Second Group of Proton Vendors Ink Agreements with Overseas Vendors - Meanwhile Over 2,000 Proton X70 SUVs Already Delivered in Malaysia

Earlier today, a group of Proton vendors entered into collaboration agreements during a ceremony held at the Matrade Exhibition and Convention Centre (MECC). This is the second group of Proton vendors who have done so and like the first group of vendors, the agreements range in scope from technical agreements and joint ventures to 100% foreign direct investments by the overseas vendors into Malaysia. The new joint ventures is estimated tov bring an initial investment of RM47 million into country with the amount set to multiply over the years in tandem with increases in PROTON'S production volume. All of these collaborations will benefit the local production of the recently launched Proton X70 SUV. Some details of its delivery status is down below.

Motorcycles: BMW Motorrad Malaysia Announces 3 Year Warranty and Roadside Assistance Programs & Announces Revised Pricing for its Models

 BMW G310R

BMW Motorrad Malaysia has marked 2019 by introduced two new programs for the after sales of BMW Motorrad models registered from 1st January 2019 onwards – The BMW Motorrad 3-Year Warranty and Roadside Assistance Programs. They have also announced revised pricing for all of their BMW Motorrad, or Motorcycles in line with the latest excise duties as well as model line-up.

Cycle & Carriage Celebrates 120th Anniversary with the 120 Exceptional Journeys Campaign for their Customers

Cycle & Carriage has been a leading regional automotive group here in Southeast Asia. The group currently are dealers for 10 brands which operate in Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar. Here, they are quite synonymous as being a prominent chain of Mercedes-Benz dealerships. This year, the long established automotive dealership is celebrating its 120th anniversary and  is launching a new brand promise called ‘Exceptional Journeys’ with the 120 Exceptional Journeys contest where 120 customers from Malaysia, Myanmar and Singapore get a chance to win a trip to Mongolia, Nepal or Korea. 

HINO Malaysia Hands Over School Bus to The Community Chest NGO for the Use of SJK (T) Kangar, Perlis / All Hino Vehicles Sold By Hino Malaysia are B10 Biodiesel Compatible

Hino Motors Sales (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (HMSM) held a small handing over ceremony where they handed over their Hino XZU720L1 Mini Bus complete with School Bus colours to The Community Chest (TCC), a non-government charitable organisation which purchased the mini bus as a donation for SJK (T) Kangar, Perlis. The ceremony was attended by administrators of The Community Chest, the Parent-Teacher's Association president of SJK (T) Kangar and senior members of HMSM.

Happenings: Volvo Trucks Malaysia Donates RM10,650 to MERCY Malaysia to Help Rebuild Palu

The 28th of September 2018 was a sad and unforgettable day for the residents of the City of Palu, Indonesia. The city on the island of Sulawesi was hit by a 5-metre-high tsunami shortly after a magnitude 7.5 earthquake occurred 80 km north of the city. The earthquake killed 2,256 people, with over 1,549 injured. It was a tragedy which affected Palu and four other inhabited places. In an effort to aid the victims of the aftermath of the disaster, Volvo Trucks Malaysia has donated RM 10,650 to Mercy Malaysia, a humanitarian aid organisation that is dedicated to helping those in need of support in Palu.

Win a Trip of a Lifetime with Shell - A Holiday Package to Either Italy, New Zealand or South Korea Awaits You and the Partner of Your Choice!

The 'Win a Trip with Shell' Contest is currently ongoing from the 17th of December 2018 to 31st March 2019. This unique contest by Shell Malaysia will reward its participants on a weekly basis where one weekly winner and their person of choice will be rewarded with a holiday package to either Italy, New Zealand or South Korea. All one needs to do is  just need to spend a minimum of RM40 at Shell retail stations nationwide to be eligible to participate in the Win a Trip with Shell contest. To prove a point, Shell Malaysia just announced its first winner,  at the official launch of the contest yesterday.

Offers & Promos: Sime Darby Auto Connexion & Ford Malaysia Have Their Thaipusam and Chinese New Year 2019 Festive Promotions

Sime Darby Auto Connexion (SDAC), who are the sole distributor of Ford in Malaysia, have recently announced their latest round of offers and promotions specially tailored for Ford owners in the upcoming Thaipusam and Chinese New Year festivities for 2019. This is aside from the usual sales offers as this is more for the current Ford owners who may need their vehicles in tip-top shape over the coming holidays

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia's 2018 Performance Report - A Record 13,079 Vehicles Sold, Over 148,000 Serviced & RM2.7b Financed

Yesterday I had the privilege to attend the media briefing of Mercedes-Benz Malaysia's (MBM) 2018 performance report. What we found out was that the Mercedes-Benz marque remains the No.1 luxury lifestyle brand here in Malaysia. The brand basically kept keeping things fresh with innovative mobility solutions, exciting products and engaging experiences. It all paid off, as for 2018, Mercedes-Benz delivered a record 13,079 units of Mercedes-Benz vehicles to its customers. This meant a 2.4% market share of the Malaysian Total Industry Volume (TIV). This, from a premium brand. Amazing.

First Proton X70 to suffer an Accident??? [Updated with another Pic]

What we have here could be the first Proton X70 to get into an accident. Sad but true. 

Volkswagen Malaysia is Having its 2019 Chinese New Year offers - Both for New Cars as well as Replacement Tyre and Battery Campaigns for Current Customers

Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) is having its 2019 Chinese New Year celebration by offering some extra value rebates on all of its current models with its upside down CNY campaign. There is this sales promotion for new Volkswagen cars as well as tyre deals and battery deals for current Volkswagen owners too. 

Photos of the 2019 Proton Iriz Facelift - Unverified but quite plausible

These two photos are making its way on my watsapp chat groups. They are presumed to be the facelift for the upcoming 2019 Proton Iriz facelift. I cannot verify or confirm its authenticity but it looks plausible and production ready. They seem to be showing the car exiting the rain/water proofing testing facility.

TEST DRIVE- First Impressions of the 2019 Perodua Aruz at the Perodua Test Track - Updated with Product Photographs & Launch Video Review ..

I was one of the few lucky motoring media who was invited to try out the 2019 Perodua Aruz prior to its announcement and teaser photos you see in this other article. The 7 seater SUV is production ready and we managed a go with it at the Perodua Test Track near Rawang, Selangor. No photographs were taken by any of us and they even gave us a locker each to store our camera taking gear. I felt naked without my smartphone. Finger also itchy without it. Anyway, just take a look at the Toyota Rush photos and imagine slightly different trim with a Perodua badge and logo instead. Here I have updated this article with product photographs as the Aruz has been launched.

Perodua Aruz Open For Booking - Seems like Super Value at RM72,200 Onwards!

It's been an extremely busy end of 2018 and early 2019 for me folks! First, there was the usual year end holidays to get through. I ended up in Phuket, Thailand for some R&R (if you follow Motoring Malaysia on YouTube and on our Facebook page, you know we've been quite active with a couple of posts). Then there was the first week of school to get through. I have a 14 year old daughter to deal with and I need some time to get things settled. Of course, Perodua had to deal with trigger happy dealers who leaked details of the new Perodua Aruz 7 Seater SUV until they had to announce details on it mid-last week! 

[Update - link to the test drive article is here - no photographs though..as it still hasn't been officially launched]

TEST DRIVE - First Impressions of the New 2019 Toyota Rush 1.5 S

Sometime during the 4th quarter of 2018 I had a chance to participate in a short media drive of the all-new 2019 Toyota Rush 7 Seater compact SUV. This happened during the recent preview of the car recently. Three of us motoring media folks shared a Rush and we drove from MAEPS in Serdang to Cyberjaya, Putrajaya and back. It was a short couple of hours but if you watched the video on YouTube, we did manage to try it out on the highways, city streets and also some dirt roads around the Cyberjaya/Putrajaya area. 

Daihatsu Malaysia Invests in a New One Stop 3S Centre in Ipoh for Their HINO Truck and Bus Sales & Servicing Needs

Daihatsu (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd or Daihatsu Malaysia has been quite busy in the commercial vehicle sector here. With its passenger vehicle investment here in Malaysia essentially run through its shareholding in Perodua, they have focused more on the commercial vehicle sector, concentrating on their small commercial vehicle - the Daihatsu Hijet and also as an authorised dealer for Hino Motors Sales (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (HMSM). It recently  announced its new 3S Centre which comprises of Sales, Aftersales Service and Spare Parts, in Ipoh. As both are Toyota Group companies, this is the synergy they share.

Video Test Drive: 2018 Mazda CX-5 SKYACTIV 2.0G 2WD GLS - Mazda's Mid-Priced SUV Offers a Lot

Here is another video review / test drive folks! I squeezed this in just before going on a short vacation. Even I would like to take advantage of this year end you know. So we have the video review of the 2018 Mazda CX-5 SKYACTIV 2.0G 2WD GLS, folks. This is a nice mid-priced SUV which offers a lot.

Goodyear Tyres Launches the Assurance TripleMax 2 Tyre in Malaysia - A New Mid-Passenger Car Tyre Which Officially Replaces the Long Running NCT5

So recently a few of us motoring media fellas met up with the folks from Goodyear Malaysia. Aside from meeting the people now in charge of marketing and having the usual small talk, chit chat and stuff, they also informed us on the arrival of the Goodyear Assurance TripleMax 2 tyre. This is a tyre designed for the mid-range passenger car segment and it actually replaces the long running Goodyear NCT5 tyre here in Malaysia. When I say long running, the NCT5 is super long running as I remember actually using this tyre sometime in the early 2000s or even earlier!

Konsortium E-Mutiara Berhad Adopts The Scania Ecolution Program to Help Reduce CO2 Emissions & Fuel Consumption For The Well Being of the Environment

Konsortium E-Mutiara Berhad (E-Mutiara), one of the more notable express bus operators in Malaysia has become the first company in the whole of Asia to adopt the Scania Ecolution program. According to the folks at Scania Malaysia, Scania Ecolution is more than just a product or service. They call it a tailor-made partnership between Scania and operators of Scania vehicles that is designed to reduce CO 2 emissions and reduce fuel consumption for the well being of the environment.

HINO Total Support (TS) Contest 2018 - HINO Malaysia's 5th Annual Sales, Service & Parts Personnel Competition Was Held Recently

Hino Motors Sales (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. (HMSM) recently held the HINO Total Support (TS) Contest 2018, the 5th time this annual contest has been held. This sales and aftersales personnel contest was held at HMSM'S Head Office located in Petaling Jaya. The competition is aimed towards fostering greater skills and knowledge among the dealers and their personnel so that they get to spend some time meeting others and at the same time ensure that the Hino brand stays at the top of the Malaysian commercial vehicle industry in terms of sales and aftersales.

VIDEO TEST DRIVE: The 2018 Volvo S90 T8 Twin Engine Inscription Plus - Volvo's Best Sedan.

I finally managed to put this video together after quite a while. This is the video about me testing the 2018 Volvo S90 T8 Twin Engine Inscription Plus. This is Volvo's flagship sedan here in Malaysia and it shares the same drivetrain and powertrain as the XC90 T8 SUV. This is the sedan variant of what I think has the best hybrid drivetrain to be fitted to a vehicle (circa 2018).