TO date BMW Malaysia has delivered more than 19,000 plug-in hybrids and also full electric vehicles to Malaysian customers. Please note that most of the 19,000 units are actually plug-in hybrids (PHEV) and there are just a handful of full electric vehicles.
This also means there are a lot of BMW PHEV owners who are not taking full advantage of the high technology BMW battery system to get pure petrol-free driving performance.
We say this because it is clear that Malaysia does not have enough public charging points to cater to all 19,000 plus BMW PHEV owners to take full advantage of their battery electric system and instead use its petrol power almost 90-95 percent of the time. Right now, the count for AC charging points around Peninsula Malaysia is about 400 points and not rising fast enough at all.
Some PHEV owners with home-based Wallbox chargers have been religiously charging their PHEVs to get maximum electric driving distance, but there are not enough of them.
Yes, there are also a lot of Mercedes-Benz PHEVs on our roads and also let's not forget the large number of Volvo PHEVs that are being enjoyed by well-to-do Malaysians.
With the slowdown in our economy due to Covid-19 and the Malaysian National Automotive Policy (NAP 2020) in the last two years concentrating more on unreachable automotive agendas like the 3rd National car program, the need to get our PHEV and also electric car charging infrastructure moving should be a priority.
The move to attract electric vehicle production and even sales has been stagnant and companies that have invested in bringing car charging systems to Malaysia like ABB and Circontrol have also been sitting in the sidelines waiting patiently for a change in attitude.
Are emissions not an issue? Is pollution not a big issue? Well, with the recent river pollution issues we experienced which affected water supply to the Klang Valley, it seems that little thought has been placed on the future of our air quality and also water quality.
Simply put, without adequate charging stations across Peninsula Malaysia, the need to introduce electric vehicles seems less likely. Yes, we have premium electric vehicles selling well, like the Porsche Taycan and Mini Cooper SE, but these are fashionable statements for rich Malaysians. These buyers already have 3 to 6 other petrol guzzling cars in their garage and their collection gets interesting with a Taycan that can accelerate from 0-100km/h in just 2.8 seconds. Yes, most Taycan test drives are done to see and feel its acceleration time and nothing else and then a deposit is paid with a quick visit to the neck doctor to check the strain on the driver’s neck after that neck snapping acceleration.
With the Mini Cooper SE, it's just too stylish to ignore and its selling price of RM225,888 makes it a trendy conversation starter.
The electric vehicle movement needs a ‘jump start’ with at least another 400 new public charging points (not in shopping malls or hotels) up and ready in the next 3 months to encourage electric car manufacturers to start pushing sales. Let’s come back in February 2021 to see if there has been any movement forward. – The Vibes, November 4, 2020
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