“A big embarrassment for Indonesia” and “Indonesian President… to feel jealous” are some of the comments mentioned in a recent opinion piece published by Japan’s Nikkei Asia in regard to Tesla’s launch in Malaysia. Indonesia’s government has already courted the American EV maker for years to invest in the archipelago but it seems that Malaysia somehow won according to the opinion piece by A. Lin Neumann, managing director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia. Tesla has set up a regio

Amidst the hullaballoo surrounding the twin 1,000 Nm monsters launched earlier today, it seems that Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM) has opened registration of interest (ROI) for yet one more electric vehicle, the Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV. Analoguous to a GLE, the EQE SUV is the missing link in MBM's EV line-up here in Malaysia: we already have the EQA, EQB, and EQC prior. Specs and price of EQE SUV in Malaysia Confirmed specifications nor pricing are not released yet at point of publication, but know

The BMW Group is on track to exceed its initial target to reduce its fleet-wide CO2 emissions in Europe by more than twice, boosted by strong response to its battery EV models, said Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management. The group had initially targeted a 4.9 percent year-on-year reduction in CO2 emissions, but is now on track to deliver between 5 to 10 percent. As of September 2022, the BMW Group has delivered over 128,000 battery EVs, up 114.8 percent from last year. The company di

Lexus' first dedicated EV model To launch after March 2022 Following a sneak preview in December last year's announcement of 30 Toyota / Lexus EV models, Lexus International has released more photos of the 2022 Lexus RZ, which Lexus says will be launched in the second quarter of 2022. The Lexus RZ will be Lexus’ first electric-only model. Currently, Lexus’ only EV model is the Lexus UX 300e, which is an EV variant of the regular petrol-powered UX. Not much is known about the Lexus RZ yet, but fr

Homologation is a word that motorsports fans commonly hear but actually the word simply means conformity to regulations. In the case of WRC cars, it’s FIA regulations. In the case of road cars, it’s the local country’s road transport regulations. Before the first unit of a new model can be registered in Malaysia, it has to undergo what’s referred as vehicle type approval (VTA), the industry’s term for homologation of road-going cars. You can loosely describe VTA as a ‘birth certificate’ of a car

Our friends at Otodriver Indonesia have reported that the Hyundai Kona Electric might be assembled in Indonesia come 2023. The electric car might be produced at the new Hyundai Plant in Cikarang. Their source prefers remain unidentified. The Hyundai Kona Electric had made a public appearance at the Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show 2018 (KLIMS 2018). After that, the car has been spotted several times with a trade plate, presumably being used for staff training. The Hyundai Kona was one of th