Wapcar Morning Insiders (Sep. 11, 2019)

Today is Wednesday, Sep. 11

 Local News 

All-new Lexus ES 250 launched in Malaysia, 2 variants priced from RM300k!

Lexus Malaysia is offering the ES 250 in two different trims, Premium and Luxury. Being a Lexus, the ES 250 is naturally fully imported from Japan but interestingly the local distributor has managed to keep prices extremely competitively.

There’s only one engine option available, the 2.5-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine developing 204 PS and 247 Nm of torque. Drive is transferred to the front wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission.

More on: All-new Lexus ES 250 launched in Malaysia, 2 variants priced from RM300k!

New Lexus RX launched in Malaysia – priced from RM 399,888

Lexus Malaysia has just introduced the new RX, a mid-life update for its popular mid-sized luxury crossover.

Compared to the model it replaces, the new RX 300 Premium is RM 5,112 cheaper, but both the RX 300 Luxury and RX 300 F Sport are RM 888 pricier than before.

More on: New Lexus RX

New Honda Civic now open for bookings

It looks like the new Honda Civic will be launched in Malaysia soon, as Honda Malaysia has just opened bookings for its upcoming C-segment sedan.

Click and see what Honda Sensing suite will the new Civic receive:

More on: New Honda Civic

MYPerodua Nation 2019 will open its doors to the public from 20-22 September

MYPerodua Nation is the nation’s premier Perodua event – the annual carnival featuring all things Perodua is into its third year.

For customers’ benefit, Perodua’s entire value chain will be there, including Perodua Total Protect Plus, Perodua Pre-Owned Vehicles (POV), GearUp accessories and merchandise, parts, Perodua Genuine Oil and the UFirst loyalty programme – all in one place. Perodua’s financial and insurance partners will also be there to facilitate the purchase process.

More on: MYPerodua Nation

Police warns parties promoting motorcycle modifications

Police have warned all parties including artistes to stop promoting illegal modifications of motorcycles and the violation of the law if they do not want to face stern actions.

Such unhealthy activities were found to have driven motorcyclists especially teenagers to modify their machines and to be involved in illegal races and so on.

More on: Bernama

 Wapcartalk 

30 years of Lexus: How it began and what is the meaning of the Lexus name?

First introduced in 1989 with the first generation Lexus LS 400, this year marks the 30th anniversary of the luxury car brand that set new standards for quality and customer service.

Lexus’ story began in August 1983 at Toyota’s headquarters in Aichi…

Read the complete story NOW

 International News 

Kia poaches ex-BMW and ex-Infiniti designer Karim Habib

After a short and tumultuous two years at Infiniti (the fallout between Carlos Ghosn and Nissan), Karim Habib has now been confirmed to have taken up a new position at Kia.

Habib will start his new position as Senior Vice President and Head of Kia Design Center in October, and will be based at Kia’s global design headquarters in Namyang, Korea.

More on: Kia poaches ex-BMW and ex-Infiniti designer Karim Habib

Renault boss eager to reignite FCA partnership talks

Renault CEO Thierry Bollore has given his strongest indication yet that he is hoping to reopen talks with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) about a future partnership.

Earlier this year, FCA proposed a 50/50 merger with Renault that would have created one of the world’s largest car groups once the Nissan and Mitsubishi brands, part of an existing Renault alliance, were taken into account.

In its statement withdrawing the offer in June, FCA said that it "remains firmly convinced of the compelling, transformational rationale of a proposal that has been widely appreciated since it was submitted, the structure and terms of which were carefully balanced to deliver substantial benefits to all parties."

More on: Autocar

 Frankfurt 2019  Audi to debut all-new RS7 Sportback

New to the RS7 Sportback is the mild hybrid system (MHEV) with a 48-volt on-board electrical system. The mild hybrid system features a belt alternator starter that can recover up to 12 kW of power under gentle acceleration and feed it to a lithium-ion battery pack.

Top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h, but can be increased to 280 km/h with the optional Dynamic package, or 305 km/h with the optional Dynamic plus package.

More on: Audi to debut all-new RS7 Sportback

 Frankfurt 2019  VW electrifies a classic Beetle, plans to offer conversion kits

The Volkswagen Beetle is no more in production but many early generation air-cooled Beetles might get a new lease of life by swapping the original car’s flat-four engine with electric components from the Volkswagen e-up!

Beyond the e-Beetle, the Volkswagen Group is also working on similar solutions for the Kombi and Porsche 356.

More on: VW electrifies a classic Beetle

 Frankfurt 2019  Ferrari 812 GTS, letting the 6.5L V12 sing with the top down

Ferrari’s most powerful V12-engine now can be enjoyed without a roof over your head in the all-new Ferrari 812 GTS. Based on the 812 Superfast, the 812 GTS features a retractable hard top (RHT) which opens in 14 seconds at speeds of up to 45 km/h.

More on: Ferrari 812 GTS

 Frankfurt 2019  Mercedes‑Benz to premier the Mercedes‑Benz GLE 350 de 4MATIC and GLC 300 e 4MATIC

Mercedes will introduce not one, but two plug-in hybrid members to the EQ Power family: the Mercedes‑Benz GLE 350 de 4MATIC and GLC 300 e 4MATIC.

In the C- and E- Class, Mercedes-Benz is the only manufacturer to combine the diesel engine with plug-in technology, offering this set-up in the Saloon and Estate versions of these two model series. 

More on: Mercedes‑Benz GLE 350 de 4MATIC and GLC 300 e 4MATIC