6 SST-Free Bargains You Must Snap Up – Peroduas, Toyotas, BMWs, Volvos

Buy a new car, save the economy. Who could argue with that?

Earlier today, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that as part of the PENJANA COVID-19 economic stimulus package, new car purchases are set to see between a 50% reduction and 100% reduction of their sales & service tax as a way to stimulate sales in the automotive segment. This announcement came as a welcome move by the automotive sector, who are now hoping that things really can go back to normal for them.

As sales tax has long been part & parcel of any new car, many Malaysians are unaware of just how much SST they pay for on a new car. For reference, all new cars are subject to 10% SST – therefore, the ‘discounts’ on a new car can be easily calculated at 10% for locally-assembled or CKD vehicles, while there’ll be a 5% retail price reduction for fully-imported cars.

To give you an idea of what that looks like, we’ve listed down 6 excellent cars from across the spectrum, beginning with everyone’s favourite Perodua Myvi, all the way up to the segment-leading & benchmark-setting Volvo XC90, as well as a reference in between of what a fully-imported purchase would feel like right about now too.

It’s worth noting of course that as SST is applied only to the nett selling price, the figures that we’re suggesting here are likely a bit hopeful – based on what we saw during the last ‘tax holiday,’ we should expect to see decreases between 3%-5% at the most off retail selling prices. But given the current situation, car companies would be remiss not to put their best deals forward to lure customers back into showrooms and into new cars, no?

PERODUA MYVI 1.5 AV – RM48,681 (RM5409 expected reduction)

The Perodua Myvi is a firm favourite for all Malaysians, with the B-segment hatchback racking up an average of 100,000 annual sales every year since its introduction nearly 13 years ago. With lots of space, punchy performance, and levels of safety & convenience kit that would put most of its competitors to shame, the Perodua Myvi is a tough car to beat, which is why it dominates the sub-RM100k segment almost entirely.

Watch our review of the Perodua Myvi here.

PERODUA ARUZ 1.5 AV – RM70,110 (RM7790 expected reduction)

The Perodua Aruz is another one of the Sg. Choh company’s runaway successes, though while the Myvi is famously known as the surprise hit, the Aruz was far more calculated. Dominating the sub-RM100k SUV space and taking the cake as Malaysia’s most popular SUV, the Aruz provides acres of space & practicality, and offers car-like usability & functionality despite the commanding ride height. And paired with traditional Perodua running costs, it’s no wonder that its Japanese sibling (which is built in the same factory with the same powertrain by the same people, mind) is failing to gain traction…

You can watch our review of the Perodua Aruz here.

TOYOTA COROLLA 1.8G (CBU) – RM132,893 (RM6995 expected reduction)

The Toyota Corolla is actually our only fully-imported example car we’re putting in the list, on the account of its great styling, amazing safety kit, and impressive performance. The Thai-built Corolla (now free of the ‘Altis’ name previous generations carried) is an excellent example of what we can expect to see from the Japanese marque going forwards – more engaging design, a more engaging drive, better technology, and the same tried-and-tested Toyota value.

(We haven’t reviewed the Toyota Corolla yet, so there’s no review to plug here…)

BMW 330i M-Sport (CKD) – RM264,420 (RM29,380 expected reduction)

The de-facto choice in the compact executive saloon space, BMW Group Malaysia was wise to quickly introduce the CKD version of this car when it did. Not only did it offer a massive saving over the fully-imported first batch of cars, but it demonstrated the excellent quality control measures implemented by the local assembly plant, proving that there’s literally nothing to lose.

Notably, the G20 3-Series is now a sharper drive than the F30 it replaces, which means it has returned to form as the driver’s choice in the segment. Not that the majority of its buyers seek it out specifically for that, in all honesty.

(We also haven’t reviewed the G20 BMW 3-Series. Do these car companies not like us?)

Volvo S60 T8 R-Design (CKD) – RM266,299.20 (RM29,588.80 expected reduction)

We threw this in here because it’s an absolute favourite of ours at MalaysianMotoring – with restrained styling, mind-bending performance, unbelievable (yet verified) fuel economy and standard-setting safety, the Volvo S60 is a very difficult car to fault. Couple that with a truly refined ride and the ability to outsprint a Mercedes-AMG C43, and this Swede begins to show its more brutish side.

This car is like Dwayne Johnson in a suit. Ever a gentleman, but still able to knock your jaw out at 20 paces.

(Do we not review enough cars on this website? Thank God we’ve already driven the next one…)

Volvo XC90 T8 Inscription Plus (CKD) – RM368,899.20 (RM40,988.80 expected reduction)

Another favourite in the office, but also a favourite among buyers – in the 7-seater SUV space, the Volvo XC90 is not only the segment leader in terms of safety, performance and standard equipment, but it’s also the most affordable of the bunch, outpricing its nearest competitors by about 5-figures at the minimum. And it’s no Turkish prison either, with sumptuous Nappa leather seats, mesmirising Bowers & Wilkins premium audio, a solid crystal gear selector knob, and the sort of ride comfort that would shame everything short of a Rolls-Royce. The Volvo XC90 may have led Volvo’s transformation into the company we see today in the here-and-now, but it’s showing absolutely no signs of aging, or slowing down.

The Volvo XC90 was #Recharged for the 2020 model year – check out our review here.


So our advice is this – if you find yourself with money to burn, a secure job and secure income, now is the best time to buy a car. Not only will you be saving way more than any seasonal promotion, but you’ll also be directly helping our beloved local automotive industry and the millions of people that it employs directly & indirectly stay afloat.

And boy, don’t we Malaysians just love our cars?

2020 Volvo S90, V90 Debut – Mild Hybrids, Updated Aesthetics, Upgraded B&W Audio System

With little fanfare, resurgent Swedish marquee Volvo has announced the arrival of the updated S90 & V90 flagship saloon & estate, as part of their ‘Recharge’ phase of growth now that they’ve effectively overhauled the entire lineup. As with any mid-life facelifts, the tweaks are less dramatic than all new models but still significant, and in this case, it’s what’s under the skin that counts.

The new S90 & V90 models now feature updated powertrains, offering mild-hybrid propulsion across the board. As such, Volvo claims efficiency improvements of up to 15%, as well as improvements towards overall smoothness in operation. This has been a particular bugbear of the current powertrain options, with markets used to larger displacement engines feeling that the 2,000cc-limited Drive-E mills aren’t quite as smooth as comparable V6 or V8 mills (but us Malaysians are already so very over that).

On the visual side, there are new bumpers on either end, with design elements that aim to emphasise the width of the cars on the road. Further, they lend an air of stability and assuredness on the road, though fans of the originals will find the new designs rather fussy. Notably, the rear bumpers on the S90 & V90 both omit any visible exhaust exits – a sign of fully-electrified options to come?

There are also new taillights on both the S90 & V90, both of which now feature illumination sequences when locking & unlocking, as well as scrolling indicators, though those are only at the rear.

Inside, there are now wider upholstery options to choose from, with all variants of both the saloon & estate offered a non-leather option that makes use of high-quality wool and textiles. This strategy was first  seen with the XC90 ‘Recharge,’ which debuted last year (both internationally and in our market), and appears to now be moving across the lineup.

The amazing Bowers & Wilkins audio system continues to feature here, though calling it a carry over would do it a disservice: B&W has engineered an all-new system for the new S90 & V90, offering improved dynamic bass, as well as a new setting that mimics the acoustics of your favourite jazz club. The B&W audio systems available in the 60 & 90 Series Volvos were already among the very best available in the automotive industry, so we’re keen to experience just how much better this ‘all-new’ system really is.

Going back to the nearly-imperceptible changes, the new S90 & V90 now offer an Advanced Air Cleaner with PM2.5 particulate sensors, a change that was first driven in China and is now being rolled out across the world. Thanks to this new air filtration standard, Volvo can now confidently claim that their interiors are among the freshest and cleanest environments to be in air-wise, building upon the ‘CleanZone’ technology that we’ve already gotten used to in their existing range of vehicles.

For better or for worse, Volvo has also taken the opportunity to announce that with the new S90 & V90, the company will now also exclusively offer USB-C charging ports in the rear, replacing the traditional 12V sockets, in all their 90 & 60 Series models. As someone without a USB-C to USB-C cable, this is a massive annoyance, though this writer understands that they are becoming more and more prevalent as time progresses.

Volvo is very proud that with the ‘Recharged’ S90 and V90, they are forwarding their intent to offer the broadest and most comprehensive range of electrified premium vehicles in the industry, with ‘an electrified Volvo model for everyone.’

It is unclear when the new S90 & V90 will make their way to Malaysia (if at all for the latter, though we can hope), but based on the remarks made by the Director of PR & Marketing at Volvo Car Malaysia, Mr. Akhtar Sulaiman, during the company’s 2019 ‘performance review,’ we can expect it to arrive on our shores within this year.

So what do you think of the ‘Recharged’ Volvo S90 & V90? Do you think that the design has improved with time, or are you of the mind that they shouldn’t have tried to fix what was clearly not broken? Let us know in the comments below.

Volvo Car Malaysia Records Superb 2019 – 36.1% Sales Increase Year-On-Year

Resurgent luxury marque Volvo has had a splendid year in our market in 2019, as announced at a media event today. Speaking on behalf of the managing director of Volvo Car Malaysia (who was called away due to a personal emergency), marketing & PR director Mr. Akhtar Sulaiman revealed just how well Volvo performed in our market last year, despite an overall decline in the luxury segment.

Beating the odds against a shrinking premium car market, Volvo Car Malaysia logged an increase of 36.1% in retail sales for 2019, with a total of 1,883 cars delivered. The Volvo plant in Shah Alam produced a total of nearly 5,000 cars last year too, with the remaining 3,000+ cars that the plant produced exported to various ASEAN countries (in both left- and right-hand drive forms).

Mr. Akhtar Sulaiman, Director of Marketing & PR, Volvo Car Malaysia

The exemplary performance in 2019 was propelled by major product introductions, like the 2019 Malaysia Car of the Year (Compact SUV/Crossover) XC40 T5 R-Design, the world-renowned and multi-award winning XC90 facelift, as well as the S60 T8 R-Design compact executive saloon. In 2020, the company expects to maintain its momentum off the back of the S60 (now in CKD form), as well as the “S90 facelift,” which was confirmed in the press release without a potential release date given.

2019 also saw the establishment of 5 new Volvo dealerships across the country, to which Volvo has confirmed they will add one more in the city of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah this year. Notably, Malaysia is the second market in Asia Pacific to boast a full 100% implementation of the ‘Volvo Retail Experience’ dealership standard, backed by the arrival of their renewed regional training centre.

Volvo Retail Experience space, within the Volvo Car Regional Training Centre

Volvo Car Malaysia is set to enjoy momentous growth in 2020, thanks to its already-strong portfolio of models, as well as #recharged models on the way. With production of the XC40 in its stride (though a waiting list still exists for the ‘tough little robot’) and the S60 T8 gaining momentum in the compact-executive saloon space, bolstered by the XC90’s position as the only large premium SUV in the space below RM600,000, we’ve little doubt that by this time next year, they’ll have even better numbers to report.

Volvo vs The World – What That Means In Malaysia

It wasn’t that long ago that Swedish marque Volvo was considered a sideliner in the Malaysian automotive landscape. While its German opposition sold in vast numbers, the little Swede was just that – little. It sold enough cars to keep the showrooms & service centres going with no compromise in quality, and profits were most certainly there, just meagre. If Malaysia didn’t have the advantage of having a fully-fledged Volvo factory in Shah Alam, we’d probably have to deal with 2-3 year delays on new models too.

But things have changed for Volvo. Since its takeover by Chinese automotive giant Geely, who quickly realised it was best to let the Swedes do their thing rather than PRC the crap out of it, the company has been going from strength-to-strength in recent years globally, and even locally. 

Pekin Auto’s new Volvo dealership, on the fringes of Johor Bharu

It was just the other day that we reported on our social media channels the upcoming opening of a new dealership on the outskirts of Johor Bharu, the 13th such dealership in Malaysia with many more set to come throughout 2019. This is all part of Volvo’s local office’s strategy to focus on the customer experience & dealer network, and already, “internal polls are showing positive results thanks to improvements made in these two key areas.”

We experienced this for ourselves at the opening of the AJ Premium Motors dealership in Batu Pahat, where we saw Volvo’s new showroom design language and brand ethos in full swing. From the intimately-professional conduct of its staff to its Scandinavian-chic design, you could tell that Volvo was serious about its transformation into a brand that could well and truly rival the German stalwarts. And the proof was in the pudding, with an increase in local sales for Volvo rising in excess of 60%.

But there is something else to it, too.

The other day I had the opportunity to sample the 2019 Mercedes-Benz C300 AMG-Line in its facelifted form, with its air suspension & Multibeam LED headlights and the like. It was a nice car no doubt, with its sculpted seats and fancy twin-screen COMAND system, but what really caught my eye was the wood trim. A black, open-pore Ash, it looked stunning on the centre console ‘slide’ and the door panels. But when I looked closer, I noticed something a little odd.

While the centre console and driver’s door panels featured black ash wood with ‘striped’ graining, the front passenger’s door had a more ‘circular’ grain. Of course, anyone will tell you that no tree grows in a mirror grain and that to achieve such a pattern would cost so much in time and effort, but it was the sort of thing that wrankled the experience a bit. It left me thinking if the 64-colour configurable ambient lighting system was made to distract me from what I would consider an oversight.

Look at how beautifully aligned all that wood trim is

But what really bothered me throughout my week with the C300 was the recollection of every Volvo Inscription I’d driven in recent years. From the XC60 to the S90 & V90, all the way up to the gargantuan XC90 – they’d all had matching, mirror-aligned wood finishes. On the centre console beneath the 9-inch Sensus touchscreen, it would meet in a beautiful V-formation on the inward-curved panel, and it created an effect of sheer quality and attention to detail. 

Volvo doesn’t scream and shout about this sort of thing. They just do it and let you be amazed.

Motoring journo veteran Chris Wee is also a former Volvo staffer, and he’s recalled multiple times the tagline they used to tout: “Bums in seats sell cars.” I’ve often heard relatives of mine, devoted to the Volvo brand, repeat something similar. ‘Volvo for Life’ was the tagline for many years, and for them, it meant that once you buy into a Volvo you’ll never buy anything else. 

A granduncle of mine bought his first Volvo in 2003, an S80. He proceeded to then buy the facelifted S80, and then the final-generation S80, and I believe that not long from now he’ll take the plunge and buy an S90. Volvo for life, indeed.

But there are greater ramifications to Volvo’s continued rise in Malaysia. For starters, the Malaysians who toil day-in and day-out to build Iron Mark-ed cars in Shah Alam will continue to be trained and re-trained to build better and better cars every day, keeping up with their peers the world over. Soon there will likely be more of them – with the locally-assembled Volvo XC40 compact SUV (which we will be reviewing soon) the first model in the brand’s history to attract a waiting list in Malaysia, we can only imagine that Volvo Car Malaysia is on the hunt for innovations and improvements that’ll improve their production speed & capacity.

The upcoming Volvo S60, already confirmed for our market

But it also means that they will soon be the standard-bearers not only for active safety in modern luxury cars, but also in quality of execution. With more Volvos taking to the roads, visibility of the brand is increasing. With improved visibility comes improved interest, which turns into more walk-in customers in showrooms, who will then put their bums in Swedish seats and experience what it’s like to have a Volvo in the family.

It doesn’t help the competition either that Volvo’s leasing programs are so attractive. 

Soon, it’ll be within reason that people will stop visiting the German showrooms by default, and place Volvo as a brand alongside them as they consider their next luxury car. Plug-in hybrid buyers will be the first to make that change I reckon, with Volvos still the only brand available locally that integrates its hybrid systems so seamlessly that it leaves no practical impact on the packaging of the car. And when they start doing that, I guarantee I will not be the only one going ‘Hey, wasn’t the wood in the Volvo nicer?’

It’s worth keeping this in mind, particularly if you’re from a rival manufacturer, that you also don’t have knurled aluminium finishes for the starter switch, volume dials, and drive-mode selectors. You also don’t have gorgeous yellow Kevlar cones hiding behind laser-cut speaker grilles (like Volvo does with their Bowers & Wilkins systems), or a cacophony of almost-orchestratic beeps & bongs to warn you that you left your lights on, a door ajar, or that you might not have shut the boot properly. 

And at the time of writing, the mainstream rivals also don’t offer half of the advanced driver assistance systems that come on every new Volvo as standard. If Malaysians opened their eyes a bit further and stopped worrying about resale value, the Germans would be slaughtered by now.

But mercifully, us Malaysians are a brand-conscious bunch, and so this will buy a few more years for the competition to buck up and rightfully claim that they’re ‘as good as.’