Budget 2011: BMW hopes clean diesel will not be forgotten

Budget 2011: BMW hopes clean diesel will not be forgottenWhile the hot news was on hybrids and the only significant topic on the diesel front in Budget 2011 was on the implementation of the B5 programme (Blending of Biofuels with Petroleum Diesel) on a mandatory basis in some states by June of next year, there remains the hope that the Government will continue to look at improving the quality of petroleum diesel as another step in lowering carbon emissions.

BMW Group Malaysia is of the belief that such an approach is not only a viable alternative but a very sound one at that, with the following commentary on Budget 2011, which you will find after the jump. I think the key is here the comparison between the 320i and the 320d. Makes lots of sense really, when compared to what the United Nations defines the hybrid standard as.

While BMW Group Malaysia is pleased to hear of the government’s continued focus on the development of Green Technology and commitment to reducing carbon emission intensity, we hope that the government will provide the full details regarding its plans to introduce the B5, Blending of Biofuels with Petroleum Diesel Programme prior to making it mandatory by June 2011.

Biodiesel in the form of esterified Palm Methyl Ester (PME) can and have been used as a cleaner fuel alternative in some parts of the world when blended in small amounts with natural petroleum diesel. However, the most pressing issue that needs to be addressed locally is to ensure that fuel standards in Malaysia are collectively improved to Euro IV standards as a minimum, as this would be the most effective and wide spread method of reducing carbon emission intensity throughout the Malaysian passenger and commercial vehicle segments.

Furthermore, it is vital that the government also introduce incentives to encourage the ownership of Advanced Diesel vehicles in Malaysia, such as was done with the extension of import and excise duty exemption on hybrid vehicles. The fact of the matter is that while Hybrids are designed to be environmentally friendly, they are not the one all and be all solution to promoting sustainability or reducing carbon emissions.

As a matter of fact, under current standards established by the United Nations, the definition of hybrid cars requires that their engine specifications are of at least Euro 3 specification technology and have achieved not less than a 25% increase in combined city-highway fuel economy, relative to a comparable non-hybrid vehicle with a maximum carbon monoxide (CO) emission rating of 2.3 grams per kilometre.

Advanced Diesel engines such as those developed by BMW are already available with Euro 3 technology and specifications. Additionally, the fuel economy comparison between a BMW 320d and the BMW 320i will provide consumers with a 40% reduction in fuel consumption, not to mention a CO2 emission rating of only 0.326 grams per kilometre.

Based on these points alone, Advanced Diesel vehicles should be viewed as far exceeding the “Green” requirements and would significantly boost the government’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions, particularly, in light of Malaysia’s ongoing commitment to reduce carbon emission intensity per Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 40% in the year 2020 to 2005 emission levels.

Related Post:
Budget 2011: BMW Malaysia dreams of cleaner fuel, government support for clean diesel technology

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • Anti Proton on Oct 15, 2010 at 8:11 pm

    nice one

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    • Mr Brilliant on Oct 18, 2010 at 12:20 pm

      BMW Malaysia has become really desperate. You see, in the world markets, it is having big problems. In the US, it is known as a pariah due to it being “low cc”. You know Americans, all like muscle car with huge cc. Americans all like 5000cc and above.
      Unfortunately for BMW, they are now promoting their 3.0 twin turbo as their main petrol engine, not only in the 7 series but also X5. But Americans, being ignorant as they are, think 3000cc is crap. So, in US, BMW will eventually become doomed.
      In Europe pulak, BMW is promoting heavily diesel cause diesel is the No 1 fuel there. Petrol engines are made just to cater for the very few. The very few petrol engines are mainly the 3.0 litre single turbo. You see, even their 325i has become a 3 litre engine. BMW actually wants to stop their 2.5 and 2.0 petrol engines in favour of promoting the 20d and 23d models (diesel).
      So, in Malaysia, BMW Malaysia is starting to panic. There is no real 2.0 and 2.5 petrol engines available. That is why the F10, they put a very very old 52 engine inside to cater for the Malaysian needs, which is, cars below 2500cc and below. The new 5 series is not really a new car, it has a very old engine with merely a facelift. Bear in mind, a new model, by definition is new body and new engine. This car, uses an old engine, with a slightly new facelift.
      What is sad is the fact the CEO can stoop so low to say their diesel drive or push is because they love the environment so much and they want Malaysians to save money. We all know BMW Malaysia is in a big fix because BMW global is producing and pushing their 3.0 single and twin turbo engines and not interested in producing 2500cc and below engines.
      Please BMW be honest.

      That is why BMW is promoting their diesels. IF the government does not heavily promote diesel cars, BMW Malaysia may have to close shop cause there won’t be volume at all.

      BMW Malaysia is having lots of headache now with this This is further fuelled by their current cars constantly breaking down and having mechanical and electronic failures. I suggest BMW Malaysia concentrate, instead of pushing for diesel and wanting to increase your sales, buck up in your quality issues. Your customers are constantly complaining that their cars are having constant problems. This is more important than your push for diesel drive,

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      • BeemerFreak on Oct 19, 2010 at 1:45 am

        Nah I think all of this is bullshit… Is Mercedes-Benz competing in a different market as BMW? They have already seen the future in turbo charged engines by offering the 200 and 250 CGI engines in 1.8L turbo guise. BMW is simply in a transition towards the turbo petrol engines. The new 3 Series will be powered with a 3 cylinder turbo that will produce as much power as todays 325i.

        On the diesel front because BMW Malaysia knows that all base models in Europe are diesels and the fact that even if the jack up the price here with all these diesel offerings, people will still buy it, this gives them a huge profit over range topping petrol models. Hence it is money that entices them not desperation…… Furthermore BMW AG and Sime Darby has lots of cash to spend on BMW Malaysia, why should there be any desperation

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  • high time they set better standards

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  • Richard on Oct 15, 2010 at 9:42 pm

    Instead of coming up with continuous press releases, why don’t you reduce the prices of your diesel cars?

    X1 diesel is like 20,000 pounds in UK but here its, RM300,000

    All the talk about saving the consumer more money has no meaning when your cars are exorbitantly priced. A buyer can never recoup the cost back when the diesel car is far more expensive than a cheaper petrol unit.

    Don’t also talk about diesel lah, your 170Bhp 320i also not in Malaysia despite being in Europe for years. We still get the lower 156Bhp.

    How come not asking the government for cleaner petrol so that we can use the 170Bhp engine here? No press release on this kah?

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    • moots on Oct 17, 2010 at 8:40 am

      Its not as easy some think. Firstly the price must be attractive enough for BMW to assemble,store and eventually sell to customers. Secondly BMW is a luxury brand. If it was sold at a very much cheaper price it loses its exclusivity. Press releases like these are more to just get the company name out.

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    • Lim Kopi on Oct 17, 2010 at 11:13 pm

      Richard …

      Can’t u see? BMW desperately wants to promote their Diesel Technology here, it is actually their bread n butter in Europe, where most countries are not oil producing countries, hence thats probably why they are all forced to use Diesel there (in turn making them more dependent on Diesel Tech).

      So in Msia, the ballgame is totally different, we are still more Petrol dependent, summore not the high quality one. And to successfully sale Diesel variants here not only u have to change mindsets of buyers, but also govt policies ….

      for the 170 hp engine its also the same problem for the new 5 series which is forced to use back N52 engine, all becos our high sulphur fuel …

      all this is just not the best playing field for BMW

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  • osh_kosh on Oct 15, 2010 at 10:19 pm

    it’s not forgotten.. ‘they’ just don’t bother..

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  • Lim Kopi on Oct 15, 2010 at 10:28 pm

    I think Briscoe realises that their Diesel technology couldn’t really take flight in Msia without proper help from the G

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  • Richest on Oct 15, 2010 at 10:55 pm

    Solute BMW for the effort and helping attitude. Not like Merc, sitting there and do nothing.

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    • Lim Kopi on Oct 17, 2010 at 10:28 pm

      Its not that Merc not doing anything, they DON’T NEED TO DO ANYTHING ….

      u obviously dunno how efficient their new CGI engines are :)

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  • ramun on Oct 15, 2010 at 11:00 pm

    i am really disappoint on budget as there is nothing new in it. While europe is seriously developing diesel, hybrid & other fuel alternatives (not to mention cleaner diesel), the govt only see hybrid as solution. Considering newer diesel engine become more complex, the cost is higher than petrol counterpart. To make it clearer, Ford Focus TDCI costs hefty RM 16k over Sport model (ref: ford.net.my). The alternative fuel issue is is not a short term, but forever. Too bad govt say nothing about this. Proton also withdraw Wira 2.0 diesel project. Wondering when will successful biodiesel experiment by MPOB will be commercialized.
    For auto distributors, no one like to selling vehicle with lower profit margin. But the price to be market leader is nothing but investment. Profit per unit sold may not be high, but quantity of vehicle will increased & it will positively increase demand for after sale svc & parts.

    Dear BMW, its like an ayam vs telur. Every party will point finger to another. Keep on hoping without doing anything.

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    • bobdbilder on Oct 16, 2010 at 1:49 am

      In Europe Diesel engined cars are more expensive than petrol. Buyers buy them because they look at Cost of Ownership. As fuel is not subsidized, its expensive. So the more savings in mileage goes a long way. Plus cars are taxed on the level of emissions. Therefore, why would they make Diesel cars cheaper?

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  • khaix19a on Oct 15, 2010 at 11:55 pm

    petronas should consider making clean diesel technology it benefits for them and consumer and government should encourage them too.

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    • milo tin on Oct 17, 2010 at 8:52 pm

      that is the reason why no news for clean diesel. Since Petronas got nothing from it i guess.

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  • fandango on Oct 16, 2010 at 12:10 am

    i heard petronas sells a lot of its high grade diesel to the EU…i’m not sure if that is a contributing factor to the lack of Euro IV diesel here, but it’s really strange that the government does not recognize advanced diesels to be equal or better than hybrid solutions.

    at the end of the day measures such as CO2 per kilometer and standard cycle fuel consumption should be the objective measures for cars to gain exemptions from taxes, not simply because they are hybrid…

    remember the top gear video on a bmw E92 M3 vs a Prius? the m3 had better economy in a flat out drive! LOL

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    • bobdbilder on Oct 16, 2010 at 1:36 am

      Its from Shell’s SMDS in Bintulu, Sarawak. Its the first Gas to Oil plant in the world. It blew up once in ’99. Dust in the intake of the Air Separator unit caused build up of static electricity. You know the Shell ad shown once about this Mat Salleh who got the idea after he saw somone dusting old carpets? Well yeah, that ad was AFTER they found out what caused it.

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  • bobdbilder on Oct 16, 2010 at 1:27 am

    At the end of the day, its who has the technology. It is in the best interest of EU auto makers to promote Diesel. They are the only ones who make huge numbers of them. Everybody else doesn’t. I for one cannot take seriously the “Green” talk of a company who still make petrol SUV and V8s on the side of the world that did not ratify the Kyoto agreement.

    The EU bans our Biodiesel cos it is concerned about the supply coming from both Malaysia and Indonesia, the two major suppliers of Palm Oil. It has lobbied to put in place standards and procedures that are difficult to accept and apply. Some of these concerns are valid. Especially wrt possible land clearing in Sabah and Sarawak. But nothing you cannot control with regular auditing.

    The world’s concern is raised by Big Oil companies who funds lobbyist like Greenpeace to support the ban. Big Oil is afraid about the tilting of influence and power away from them. Big Oil is afraid about hybrid cars, about electric cars, about solar panels, wresting control and domination of the single most wanted product across the world.

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    • reuben how on Oct 17, 2010 at 12:16 pm

      I don’t think Big Oil is afraid of hybrid cars. Do you think that hybrids run on orange juice?

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    • So you cannot take seriously the “Green” talk of a company who still make petrol SUV and V8s?

      Are you talking about Toyota? They sell i.e. the Tundra or the Landcruiser both with thirsty V8 petrol engines…

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    • DICKYBIRD on Oct 18, 2010 at 11:57 am

      haha! Big oil against hybrids and biodiesel is plausible. but Greenpeace accepting money from Big oil to lobby on their behalf!? haha!

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  • phas3r on Oct 16, 2010 at 2:19 am

    agree. malaysians need to use more diesel. but there are no diesels for the popular jap cars like vios city etc.
    use the euro 5 diesel + reduce tax on diesel cars or reduce diesel price

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    • rossi46 on Oct 17, 2010 at 7:39 pm

      Japs are behind in diesel tech…they have the same mentality wt most asian…ie diesel = dirty/ trucks & their tax system penalise diesel hence lack of development…just imagine for the euro mkt, most of honda cars are sharing 1 diesel engine (the 2.2 idtec in particular) for their civic/crv/frv/accord…they dun have enough diesel due to lack of development..while they have many ranges of i-vtec petrol engines……european are way ahead in diesel (korean too!)

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  • Wheel Alignment Equipment on Oct 16, 2010 at 11:30 am

    Hybrid is one of the hottest trend these days on cars and i really love the fact,it saves the environment while saving gas and money for consumers.On the other hand,i’m looking forward for a more cleaner diesel that first came in used before hybrid arrives.

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    • squawk on Oct 16, 2010 at 3:44 pm

      The best would be hybrid diesels.

      Actually hybrids are only good if you drive 100% in city or traffic jam. Once you get on the highway, the motor is cut off and you’re back to burning fuel. So not much benefit since most of us don’t live in the city.

      I also don’t agree with using food-grade oil for biodiesel. We should look at biofuels from seaweed and algae. I think this is more sustainable.

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      • rossi46 on Oct 16, 2010 at 7:29 pm

        hybrid diesel make more sense….like what pug did wt the new 3008 hybrid diesel

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    • Hm, Hybrids save the environment?

      The raw material for the batteries is mined in the US.

      The preprocessing of the raw material is made in the UK.

      The batteries are made in China.

      The batteries are installed in cars in Japan.

      The cars are shipped from Japan to Malaysia.

      How come, that shipping batteries (or the raw material) and cars around the globe saves the environment? Is the shipping for free and doesn’t need energy? ;)

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  • keluangman on Oct 16, 2010 at 1:16 pm

    this statement produced by BMW are biased. They just want to push their dead slow sales of their diesel range cars.

    We can have Euro 4 or even Euro 5 compliant diesel by tomorrow, but are you willing to pay for it as it’ll be more expensive than petrol?

    And will the bus and lorry operator profit from this? What about fishermen?

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  • Gavin on Oct 16, 2010 at 1:37 pm

    The goverment should really listen to BMW, with such a big company ready to throw their weight behind bringing in diesel cars it will lead to more manufacturers following suit leading to more affordable diesel cars for us.

    It’s the herd mentality, when one does the rest follows, this really should be followed up by the gov.

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    • bobdbilder on Oct 17, 2010 at 1:21 am

      Why would any auto maker want to make cheaper cars? Cheaper than the competition maybe. But cheaper than their outgoing model? Why would BMW (of all people) would want to make cars for normal people?

      Does the whole point of Capitalism just whoooshed past by us? Dude what ever you’re smoking it sure sounds good.

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      • Gavin on Oct 17, 2010 at 6:06 am

        my friend i didn’t say BMW will make sell cheaper cars you ignoramus, i said they will set the example, meaning if BMW are confident to run their cars on our diesel it means others will also feel confident to bring their diesel cars in.

        if it’s good enough for BMW it’s good enough for the rest.

        If you can’t make enough money don’t blame others who can

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  • nabill on Oct 16, 2010 at 2:26 pm

    unless p1 and p2 take initiative to introduce diesels , the G will not be giving any goodies….very simple

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  • reuben how on Oct 16, 2010 at 6:15 pm

    also diesels don’t have the risk of electrocution. i own a camry hybrid, the owner’s manual states: Do not carry large quantities of water in the boot. If a spillage occurs, this could damage the battery or increase the risk of electrocution. At 650 volts, the bloody coke bottles have to sit in the back seat… i kid u not.

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    • balloon on Oct 16, 2010 at 9:58 pm

      then i think its better that proton does not build hybrid cars ! haha.
      if we transform the wira to become a hybrid then there will be alot of electrocution !

      but saying all this .. i dont think that the current generation of proton cars suffer from flooding!

      so please guys .. whoever wants to thumbs down .. its just a joke !

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    • bobdbilder on Oct 17, 2010 at 1:04 am

      DUHHH!!! Gawd Reuben there’s a lot of voltage coming out the alternator in a normal car. How the hell do you think they’d generate a spark? You do know there’s spark plugs in the engine don’t you? And a lot of it is earthed to the body of the car!

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      • reuben how on Oct 17, 2010 at 12:02 pm

        How often do kids touch alternator wires? Anyway, since you have made your comment would you be prepared to touch the live ends of the socket in a hybrid system ? I do hope that your balls are as big as your brain.

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        • bobdbilder on Oct 18, 2010 at 2:16 am

          Huh? There are no sockets in a hybrid system. You don’t know where the alternator sits in a car don’t you?

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  • rosdi on Oct 16, 2010 at 8:43 pm

    Why are we so slow implementing Euro 4? What is the stumbling block? Will it cause the petrol & diesel price to increase substantially? Will Euro 2 compliant vehicles run on Euro 4? Any thought?

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    • Gavin on Oct 17, 2010 at 4:47 pm

      because euro fuels are not very backward compliant, when they clean up the fuels they also remove some components in the fuel that older diesel engines rely on for lubrication and sealing.

      So old engines experience poor running and worse some start leaking fuel even from the seals. The solution was to add these components back into the fuel again after cleaning but this drives the cost up but in Euro eventually all the old engines got phased out so i guess they don’t re-add these components anymore

      Unlike malaysia where i imagine 100% of trucks/buses/ and practically anything with a diesel engine now will grind to a halt

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      • rossi46 on Oct 17, 2010 at 7:33 pm

        let there be two type of diesel…current euro 2M at current subsidise price and euro4-5 clean diesel price at mkt price….wt current diesel frugal 3-4liter/100km fuel consumption (25km/l) and cheaper than hybrid (i’m talking about pug/renault/citroean/fiat/ford/hyundai) 1.4 -1.6 liter turbodiesel,…..will still save $$ ++ the advantage of huge torque at low rev (city/daily usage)…forque is fun (for those who had never driven diesel..go test drive a decent diesel, u’ll be amaze…revving the engine is soo hostory, unless u’re at a racetrack…btw, may i know anyone who drive at 4,000rpm ++ the whole (there’s where peak torque for normal petrol vs diesel peak torque btw 1,500-3,500rpm)…so, be honest…where do u spend most of yr time at?

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      • karim on Oct 18, 2010 at 10:18 am

        that kind of lobby/thinking was the major stumbling block why it takes years to move from euro 1 to euro 2 fuel.

        a lot of the hauling companies lobby the government NOT to upgrade the fuel because they still running their mercedes 911’s which they bought in the 70’s

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        • rossi46 on Oct 18, 2010 at 3:42 pm

          just do like current petrol ron 95 & 97….diesel euro2 maintain at subsidise price but euro4 at floating price (no subsidy)…

          old lorries/truck/cars just use the subsidise euro2 while modern diesel owner who wanted to enjoy diesel torque, lower CO2 and low fuel consumption can pay for the euro4 price…”flatten all hills effortlessly at just 2,000-3,000rpm”

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  • campro on Oct 16, 2010 at 8:54 pm

    BMW car famous in Diesel version….now they waiting govt signal to show off their strength…

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  • Elvis on Oct 17, 2010 at 1:21 am

    I heard that diesel engine was developed primary to use used cooking oil initially. We all know that used cooking oil can easily converted into fuel for diesel engine. What really sad is that despite abundant used cooking oil around, there is little done to recycle this resources.

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    • squawk on Oct 17, 2010 at 7:04 pm

      I have some friends in UK mixing filtered cooking oil into their diesel cars e.g. Pug 308 etc. They get it from restaurants.

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  • reuben how on Oct 17, 2010 at 12:15 pm

    Fuel still is going to run out, just a little more slowly. I think hydrogen technology probably holds more promise, because it won’t run out, and it suits the method of refuelling that we have today. Hybrids and diesels are a temporary measure, remember they all use fuel. In fact, the hybrid camry has similar highway fuel economy as its non hybrid counterpart. Would i like to see more hybrids in malaysia, Yes, certainly. And the reason for this is that hybrids come with more active safety equipment such as airbags and electronic stability control than standard CKD kits that we get in Malaysia. My hybrid camry rarely operates in pure EV mode, and i still can’t justify the AUD 4500 premium over the standard camry, if i wasn’t offered a 1.6% interest rate. Everytime it goes up the ramp one of the underbody fins would scrunch (and god knows what else) on its lowered ride height. I couldn’t buy mudflaps for the car because “that would defeat the purpose of driving a hybrid” and it would use 0.00001% more fuel!!!
    The key reason i bought the camry was the promise of near V6 acceleration (acceleration is impressive and i can outrun some 2L stock BMW’s) when i put the pedal to the metal, and for that reason alone, it was worth it. I think that people selling the newer hybrids today are missing the point – motorists don’t want to compromise on performance to save fuel.

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  • reuben how on Oct 17, 2010 at 12:26 pm

    Ok, my final point is this. Lets say that you could buy a hybrid camry on a near zero tax benefit in Malaysia. Would you buy one over the standard camry from a financial aspect. My guess is probably NO. Because, the Malaysian ringgit is so weak. Imagine if you had to have a major overhaul of the hybrid system, could you afford it? The hybrid system is very complex. Any problems would wipe out even the benefit you’d gain from the tax. I own a hybrid, but I say a decent diesel is still the way to go, even if it is more damaging to the environment. I have a 8 year warranty on the system so i am not too worried, i would probably trade in once the lease is over anyway.

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    • bobdbilder on Oct 18, 2010 at 2:08 am

      Reuben’s an Economic Hitman. He wants us all to be dependent on hydrocarbons. He makes up stories about how complex hybrid is so that we are all afraid of the future. He’ll say the same thing about Hydrogen Cell “Hey remember the Hindenburg!”. And electric cars. He also makes us ignorant of the fact that the US dollar has weakened against the Ringgit by more than 10% over the past 10 months. How much deficit does the US have? And you say our money is weak? You couldn’t save Haiti for goodness sake. See how he is ever so willing to compromise on the environment while contradicting himself. They don’t sell Camry Hybrids over this part of the Pacific Reuben.

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      • bobdbilder on Oct 18, 2010 at 2:22 am

        Check this link

        http://www.xe.com/currencycharts/?from=USD&to=MYR&view=1D

        Its a currex viewer of the USD against Malaysian Ringgit. Go see the chart and select view for 1 year. Its gone from 3.42 to 3.08.

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      • squawk on Oct 18, 2010 at 3:13 pm

        Are hybrids really more frugal and less polluting than Euro 4/5 diesel cars? Are Malaysians always crawling home in jams? Do we take the bus or train outstation instead of driving? If the answer is yes then hybrids are better and worth buying.

        Also at this moment, plugin hybrids and EVs are not much use, especially if you live in a condo.

        So I think having better diesel now is a better alternative until proper infrastructure is in place.

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        • rossi46 on Oct 19, 2010 at 11:48 am

          from the looks of it…our govt follow the japs route of being anti diesel, hence the reluctant to upgrade to euro4/5 diesel….maybe, the old chaps are still relating diesels to lorries/busses wt black smoke and can fanthom the idea of diesel being cleaner & more powerful than a petrol

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