2019 Volkswagen Passat 2.0 TSI Highline Short Test Drive - A Look at This Pre-Facelift D Segment Sedan Before the Facelift Variant is Launched (Details of This Here Also)

This is the 2019 Volkswagen Passat 2.0 TSI Highline. This Passat B8, its model code name, was first launched over in Europe sometime in 2014 and it has been sold here in Malaysia since the end of 2016. We had a go at it when it was launched and recently, we had another go at it courtesy of Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia. This to me is a recap to this outgoing model as you can already see plastered on the Volkswagen Malaysia homepage, the teaser pages of the very soon to be launched, 2020 Volkswagen Passat Facelift.

Merry Christmas and Seasons Greetings

Merry Christmas and a happy new year folks! I've been busy relaxing and just doing stuff that I like to do aside from automotive related stuff.

The Last Overland Expedition Makes it Back to the UK - Covering 23 countries from Singapore to London

The Last Overland Expedition, an expedition taking after the original one from 1955-1956, has finally completed its journey. A 19,000 km road journey from Singapore to London, which could be said as a reprise of the original expedition which did London to Singapore (i.e vice versa route). It journeyed through 23 countries and it will be documented into a TV documentary series scheduled for release sometime in 2020. 

BMW Dealers Tian Siang Premium Auto and the Gurney Paragon Mall Introduce New BMW i Charging Facilities in Penang.

Tian Siang Premium Auto, dealers for BMW over in Butterworth, Penang (and also in Ipoh, Perak), and the management of Gurney Paragon Mall have announced  BMW i Charging Facilities at the Gurney Paragon Mall over on Penang Island. The new charging station adds to the expanding network of charging facilities operated by the BMW brand here in Malaysia.

Teacher wins the Volkswagen “Win the Icon” Contest and Gets to Drive Away With a Beetle

The “Win the Icon” contest has ended. After two months, Mr. Muhamad Rizal bin Sadiman, a high school teacher from Perak has won a brand-new Volkswagen Beetle 1.2TSI. The contest which ran from 1st October to the 30th of November 2019 had over 800 posts and submissions of photos and videos of Malaysians trying out their favourite Volkswagen models and documenting them. The best one with the hashtag #BetterExperiencedThanExplained got a brand new Beetle for their hard work. 

BMW Group Malaysia Celebrates the Joy of Giving at the Bangsar Shopping Centre - From Now Until 26th December 2019

BMW Group Malaysia is currently celebrating the season of giving, or Christmas at the Bangsar Shopping Centre (BSC) from now until 26 th December 2019. You can celebrate this festive season with BMW and also get a chance to win exclusive BMW merchandise via lucky draw contests, test drives of their dream BMW models. The initiatives happening at this event are also in support of fulfilling the Christmas wish lists of the children from Shelter making these less fortunate kids celebrate a better Christmas than usual.

Proton Officially Announces the Roll-Out of the First Proton X70 SUV at its New Plant Extension in Tanjung Malim

About a year since the Proton X70 SUV was launched in Malaysia, PROTON has announced the official roll out of the first X70 to be built at its new RM1.2 billion plant extension in Tanjung Malim.  The roll-out ceremony was attended by the Honourable Datuk Darell Leiking, Minister of International Trade and Industry, Dato’ Sri Syed Faisal Albar, Chairman of PROTON, Mr An Conghui, President and CEO of Geely Auto Group as well as senior management members of PROTON.

New Limited Run Ford Ranger XLT Special Edition Launched For The Malaysian Market

There is now a New Ford Ranger XLT 2.2L Special Edition offered exclusively for customers in Malaysia. According to Sime Darby Auto Connexion, authorised distributors for Ford in Malaysia, there will be limited units will be available for sale from now onwards. The New Ford Ranger XLT 2.2L Special Edition comes in Arctic White and Absolute Black colour options as well as some other notable extras like fender flares, a rear view camera and a functional tonneau cover.

Proton X70 Selected as Official Vehicles for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2020

The Proton X70 SUV has been selected as one of the official vehicles of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2020 or MyAPEC 2020. Currently Malaysia's most popular C segment SUV, the X70 will be used as one of the official vehicles in the year long forum that is intended to promote economic cooperation throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

New Mitsubishi Triton Knight Launched - Limited to 120 Units Variant Based on the Top Specification Triton Adventure X Variant

Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM) has just introduced the new Mitsubishi Triton Knight. This is a new, limited to 120 units only Triton pickup truck based on the highest specification Mitsubishi Triton sold here in Malaysia, the Triton Adventure X variant. It is priced the same as the Triton Adventure X at RM137,900 (OTR before insurance) but adds more accessories into it.

Perodua Tweckbot Offers Free Vehicle inspections in Kota Kinabalu in Conjunction With Christmas & New Year Celebrations

Tweckbot is Perodua’s long-running complimentary vehicle inspection service programme. The latest edition of this free inspection programme will be making its final road safety push for the year in Kota Kinabalu next weekend. The Perodua Tweckbot will be stationed at ITCC Mall, Penampang on 21 and 22 December 2019 from 10am to 5pm on both days to offer free inspections for Perodua vehicles.

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Launches the Facelifted GLC-Series with the GLC 200, GLC 300 4MATIC and the GLC 300 4MATIC Coupe

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM) has launched the facelifted Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class of SUVs. These newly upgraded model combines outstanding on and off-road driving characteristics with spaciousness, practicality, comfort and advanced pioneering technologies, connectivity and state-of- the-art infotainment is now in Malaysia. Locally assembled, the facelifted GLCs are now equipped with MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User Experience) infotainment system as well as the MMC (Mercedes me connect) feature. This is basically the one that you can now give it voice commands.

Buy a Volkswagen Polo JOIN or a Volkswagen Beetle on Volkswagen Malaysia's Instagram Shop @Volkswagenmalaysia on 12.12.2019 - Limited to 12 Units Each

Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) having its first-of-its-kind Instagram-exclusive sale for one day only (24 hours), 12 units of the Volkswagen Polo Hatchback with the JOIN accessories package and 12 units of the iconic Volkswagen Beetle with free spoiler and VW Tint. Both will be sold on Volkswagen Malaysia’s Instagram shop (@volkswagenmalaysia) at a special discount of RM12,000. This is quite a lot, yes?

Happenings: Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Bring Christmas Early with its 10th Edition of Christmas in a Shoebox - 40 Children From Yayasan Sunbeams Home Get Treats and Activities at KLPAC

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM), brought an early Christmas celebration to the folks at Yayasan Sunbeams Home through its annual social initiative; ‘Christmas in a Shoebox’. Employees, senior management from MBM and Datuk Nicol David, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s brand ambassador, made 40 children of Yayasan Sunbeams Home happier than usual with goodies, festive treats and enjoyable activities organised with the help of The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC).

Hino Motor Sales Malaysia Holds the Hino Total Support Contest For The 6th Time

Hino Motors Sales (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (Hino Malaysia) recently held the sixth edition of the Hino ‘Total Support Contest’ (TS Contest). The contest which is an initiative to inculcate better technical and customer servicing skill and knowledge among its dealers was held at its head-quarters in Petaling Jaya, last Saturday. This time, 130 contestants from 36 Hino authorized dealerships took part.

Goodyear Malaysia Launches the New Range of Eagle F1 tyres - The Supersport RS, Supersport R, Supersport, Asymetric 5 and the Asymetric 3 SUV

Goodyear Malaysia earlier today unveiled the latest additions to the Eagle F1 range of tyres- the SuperSport RS, SuperSport R, SuperSport, Asymmetric 5 and the Asymmetric 3 SUV. The launch of these Eagle F1 tyres has basically happened after Goodyear’s recent sponsorship of three participating teams in the World Endurance Championship (widely known as the Le Mans). The three teams are Jota Sport, Jackie Chan DC Racing and High Class Racing. They are bringing back the brand into high profile Motorsport racing again.

Happenings: Shell Malaysia Wins Award for its Next Generation Lubricant Solutions at the First Ever Malaysia Technology Excellence Awards

The Shell Malaysia team with Singapore Business Review Editor-in-Chief Tim Charlton (3rd from right) at the 2019 Malaysia Technology Excellence Awards presentation ceremony.

Shell Malaysia Trading Sdn Bhd has won an award in the Digital - Energy Category at the inaugural Malaysia Technology Excellence Awards 2019. The energy producing company was awarded the recognition for introducing next-generation lubricant solutions for its business-to-business (B2B) customers that incorporated artificial intelligence (AI), mobile applications and wearable technology. This Technology Excellence Awards event was organised by Charlton Media Group of Singapore 

Happenings: Bermaz Motor Hosts the 7th Mazda Charity Golf Tournament

Bermaz Motor, the authorised distributor for Mazda vehicles here in Malaysia, had hosted its 7th Mazda Charity Golf Tournament for the Mazda Medicare Fund (MMF) on the 1st of December 2019. The golf tournament was organised with the aim to provide humanitarian aid and medical relief to under privileged people in Malaysia. Bermaz Motor organises events like these to actively support charitable communities with financial aid such as old folk’s homes and orphanages. This is how Bermaz, and Mazda gives back to the community here in Malaysia.

GVE Asia Group Takes Over Operations of Volkswagen Sg Besi from Wearnes Automotive Malaysia

It looks like the landscape for Volkswagen dealerships have changed slightly again. Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) have announced that effective  2nd December 2019, Volkswagen Sg. Besi will be operated by a new dealer partner, GVE Asia Group. The new dealer has taken over the dealership from Wearnes Automotive Malaysia.

SOCAR is Now Available at Over 52 PETRONAS Stations Around Malaysia

SOCAR Malaysia, the car-sharing network company is now available at more than 52 PETRONAS stations in the Klang Valley, Johor and Penang. This makes it a little more convenient for users to pick-up and drop-off vehicles as there are now more SOCAR locations available.