PRO-NET, a subsidiary of national carmaker Proton, has marked a significant achievement with the delivery of its 1,000th unit of the e.MAS 7, the brand’s first-ever electric vehicle (EV). This milestone underscores the growing momentum of EV adoption in Malaysia and highlights Proton’s dedication to making electric mobility accessible to a wider audience.
The e.MAS 7 has seen an enthusiastic reception from Malaysian consumers, reflecting the strong trust placed in Proton’s vision for sustainable transportation. Since its official launch by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the e.MAS 7 has gained popularity across a broad range of customer segments, signaling increased confidence in EVs as a practical and future-ready choice.
Beyond delivering vehicles, PRO-NET has focused on creating a smooth and convenient transition to electric mobility. The appeal of the e.MAS 7 lies in its combination of affordability, practicality, and a comprehensive support ecosystem that assists owners throughout their EV journey. Key components of this ecosystem include the Live Integrated Charging Map, which provides real-time access to over 2,000 charging points across the country, as well as accessible charging infrastructure and a suite of advanced safety and connectivity features. These elements ensure that e.MAS 7 owners can embrace electric driving with confidence and ease.
Volvo Car Malaysia has officially confirmed the upcoming arrival of two highly anticipated models for fans of its flagship seven-seater SUVs. The fully electric Volvo EX90 and the newly facelifted Volvo XC90 are both set to enter the Malaysian market, with official launch dates to be announced soon through the brand’s website.
The Volvo EX90, first revealed globally in 2022, marks a significant milestone for the company as its most advanced and safest vehicle to date. Designed to prevent accidents rather than simply mitigate them, the EX90 features cutting-edge active safety technologies both inside and outside the vehicle. This flagship SUV is the first Volvo model equipped with lidar technology, as well as the first to incorporate the Volvo Cars Superset core computing system. Additionally, the EX90 has been engineered with hardware designed to support future fully autonomous driving capabilities.
Global deliveries of the EX90 began in late 2024, and Malaysia will be among the first markets in the Asia Pacific region to introduce the model, following its launch in Thailand. The EX90 will lead Volvo’s growing lineup of fully electric vehicles, which already includes the EX30, XC40 Recharge Pure Electric, and EC40 (formerly known as the C40 Recharge Pure Electric).
Maserati’s ambitious resurgence, marked by the launch of the MC20 supercar, the new-generation GranTurismo, and the Grecale SUV, has been abruptly slowed as Stellantis reassesses the brand’s future. In an earnings call for the final quarter of the 2024 financial year, Stellantis Chief Financial Officer Doug Ostermann confirmed that the company had written down a $1.59 billion investment in Maserati. This figure includes the cancellation of several projects that were scheduled for launch, as noted in the company’s investor briefing.
Ostermann attributed the decision to a reassessment of Maserati’s electrification strategy, particularly concerning the brand’s performance in China. Stellantis had initially expected the Chinese luxury market to transition rapidly to electric vehicles. However, as these expectations were adjusted, so too were the financial forecasts for Maserati, prompting Stellantis to recalibrate its investment plans for the historic marque.
The announcement follows a challenging year for Maserati, which saw global sales plummet by 58 percent, falling from approximately 26,600 units to just 11,300. The sales decline has intensified scrutiny over Maserati’s long-term viability within Stellantis. In mid-2024, former Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares warned that underperforming brands faced the threat of closure if they failed to generate profits. Tavares emphasized that Stellantis could not afford to support brands that did not contribute financially, reinforcing the company’s strict focus on profitability.
Toyota Gazoo Racing is gearing up for an exciting few years ahead, with ambitious plans that include the revival of the iconic Celica and the introduction of a new mid-engined MR2 successor. Despite these major projects on the horizon, Toyota has confirmed that the GR86 will continue to hold its place in the lineup. Rather than being phased out, the affordable rear-wheel-drive sports coupe is reportedly already in line for a next-generation model.
The original Toyota 86 debuted in late 2011, and the second-generation GR86 followed in 2020. Given this timeline, industry observers anticipate that the third generation could arrive towards the end of the decade, with some reports from Japan indicating a possible launch in 2027.
In a notable shift from previous models, which were co-developed with Subaru and marketed as the Subaru BRZ, the upcoming GR86 is expected to be developed entirely in-house by Toyota. This represents a bold move by the automaker, particularly at a time when the global market for traditional sports cars continues to shrink and Gazoo Racing’s performance portfolio expands.
Adding intrigue to the project, reports from Japanese publication Mag X suggest that Toyota may enlist the expertise of Mazda through a shared engineering partnership. According to these reports, a Mazda engineer could take the lead on developing the new GR86. This collaboration would build on the growing relationship between Toyota and Mazda, with both companies finding ways to share resources and talent while preserving their unique brand identities.
With all the hype around electric cars and the ecosystem that supports them, we often forget about the world we came from.
Some say that you should only look behind to see how far you have come. While that may ring true, sometimes the past is not that bad. Especially in the automotive context.
Classic cars will forever have a place in the world. As with classic watches, planes and even homes. There is just a certain nostalgia that is attached to them. And for those who often hear the elders talk about the good times, well, you will probably understand what they mean when you hit your 40s.
Having been an automotive journalist for close to 20 years now, I have had the privilege to see the industry transform from what we call the analogue era, to the digital one, and now onto the electric era.
It does not beat those that have been around since the 70s and 80s, but I believe the industry has moved forward at a much more rapid pace than ever. This thanks to the rise of more industrial players with big money.
But every once in a while, we are given a chance to drive a new car that reminds us of the good old times. An era gone by but one that still has a place in the hearts of a select few.
The Porsche GT3 is one of those cars, and while it too may have adopted some form of digitalization, it still is one of the best driver’s cars you can buy today.
The GT3 holds a special place in my heart ever since I first drove the original 996 version around Sepang Circuit circa 2005. And though a lot has been sacrificed over the years at the altar of modernisation, profits and digitalisation, there is one thing that the GT3 still does well – it is still a fun car to drive hard.
What is the Porsche GT3?
For the enthusiasts, this is an idiotic question. But as age progresses, I am beginning to realise that there are younger enthusiasts today that do not know about the GT3 and how it came to be.
Let’s keep in mind that there are those born in 2005 would be 20 years old this year.
The GT3 was first introduced in 1999 as a bridge between Porsche’s 911 race cars and its road cars. The 80s and 90s were not exactly kind to Porsche. The company was in financial turmoil and needed funding to continue its racing exploits, which is something it is very good at.
So, in the 90s the company introduced the Boxster which is credited for saving the company because it was an immediate hit.
The GT3 on the other hand is a proper fire breathing sports car.
It is stripped of all the luxuries of a road car such as noise dampening materials and replaces some components with lightweight carbon fibre in the interest of saving weight.
The powertrain has of course been sprinkled by some magic dust by Porsche engineers to make it breathe better and produce more power. All GT3’s have used naturally-aspirated engines since day one. That is the pure motorsport way and has been a cornerstone of the GT3’s character.
Over the years, the GT3 has also morphed into two different variants – the GT3 with a fixed wing as a homage to its motorsport roots, and the GT3 Touring, for those who would like a touch of subtlety to their road going race car.
So, what’s new?
Over its 25-year history, there have been seven generations of the GT3. Starting with the 996.1 of 1999, all the way to the 992.1 introduced in 2021, there have been countless updates to the mechanical bits and even body work.
Though the 911 model which the GT3 is based on has grown significantly in size, the GT3 has produced more power and thus become faster than ever.
With the latest generation model, the 992.2 introduced towards the end of last year, the GT3 has not only managed to retain its revered character but has also managed to meet all the stringent environmental laws.
But the biggest update to the new GT3 is that it is now available with a rear seat for the Touring model, all GT3’s have been strict two-seaters. The Touring is now also available with a Lightweight Package that chucks out the rear seats, replaces the front seats with lighter units, and simply said, puts the interior on a diet of lightweight materials.
Also new to the GT3 is the fact that it is now available with the Weissach Package as an option. This is something that was only available for the GT3RS previously (among other models), but that has now been extended to the base GT3.
The Weissach Package is basically Porsche lingo for its customisation package that lets you do almost anything with the car except change its shape. Everything from interior trimming to the colour of the car can be customised to your liking. The limitation of this package is the depth of your pocket.
But that can’t be it?
Of course not. Being a GT3, most of the car’s updates are underneath the skin.
There are some design updates such as a sharpened front and rear with better aerodynamics that improves downforce by optimising air flow around and underneath the car.
There are also new aerodynamically enhanced suspension components from the mighty GT3RS that also improves downforce and improves brake and powertrain cooling at high speed.
Being a GT3 is also about weight management. The new wheels have reduced unsprung mass by more than 1.5kg as compared to before, but if you go for the magnesium wheels which come with either the Weissach or the lightweight package, weight is shaved by a further nine kilograms. Even the battery of the car is four kilograms lighter.
In fact, in its lightest configuration, the GT3 weighs just 1,420 kilograms, which is unbelievably light considering the size of the car.
Any updates to the powertrain?
The biggest challenge for Porsche’s engineers was to meet ever stringent environmental laws.
The biggest problem with naturally-aspirated engines is that they produce most of their power on the higher end of the rpm bandwidth. Which means the engine needs to wrung by its neck to access its power.
Though there is immense joy in encouraging an engine to eke out its power by revving to the heavens, the environmental impact is also one to consider.
Since forced-induction engines make their power at the lower and middle part of the rev band, they don’t need to rev as much and as such have a lower environmental footprint.
As such, Porsche could not do much with the configuration of the 4.0-litre, flat-six engine. If the engineers wanted to squeeze out more, that would mean increasing the environmental impact of the engine, effectively making the engine illegal.
It is almost in the same configuration as before – still putting out 510PS and 450Nm of torque. However, the fact that Porsche’s engineers could continue offering that much power despite stricter environmental laws is nothing short of astonishing.
But despite those regulations, Porsche’s magicians were able to make the car accelerate quicker than ever by reworking the gear ratios.
The GT3 is available with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and a six-speed manual transmission, and both have a final drive ratio that is eight percent shorter than its predecessor.
With that, the GT3 now reaches 100km/h in 3.4 seconds with the automatic transmission and onto a top speed of 311km/h, and it takes 3.9 seconds with the manual transmission and a top speed of 313km/h.
How does it drive?
Porsche Malaysia recently hosted a drive in Valencia, Spain for the GT3. Both the fixed wing and the Touring models were available. It is the first time in nearly a decade that I had attended a global Porsche drive, so it was a bit of a revelation on how far Porsche has come.
Starting with the GT3 with the fixed wing – if you have ever driven a race car, driving the GT3 has the same rawness. You sit low in the cockpit with the now digital instrument panel directly under your line of sight.
Porsche has replaced the iconic analogue rpm dial in the centre of the instrument panel with a digital unit. Their reasoning is that it can now be customised according to the drive mode that you are in.
Personally, I still prefer the analogue dial, it is like wearing a smart watch and then a Rolex Submariner – the Rolex will always look and feel better.
Everything about the GT3 has a purpose to it, just like in a race car. The new model also comes with new optional seats that lets you remove the headrest louvre. This is that your helmet can tuck neatly inside it rather than being pushed forward. I can’t think of any other car maker that has thought of such detail.
On the move, you feel everything the road throws up. The GT3 is stiff, there is not much in terms of comfort damping. It is not as single-mindedly stiff as a GT3RS which is as close to a road going race car as you can ever get, but you could still live with it daily, just don’t expect it to be as comfortable as a 911 Turbo S or even a Cayman for that matter.
But the GT3 is a car that is designed to go fast, very fast. And as such it is one of the few cars around today which you can buy direct from the factory and go for a couple of hard laps around your favourite track and then go to office with on a regular work week.
On track, a GT3 has always been a sensory onslaught. The scream of the engine as it flies to the 9,000rpm redline is intoxicating to say the least. It is something that every car fan needs to experience once in their life.
In fact, I think the world might just be a better place if everyone got a chance to experience a GT3, because once you experience it, you will work even harder so that you can buy a GT3, inadvertently improving the performance of the company you work for. And because the company is doing better, it will pay more taxes, which in turn will make the country better. So yes, everyone should experience driving a GT3. It exists for the good of the world.
It even feels great in your hands. The steering wheel wriggles and twitches as it sends tiny chunks of information to the parietal lobe region of your brain. Telling you exactly what is happening with the front wheels and the road. It even instantaneously obliges to every miniscule twitch of the steering wheel.
And because the suspension engineers have found a way to reduce pitching, the new GT3 does not seem to dive to the front under heavy braking. This lets you brake later and carry more speed into the corners, all the while the sound of the rear-mounted flat-six engine rips through your ear drums, encouraging you to pile on more speed.
Also keeping the car planted to the ground are new aerodynamic bits around and underneath the car. This does not match the levels of downforce the GT3RS creates which measures in 860 kilograms of downforce at 285km/h. The GT3 on the other hand makes over 385kg at 200kmh.
This much downforce basically pushes the car down to the road like Velcro. To demonstrate how good the GT3 is, Porsche had Jorg Bergmeister on hand to take me for a drive.
Jorg is a Porsche brand ambassador and a legend in the motorsport community. He has won multiple endurance races around the world with Porsche, and it is said that his father owned the workshop where Michael Schumacher used to train as a mechanic in the 80s.
Jorg took me for two laps in the GT3, and I have never felt the blood in my brain slosh around like water sloshes in a bottle. He drove the manual version of the car and tried his best to destroy the engine as he pushed the car out of line.
The GT3 stuck to the road without so much as a twitch of oversteer coming out of corners at well over 200km/h. The GT3 defies physics.
Then I took a short break to reset my brain, and went on a 150km drive with the GT3 Touring around the gorgeous countryside of Valencia.
So, what’s the Touring like?
If I ever buy a GT3, the Touring will be the variant I go for. I like that it does not have a big obnoxious wing. I understand that the wing is there for downforce purposes, and I would have loved it if I were 22, but these days, I prefer the engineering of a car more than the massive rear wing. Downforce or not.
In terms of driving, both cars feel largely the same. So, you get the same race car like feel, but no one would know what you are driving unless the saw the badges or took a ride in the car.
Both cars also have the same easy access button that lets you turn off all driver aids at the press of a button, which is great since lane keep assist and other aids can be quite annoying especially when carving up mountainous roads.
When the roads are right, the Touring comes into its element, letting you immerse in an experience that very few can appreciate, or access.
But when stuck in traffic, it can be rather comfortable. I like that you can hear the burble of the mighty engine from behind you, reminding you that though you may be stuck, you still have plenty of power under your right foot.
I also drove the GT3 Touring with the manual transmission, and that is just a “throwback” to how cars once were. It requires every limb to tame, every nerve to understand how to bring out the best in it. And when driven in Sport mode, it also turns on the rev-match function that matches the engine revs to the desired gear, making you feel like a true driving God.
What’s the verdict then?
With everything going on in the automotive world, I am just glad that cars like the GT3 still exist.
Porsche nearly went bankrupt decades ago but was propped up by the sales of the Boxster and the Cayenne. Now Porsche is one of the most successful companies despite sales stagnating.
It is also one of the most successful brands in motorsport, and because it does so well in racing, a lot of that tech trickles down to the end user. And that tech is not cheap.
The Porsche 911 992.2 GT3 is not yet available in Malaysia, but when it does arrive here, expect prices to be around the RM3 million mark, depending on customisation.
The GT3 is a special car, for me it is even more special than the GT3RS which requires one to exploit its aerodynamic capabilities to truly wring out the best from it. Not many drivers can do that because you need some pretty big kahunas for that.
The GT3 though is one that just about anyone with deep pockets can appreciate, all you have to do is experience it once to feel it in your heart and hear that engine sing.
If you can, buy it, and keep it. With everything going on in the world today, there is no telling when cars like the GT3 will cease to exist.
TC Subaru Sdn Bhd, the exclusive distributor of Subaru vehicles in Malaysia, has launched its special Raya campaign, “Raya Bersama Selamat Sentiasa,” which runs from 2 March to 30 April 2025. This festive initiative focuses on promoting safety and togetherness, offering customers attractive deals on new vehicles and comprehensive aftersales promotions ahead of the balik kampung season.
In conjunction with the upcoming Hari Raya celebrations, Subaru Malaysia is offering substantial savings on some of its most popular models. Customers purchasing the Subaru XV can enjoy combined perks and savings of over RM38,000, which include discounts of up to RM29,000, a complimentary security tint, and a five-year comprehensive service package. Meanwhile, the Subaru Forester is also available with combined savings exceeding RM36,000, featuring discounts of up to RM28,000, a complimentary HD dash cam worth RM1,450, and a five-year comprehensive service package.
