Here's the world's first look at the upcoming Mazda CX-80, as seen through patent filings on Japan's patent database, J-PlatPlat. Billed as the replacement to the long-standing CX-8 – which has been discontinued in Japan – the CX-80 is part of Mazda's battalion of all-new SUVs that's set for the Japanese and European markets. Also read: Mazda CX-8 to end production in Japan to make way for CX-80, Malaysian CKD production unaffected The North American market, by the way, has their own set of mode

MY LIFE WITH VOLVOS & THE XC40 By Mr Rational I woke up one fine morning and told myself I deserved a nice little petrol-powered SUV as another daily driver. A convenient excuse, I know. Nothing more than RM6,000 for monthly payments. So I went out to look at the Mazda CX30 and CX5, trying very hard to ignore their relatively anaemic engine options, having been dead spoilt by the joy of a Golf Mk6—when it did not break down. Way within my budget but they both spoke not to me. Not even a whisper

SUVs are all the rage these days and car manufacturers are more than happy to comply, as larger cars like SUVs offer more profit margins than a subcompact hatchback or sedan. In fact, this trend isn’t just limited to Malaysia – it is also apparent in countries like China. So much so that buyers in China collectively bought 1,129,042 new SUVs in December alone. For context, our Malaysian Total Industry Volume (TIV) in the whole of 2020 was 529,434 vehicles. Covid-19 notwithstanding, buyers in Chi

When you are stuck in a traffic jam, should you leave your automatic transmission car in Drive and hold it with the brakes, or shift to Neutral and engage the parking brake/hand brake? Depending on who you ask, you will get a different answers. Not very long ago, it was said that you should leave your car in Drive, and that it’s not recommended to keep shifting between Drive and Neutral because doing so sends unnecessary shift shock to the driveline. But with the kind of traffic that we have the

Geely has just revealed the pricing of its latest SUV, the Geely Haoyue. The Haoyue is priced between CNY 108k to 148k (RM 65k to 89k). The Haoyue is available in either a 5 or 7-seater configuration and interestingly the range-topping model is a 5-seater. Geely SUV model pricing: Model Price Range Geely Binyue CNY 78k – 119k (RM 47k - 71k) Geely Boyue CNY 88k – 119k (RM 53k - 71k) Geely Boyue Pro CNY 98k – 156k (RM 59k - 94k) Geely Haoyue CNY 108k – 148k (RM 65k - 89k) As you can see from the t

Last week, this column discussed the challenges that lie ahead in exporting the Proton X70 to Indonesia. While the Proton X70 was able to race to the top of the sales chart almost as soon as it was launched, it will not enjoy such luxury in Indonesia. As an imported model, the Indonesian government will certainly not grant Proton any tax incentives the way the Malaysian government does. Without a significant price advantage, it’s will have a harder time going up against the Honda CR-V. To win ov