Goodyear Malaysia recently donated RM30,000 worth of tyres to St. John Ambulance Malaysia (SJAM) to help improve the safety of the ambulances and passengers. The tyre company has been a sponsor of the organisation since 2006 as part of its support for the local humanitarian efforts in helping Malaysians in need.
The ambulance services from St. John Ambulance Malaysia provide 24-hour response to emergency calls, including transporting COVID-19 patients. At the peak of the pandemic, St. John Ambulance Malaysia transported over 400 COVID-19 patients to the Klang Hospital.
Goodyear Malaysia actively organises humanitarian initiatives to help the communities in need. Over the years, besides the St. John Ambulance, it has also supported Pertubuhan Amal Uncle Kentang Malaysia (since 2021) with tyre sponsorship of approximately 1,000 tyres in total, which were fitted to more than 50 ambulances.
About the SJAM The SJAM has a history going back to 1885 when it was first established in the region in Singapore. Form humble beginnings with 6 out of 56 pupils passing an examination in ‘First Aid to the Injured’, the organisation has grown to over 60,000 volunteers in Malaysia.
These volunteers are found at various sporting events, festivals, parades and other functions, big or small. They also assist in disasters like floods, fires, landslides, plane crashes, etc. In total, they serve up to 3.6 million man-hours annually, providing various services.
SJAM has local 24-hour emergency as well as non-emergency ambulance services. Annually during the Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Chinese New Year periods, SJAM volunteers are also on standby along the North-South Highway and the Federal trunk roads. SJAM also provides community services such as haemodialysis centres, and Nursing Home.
To know more about SJAM or to find out how you can be a volunteer, visit sjam.org.my.
While Castrol is a leading name in the automotive and motorsports world as one of the leading lubricant companies, the brand also has a presence in non-automotive events such as the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championship. With its sponsorship of such world-class events, supported by various campaigns and activities, the brand has had exposure globally along with its versatile range of high-performance lubricants.
This year, Castrol’s presence in the football world will grow even further with the signing of an exclusive sponsorship with the English Premier League (EPL) for 2½ years, commencing from January 2022. As the most-watched football league on the planet, the EPL is broadcast in 212 territories to over 543 million homes, with a potential viewership of 4.7 billion.
Through this sponsorship, Castrol aims to showcase its evolving serve and maintenance business and provide an avenue to many customers to engage in two things they are passionate about – automotive and football.
Castrol subsidiaries around the world will also be having activities relating to the EPL sponsorship and in Malaysia, there will be various digital activations for the digital presence of Castrol Malaysia. One such activity will invite Malaysians to share their individual recreations of memorable football moments on social media in the ‘Castrol EPL Original Moment’ contest. There will also be bi-weekly activities for social media users where questions and games related to football matches will be asked. Through these events, football fans will be able to show off their knowledge in an engaging and fun way.
Throughout the year, there will also be other on-site campaigns which will include the Castrol Game Changers Contest. An exclusive Castrol X EPL Rover will be at key locations nationwide between May and September to promote the contest. At the various venues, members of the public will have a chance to win Castrol X EPL merchandise when they purchase Castrol MAGNATEC or Castrol EDGE engine oils.
Following the Castrol Game Changers Contest, 20 lucky participants (and their partners) will be selected from the entries to take part in a Race Off event. The top 8 teams that win the Race Off will proceed to the next and final level of the contest which will be a 2-on-2 futsal match. There will be two Grand Prizes of 4 tickets to watch an EPL match live in England in 2023.
For Castrol Malaysia, this year is of historic significance and there will be various celebrations throughout the year. One of them which has already been run in March was Castrol Hari Mekanik, which returned in a big way for the fourth consecutive year. Castrol Auto Service (CAS) is also celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and there are great promotions and deals for customers.
This is an exciting era for Castrol Malaysia and Singapore. The EPL sponsorship adds another feat to Castrol’s long list of milestones, particularly in our collaborative efforts with football organisations worldwide. This alliance will further showcase Castrol’s range of products and services to its audience and create a platform for us to engage with them, as well as appreciate them for being with us all this while. We are very excited to kick off the celebrations soon,” said Keow Mei-Shan, Marketing Director of Castrol Malaysia & Singapore.
To know more about Castrol products and services in Malaysia, click here.
The PETRONAS name will be absent from the racing cars of the successful Mercedes-AMG Formula 1 team after this year’s championship ends. It has been confirmed that the team, which has won 7 world championships, will no longer have Malaysia’s national oil corporation as its title sponsor. This comes after over 10 years of association between the team and the oil company, although its involvement in F1 goes back as far as 1995. The latest development follows Petronas’ ending of their MotoGP title sponsorship at the end of this year and no longer being associated with the Yamaha SRT team.
Over the years, Petronas has used its association with Formula 1 for many marketing activities, leveraging on the development efforts in fuels and technology. More than 50 engine oils, transmission fluids and hydraulic fluids have been developed for the racing cars to use in extreme conditions. The technologies and knowledge from such developments have eventually been used to develop commercial products for sale to the public.
It would certainly have been very expensive and while Petronas products are available in around 65 countries, many may not know it is a Malaysian company (although ‘MALAYSIA’ has occasionally been put on the cars. But the same can also be said of other major sponsors like Repsol, Santander and certainly, not many of the 500 million people who watch F1 worldwide will be aware that the ORLEN which sponsors the Alfa Romeo F1 team is a Polish petroleum company. Brands like Marlboro, Rolex and even Dell would have more global presence and recognition. But Petronas believes the money has been well spent: in 2016, it estimated the value of brand exposure in F1 from 1995 was worth more than US$900 million.
Saudi Aramco to take over as title sponsor?
In place of Petronas, Mercedes-AMG is expected to have another oil company – Saudi Aramco. As the main company operating in Saudi Arabia, it has the world’s largest network of oilfields and its revenues are chart-topping. Saudi Aramco (which stands for Arabian American Company) is state-owned and was established in 1933. Described as an integrated oil and gas company, it is mainly in upstream activities and has no visible internationalpresence in consumer products, unlike most other oil companies. It does, however, have a network of fuel and service stations (in partnership with Total of France) in Saudi Arabia.
The tie-up with Mercedes-AMG is the second major involvement in F1. Last year, Saudi Aramco announced a long-term global sponsorship with the sport, its first global sponsorship of a major sporting event.
“We are excited to partner with Formula 1, a strong global sports brand with millions of fans around the world. As the world’s largest energy supplier and an innovation leader, we have the ambition to find game-changing solutions for better-performing engines and cleaner energy. Partnerships like these are important to help us to deliver on our ambitions,” said Saudi Aramco’s CEO & President, Amin H. Nasser.
Involvement in F1 since 1980s
Saudi Aramco’s involvement in F1 is not Saudi Arabia’s first association with the sport. Older readers will remember that, in the 1980s, Saudia Airlines (the country’s national airline) sponsored the Williams team. Though the Saudia name was the most prominent, Frank Williams also managed to get eight other supporters from Saudi Arabia’s growing business community.
The group included TAG (Techniques d’avant Garde), an advanced technology company which was founded by a Saudi businessman. TAG (which bought over the Heuer watchmakers) first sponsored Williams and the McLaren. Today, it also has a major share in the McLaren Group. More recently, TAG Heuer has been a major partner in the all-electric Formula E series as well, along with Saudia Airlines.
Major motorsports events in Saudi Arabia
The country’s ‘Vision 2030’ is also bringing Saudi Arabia into the 21st century and its society is changing, eg women have been allowed to drive cars since 2018. As a result, it has attracted three major motorsports events to be run in the country to boost tourism. The Dakar Rally and Extreme E Desert X-Prix, which were run in the deserts for the first time in 2020 and 2021, respectively, and later this year, the first ever F1 race in the streets of Jeddah. All are significant events which will be widely publicized, and organisers have made deals to run them over a number of years.
In recent years, you would be reading a lot about electrification and how motorists in Europe are steadily switching to electric vehicles. The shift has yet to start in Malaysia but for 23-year old Haqiem Rusli, it has started. The young and talented singer, composer and actor from Selangor, took delivery of a new Nissan LEAF EV as the Grand Prize winner of the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2020 (ABPBH).
The all-electric LEAF was presented by Edaran Tan Chong Motor Sdn Bhd (ETCM), the official vehicle sponsor for the event in collaboration with Berita Harian. Haqiem Rusli was announced the winner of Bintang Paling Popular when he received 22,332,676 votes. He also won Penyanyi Bintang Popular and Lagu Paling Boom Popular with the song titled ‘Lembah Kesepian’.
During the presentation ceremony, ETCM’s Sales & Marketing Director, Christopher Tan said: “It was our pleasure to collaborate with Anugerah Bintang Popular 2020 Berita Harian as this contest recognizes Malaysian artistes’ hard work and dedication in growing the local entertainment industry. We would like to congratulate Haqiem Rusli on his win and driving home the 100% electric Nissan LEAF. He now joins the EV family and will be part of our sustainability efforts in supporting the nation’s aspiration, as well as accelerate the global movement to become more environmental conscious towards a sustainable future.”
Global topseller in EV category
The LEAF, with a price from RM181,263 is in its second generation and has been the most widely sold electric vehicle in the world since the model line started in 2010. The latest generation has many advances which enable it to go further, with a range of up to 311 kms range on a full charge. And with 320 Nm of torque, it has strong acceleration as maximum torque is available from almost standstill, a characteristic of electric motors.
Like many of the latest Nissan models, the LEAF also has Nissan Intelligent Mobility safety technologies. These advanced driver-assist technologies include the e-Pedal, Intelligent Forward Collision Warning & Emergency Braking, and Intelligent Around View Monitor (360° camera).
The LEAF is available for viewing and testing at selected authorised Nissan showrooms around the country. To find out where they are, visit www.nissan.com.my.
Many Malaysians who follow social media will not have missed the shocking video of a small child being ejected from a car onto a busy highway – very fortunately not being run over although the possibility was very high. The public was quick to condemn the driver for not having the child restrained in a childseat – in spite of the law already making it compulsory since January 2020.
At the same time, there are still those who say it is costly for them to buy childseats, especially if they have many children. This issue is understandable although the life of a child must be given a high priority. Companies like BMW Group Malaysia have offered childseats at a subsidized price to qualified families and there’s a call for more companies in the private sector to help.
TAU Trading Malaysia Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of TAU Corporation Japan, has responded to that call by offering sponsorship to help lower income families get a subsidy for buying a crash-tested safety-approved child safety seat (or child restraint system, CRS). A mock cheque was presented by TAU Corporation Japan’s CEO, Akitaka Miyamoto, to Jchanet Tan, Director of Child Passenger Safety Malaysia (CPSM), an organization dedicated to child traffic safety.
As a start, the sponsorship amount of RM6,400 will be used for a contest where participants have to answer a question and complete a slogan before submitting their answers. It is one approach to further increase understanding on the needs of using CRS for children in moving vehicles. Winners will be presented with cash vouchers valued at RM100 that can be used at any of the retail outlets or brands collaborating with CPSM. The program runs until February 29, 2020.
“It is our hope that once a program like this is launched, more corporations will be called to action and consider participating or supporting our Road Safety Campaigns. Road safety is everyone’s responsibility. We can all make a difference if we put our hearts and head together,” said Ms Tan.
Ms Tan noted that there are many in the lower income group who care about the safety of their children but lack the knowledge and capability to do something about it as many of them are struggling financially to provide for their family. “We understand that having a child safety seat will mean an extra expenditure, even for that 1-time cost for 6 years of protection and peace of mind,” she said.
The current CRS regulation came into effect on January 1, 2020 and makes it compulsory for children below 135 cm or less than 12 years old to be properly harnessed in a CRS in private vehicles. CPSM has been a strong advocate of CRS as far back as 2016 but due to lack of funding, its initiatives were limited. Support from both the government and private sectors will enable them to do more.
TAU Corporation, established in 1996, is the leader in damaged car business in japan. The company buys vehicles damaged by accidents, wind, or floods in Japan and sells them to customers in more than 110 countries worldwide. Their vision is that road safety is everyone’s responsibility. Together with this initiative, they hope that children in Malaysia can travel safer in a crashworthy safety seat driven in a safe car by their caregivers.
Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) is once again the Official Automotive Partner of the PETRONAS Le Tour de Langkawi (LTDL). It is the third time for Volkswagen’s involvement in the event which is being run for the 25th time.
VPCM has provided 120 units of the Tiguan Highline for use throughout the 10-day event by riders, safety marshals and officials. The model provided has a 1.4-litre turbocharged direct injection TSI petrol engine with a 6-speed wet clutch direct shift gearbox (DSG). Its output of 150 ps/250 Nm means there is adequate power for all situations while also being economical.
The Tiguan’s SUV bodystyle makes it ideal for its role in the LTDL. It has a spacious cabin and cargo area to transport gear and other items. To date, 5 million units of the Tiguan have been sold globally, the bestselling SUV in Volkswagen’s range.
“We are honoured to be back as part of LTDL this year as the race celebrates its Silver Jubilee, and we are confident that the Tiguan will be a good fit and support to the operations team in terms of safety, endurance, agility and speed. On behalf of Volkswagen, we wish the participants all the very best for this year’s race,” said Erik Winter, Managing Director of VPCM.
Le Tour de Langkawi is a multiple stage bicycle race that has gained many accolades and is now recognised as a highlight in the global competitive cycling calendar, attracting the world’s top road cyclists. 21 teams are taking part in the event which started in East Malaysia and continue across Peninsular Malaysia from Kuala Terengganu. The finale will be at its birthplace in Langkawi on February 14.
Visit www.volkswagen.com.my to know more about the Tiguan and where to test-drive one.
Mira Filzah (or Nur Amirah Filzah binti Badioezaman), the 26-year old Ipoh-born artiste, is now the owner of a brand new Nissan X-Trail 2.0L Hybrid worth RM 159,888. The vehicle was presented to her as the Grand Prize for Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2019 (ABPBH), which Edaran Tan Chong Motor Sdn Bhd (ETCM) was the official vehicle sponsor of.
The talented Mira Filzah, who garnered 6,320,463 votes in ABPBH from September 19 – 22, has acted in few popular dramas and films such as Eksperimen Cinta, Cinta Si Wedding Planner, Meh Sandar Pada Aku, Pujaan Hati Kanda, Sweet Dreams, Rise: Ini Kalilah and Sangkar.
Established in 1987, ABPBH is an annual event organized by Berita Harian to bestow awards to the most popular Malaysian singers, actors and celebrities in the Malaysian entertainment industry based on popular votes by readers of Berita Harian and Berita Minggu. It is one of the most prestigious people’s choice awards in Malaysia’s entertainment industry.
“We are honoured to work along with Anugerah Bintang Popular 2019 Berita Harian as this contest recognizes Malaysian artistes’ hard work and dedication in growing the local entertainment industry. We are delighted to award the most popular artiste with Malaysia’s first locally-assembled Hybrid technology SUV, the new Nissan X-Trail 2.0L Hybrid,” said Christopher Tan, ETCM’s Sales and Marketing Director.
The hybrid technology enables the X-Trail to achieve best in class fuel economy of 16.1 kms/litre, It also comes with Nissan Intelligent Mobility advanced safety technologies to protect the occupants and has been rated the maximum of 5 stars by ASEAN NCAP.
Check out the X-Trail Hybrid and other Nissan models at any Nissan showroom nationwide. To locate an ETCM Branch or Nissan dealership near yet, visit www.nissan.com.my.