Author: Jonathan Lee

After faltering barely in 2024, Proton bounced back last 12 months by selling 157,976 vehicles – a rise of three.3% over the 12 months before and putting it back on a trajectory of continuous improvement that began in 2018. That is estimated to have put its market share at 19.4%, a bump of 0.7% in a 12 months where the overall industry volume (TIV) is predicted to have shrunk by 0.2% to 814,949 units. A comprehensive renewal of Proton’s best-sellers enabled it to hit those highs. The corporate sold 74,013 units of the Saga (the best since 2011), with 7,975…

It’s easy to forget, on condition that we’ve had the City Hatchback as its alternative for some time now, however the Honda Jazz does still exist in other parts of the world. It’s been six years because the fourth-generation model was revealed, but it surely’s still going strong, and actually it seems that the automobile will soon be in for a second facelift in China, where it’s called the Fit. Photos of the refreshed B-segment hatchback have cropped up on Autohome, and my word has it been in for a makeover. The doe-eyed original was perhaps slightly too cutesy for…

A mixed Mazda–Kia–Xpeng-branded Bermaz showroom I’m sure that by now you’ve seen Kia models being sold alongside Mazdas and Xpengs at certain Bermaz showrooms across Malaysia. It is because the corporate has hitherto held the distributorships for all three brands, and because it already has an intensive Mazda dealer network – and since some outlets usually are not capable of justify the additional outlay of constructing a separate Kia showroom – the three otherwise unrelated brands are forced to take a seat alongside one another under one roof. In fact, Bermaz isn’t the one company doing this. Stellantis Malaysia operates…

The ministry of transport has moved to quell reports that outstanding road transport department (JPJ) summonses would cause users to be locked out of their Budi95 petrol subsidy. Based on an announcement released by minister Anthony Loke, unpaid fines and subsidy eligibility are based on two different mechanisms that operate individually; they will not be related to one another. He insisted that Budi95 eligibility will proceed as is, whereby users will only have to be Malaysian residents with a sound MyKad and have an energetic driving licence. Note that this doesn’t mean the licence itself must be valid – users…

Except for the Dongfeng 007, Central Auto Distributors (CADB) has also previewed the Dongfeng Vigo in Malaysia. To not be confused with the seventh-generation Thai-market Toyota Hilux, that is an electrical SUV that’s sized to compete with the BYD Atto 2. Nonetheless, provided that it is going to be launched in the primary quarter of next 12 months – and thus miss out on tax incentives for CBU fully-imported EVs that expire on December 31 – the Vigo is anticipated to be priced closer to the what the Atto 3 and Proton eMas 7 cost currently. So, likely somewhere within…

It’s not only platforms and powertrains which can be being discussed on the Proton Tech Showcase this weekend – the national carmaker’s infotainment partner ACO Tech can also be previewing a pair of recent processors that can power its Atlas operating system starting next 12 months. Proton’s current X50, X90 and S70 are all powered by the quad-core E02 chip, developed by the Geely-linked ECARX and introduced back in 2019. The eMas 7, alternatively, utilises the E04 chip, which is a renamed version of ECARX’s Antora 1000. That is considerably more powerful than the E02, because it has to run…

This could be probably the most talked-about Chinese automobile straight away – The Yangwang U9 Xtreme, fresh from its record-breaking tour, has made an appearance at Auto Guangzhou, letting us stand up close and private with BYD’s extraordinary electric supercar. In case you were living under a rock for the past few months, the Xtreme is the more, well, extreme version of the U9. That automobile already possesses some impressive numbers, equipped with 4 motors that together produce 1,306 PS (960 kW) and 1,680 Nm of torque, getting it from zero to 100 km/h in 2.36 seconds on its approach…

Sitting in a quiet corner of FAW Toyota’s Auto Guangzhou booth is the facelifted Twelfth-generation Toyota Corolla sedan – surprising given that is the most well-liked version of what remains to be the best-selling vehicle of all time. The dearth of attention to this automotive belies the numerous changes which were made, geared toward keeping it fresh after a whopping seven years available on the market. As seen in a previous leak, the Corolla receives an all-new front end that takes a page from the most recent Prius and Camry, sporting Toyota’s latest “hammerhead” design lined framed by C-shaped headlights.…

Initially appearing to be an Indonesian oddity, the Honda StepWGN is looking increasingly more likely to be offered to the remainder of Southeast Asia, having been teased in Thailand ahead of the country’s Motor Expo on November 28. The mid-size MPV, still CBU fully imported from Japan, is ready to battle rivals similar to the C28 Nissan Serena e-Power. As per its home market, the StepWGN will probably be offered exclusively in e:HEV hybrid form – presumably the identical 2.0 litre version as Indonesia. There, the automotive is powered by a 184 PS/315 Nm electric motor, with the 145 PS/175…

There’s just five days to go until the paultan.org Auto Automobile Expo (ACE), co-sponsored by Carro and Kärcher, returns on November 8 and 9 at its home, Setia City Convention Centre (SCCC). Today, we welcome one other brand to the fold in the form of Lotus, which will likely be displaying the Emeya on the show. The electrical super sedan will likely be presented in a special pink sakura (cherry blossom) livery in partnership with Motorsports Playground and the Breast Cancer Wellness Association (BCWA). You too will likely be a beneficiary of this collaboration, as every Emeya booked on these…