's the time for us to state THE BEST JUNIOR HOT HATCH IN MALAYSIA that you can buy right now (July 2015 that is). According to Yours Truly here of course. This is because I have driven them all nd I do believe that it is my duty to tell you guys about it.

Number #5 - Volkswagen Polo GTI

Volkswagen 'Balik Kampung' tips for this Raya holidays

It’s almost Raya. It's that time of the year again. Soon it will be time to get into our cars and balik kampung (even if the 'Kampung' is actually a short trip from Gombak to Kajang or from Butterworth to Balik Pulau). But before you get started on your journey, Volkswagen Malaysia would like to share some important tips to help you be a smart traveler. 

The top six tips Volkswagen have identified are:

1. Take your car for a checkup

Ensure your ride is in tip top condition for a safe drive home.  

The Hyundai Sonata wins another award over in America - They seem to love it there

Recently, the Hyundai Sonata garnered another award over in America. AutoPacific is a future-oriented automotive marketing and product-consulting firm. Every year AutoPacific publishes a wide variety of syndicated studies on the automotive industry and this year, the Sonata wins the AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Award for mid-sized sedans (yup, a D segment car is a 'mid' sized car over in the United States of America).

Now I sometimes do hope that such an award would translate to more Sonatas on Malaysian roads. They're certainly better than some Japanese D segment cars out there today. Of course, I also note that the interior of the USDM Sonata pictured below looks a little bit more luxurious than what we get here. I suppose it's that little bit of wood here and there which we don't get. It does lift the interior ambiance a tad bit in my opinion. Of course, there are those who do not like wood as it makes the car look uncle-like. Does it really?  

Pump Shell fuel this Hari Raya Puasa and help underprivileged children in Malaysia

This Hari Raya, every liter of fuel pumped at any Shell station in Malaysia on the 14th, 16th and 18th of July 2015, Shell will donate 1 Sen (RM0.01) to help change the lives of underprivileged children in Malaysia.

Contributions raised will benefit children under the care of five (5) selected charitable organisations. So do lend a helping hand. Nothing too strenuous or anything like that. Just head towards a Shell station, and fill in some petrol or diesel. 

Spotted for Sale: Alfa Romeo 4C Launch Edition

This is the first Alfa Romeo 4C on sale in Malaysia. It is obviously brought in by a local A.P. holder and is steeply priced at RM550,000. The original price for such a car is about 45,000 Pounds Sterling. How 45,000GBP gets translated to RM550,000 is probably due to the fact that exchange rates are at 1GBP = RM5.80 and at least 200+% of excise duty. 

So would I buy such a car? Well, there is no official dealer or service center these days for Alfa Romeo. This means you would be at the mercy of a few specialty shops catering to the marque. This would be slowly declining too as eventually there would be less money to be made when there are less of the marque to go around. So after sales is going to be a pain.

Chevrolet opens their new Malaysia Parts Centre to better serve its customers

Chevrolet Malaysia has opened up a brand new Parts Centre here in Shah Alam. This should cater to the 24,000 people that have bought Chevrolet cars as at end 2014. Quite a number actually, considering that it is a fairly new brand. I suppose being in Transformers and Hawaii Five-O helps a little. Especially the Cruze, driven by a nice looking lady (watch the show and you'd know). 

Anyway, this isn't as interesting as the actual cars themselves. But now you know that there would be less downtime when you send in a Chevrolet as parts would be easier to access within Malaysia.

Truck and Bus News: MIROS PARTNERS SCANIA AGAIN TO PROMOTE SAFE DRIVING

It is said that good road safety is the result of good road etiquette. Like we recently heard in that latest Spy flick, Kingsmen, where 'Manners Maketh Man'. Which is why well-trained and well behaved drivers are aware of the importance of being safe drivers will practice whenever they are behind the wheel.

One of the agencies in Malaysia that studies and promotes this is the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS), they are returning for the second time as a partner to the upcoming 2014/2015 Scania Driver Competitions (SDC) which will be held in October this year.

Tech: BMW Motorrad introduces Dynamic Brake Light systems for the EU/ECE - They should go global with this A.S.A.P

I do not usually write about motorcycles per se. Not a big fan of them but I do acknowledge their existence on the road and their purpose for being there. Maybe the larger bikes, but not the mosquito-like (read: irritating) kapchais on the road today. 

Anyway, this piece of news from BMW Motorrad is interesting. They have introduced dynamic brake light systems for some of their bikes -  R 1200 GS, R 1200 GS Adventure and S 1000 XR. The K 1600 GT, GTL and GTL Exclusive luxury tourers. Limited to the European Union and ECE areas for the moment, the dynamic brake light can warn drivers of vehicles following the bikes in a very clear and precise manner.