14/12/2025

theSunday Special XV ON SUNDAY DEC 14, 2025

Did Perodua really mess up? NOW that the storm has some what settled, let’s talk about the Perodua QV:E pragmatically. Did Perodua really mess it up?

Exclusive from Alfa Romeo

The other thing was Perodua wants to be able to track the whereabout of the battery since it owns it. None of us like being tracked admittedly so that’s another nail in the coffin. And then there is the remote disabling of a car, and this part I don’t understand the backlash. Opinions posted online say that Perodua should not be able to dis

Up until the mandate from the government, Perodua did not have any plans to build its own EV. Whether this was discussed in boardrooms, I am not privy to that, but nothing was announced to the media nor made public.

WRITTEN BY KESHY DHILLON

able the car even if payment for the battery is not made. But why would you not pay for it in the first place? And if you can’t afford to pay for it already, shouldn’t you sell the car and reas sess your finances? There is also the case of the car being used for Syariah compliant purposes. Or so it may seem. This was initially the source of many unwarranted jokes online with some saying that meant they could not carry non-halal items since the car needed to be “syariah compliant”. But this is all nonsense and childish. Perodua clarified that the BaaS pro gramme itself is Syariah Compliant and operates on the Islamic concept of Ijarah. Bank Negara defines Ijarah as a “type of lease that literally means the compensate and to give something on rent”. You can read the entire definition on Bank Negara’s web site. So based on this concept, Perodua as the owner of the battery, leases out the battery to the interested party at an agreed rental rate over an agreed lease period. The battery remains the property of Perodua while the leaser has the right of use ( usufruct ) of the battery. At the end of the nine year period, the leaser may return the battery to Perodua or extend the leaser period of the battery for a secondary term. And this is where the issue lays. How can the person who has bought the car return the battery? Does that not render the car useless? So that means the owner has no choice but to extend the lease period. There are mentions that the owner can continue using the battery past the nine-year agreement period, but there is no such men tion in Perodua’s Product Disclosure Sheet which it shared together with its clarification of the Syariah Compliance issue on its social media channels. The disclosure sheet only mentions two possible scenarios once the lease term ends. So did Perodua mess up then? I maintain that Perodua did not mess up on the car, perhaps the execution of the BaaS. It’s a noble idea that offloads the head ache of battery degradation but perhaps it is a little ahead of its time as no one is really talking about that at the moment. And you really can’t fix a problem that is not affecting the masses... as yet. Also, perhaps include another option for owners to continue using the battery for as long as they want, they did after all pay for it, and the car does belong to them. If they want to drive it till it no longer moves, let them. But the QV:E is surely a great first try from Perodua. The platform it is built on is a modular one and can be shortened for smaller cars and elongated for bigger cars, so this chapter is not over for Perodua, it is just the beginning, and I am sure Perodua will learn from this and come back stronger. Perhaps allow owners to own the battery outright? If they want to deal with degrada tion, then let them.

The mandate from the government under the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030) was clear though, Perodua was given the champion’s role among local automotive manufacturers to accelerate the growth of the local EV ecosystem. It had a strict dead line too. Perodua had to introduce its EV by 2025. A cold, hard two years. And there was a strict price ceiling, Perodua’s price ceiling had to be under RM100,000. All things considered, and from what I saw with the QV:E, Perodua did not mess it up. Not one bit. Sure, the QV:E is far from perfect; the rear legroom is cramped. It also feels claustro phobic because of the small rear window and gigantic c-pillar. Perodua also missed an opportunity to install rear air-conditioning vents, which is a pity because they built this car from the ground up and we live in a country where it can get more than just hot. Some also say the interior feels cheap, but I don’t mind it. I think the QV:E is a fantastic first effort from Perodua. Keep in mind that Perodua has never built a car entirely of its own, not publicly at least. In its 32 years of existence, the QV:E is Perodua’s first 100% Perodua. It is a brilliant first effort. And before you chastise the QV:E as not entirely a Malaysian product simply because there was knowledge transfer from Magna Steyr, and components from BYD and Shanghai Electric, I would like you to name one car maker who builds everything by themselves. And I mean everything from the seats to every single component of a car. Some say the styling of the Perodua is not entirely original. Audi started with light bars at the rear of cars, don’t all cars have them now? Does that mean they are all unorig inal? So where did it all go catastrophically wrong? What warrants netizens, key opinion leaders and such to aim their arsenal of key boards at Perodua? The Battery as a Service (BaaS) pro gramme is what Perodua did. Simply said it was the straw that broke the back of a very fine camel. During the product presentation for selected members of the media, a Perodua spokesperson said that they wanted to address three key concerns among EV buy ers – resale value, battery degradation and high entry price. And that is how BaaS came about. What Perodua perhaps did not expect was the very public backlash. People did not see the point in paying monthly rental for a battery that they ultimately will not own. Even if Perodua provided a lifetime warranty on it and would replace it for free in just under 30 minutes if the state of health of the battery falls below 70%. The public just does not seem to care about that. If they have paid for it, they want to own it. If the state of health of the battery falls below 70%, they want to deal with it in their own way.

Italian car maker marks the Quadrifoglio Legacy with Giulia, Stelvio Collezione Models

ALFA ROMEO has introduced two highly exclusive creations, the Giulia Quadrifoglio Collezione and Stelvio Quadrifoglio Collezione, developed in tribute to one of the brand’s most enduring icons – the Quadrifoglio. The emblem, first painted onto Ugo Sivocci’s Alfa Romeo RL when he won the 1923 Targa Florio, became the mark of the brand’s racing machinery for decades. In 1963, it shifted from the circuit to the road with the Giulia Ti Super, and from then on it distinguished Alfa Romeo’s most powerful and exclusive road-going models. That pivotal year forms the inspi ration for this new Collezione series, which has been limited to just 63 units worldwide. Two Giulia units have been ear marked for the UK, while the rest will be distributed across Europe, the Middle East, China and Japan. Both Collezione models are assembled at Alfa Romeo’s Cassino plant, bringing together traditional Italian craftsmanship and advanced manufacturing techniques. Each car is finished in one of two new interpretations of the ‘Rosso Villa D’Este’ paint made famous by the 33 Stradale. The Giulia wears ‘Rosso Collezione Giulia’, a deep shade that appears almost black depending on the light, while the Stelvio receives ‘Rosso Collezione Stelvio’, a brighter and more open

shade of red. The contrasting interpretations of red on the Giulia and Stelvio tell two sides of the same story – one darker and more extreme in its sportiness, the other broader and more expressive for a performance SUV. Power comes from a 2.9-litre V6 producing 520hp, a configuration that underscores Alfa Romeo’s rac ing heritage and maintains the brand’s close connection with pure driving engagement. Carbon fibre is used extensively, from the front badge and mirror caps to the dashboard trim and centre tunnel, with a visible carbon fibre roof adding both technical appeal and visual aggression. A carbon-ceramic braking sys tem is also part of the package, ensuring top-tier stopping power and carrying the Alfa Romeo signa ture in red across burnished ano dised callipers. Recognising their collectable status, Alfa Romeo is supplying each Collezione model with an “Instant Classic Certification” from Alfa Romeo Classiche. The blend of design, craftsman ship and engineering is intended to create cars that are not merely lim ited editions but rolling expressions of the Quadrifoglio philosophy – vehicles capable of provoking emo tion at first sight.