15/02/2026

theSunday Special XV ON SUNDAY FEB 15, 2026

Ban motorcycles from highways!

BEFORE STARTING, let’s just be clear about something. I love motorcycles! I have owned close to 20 of them throughout my love affair with two wheels. They are the ulti mate freedom machines for me. Some people believe in therapy, I believe in going for an epic ride to clear my mind. Some people believe in going to the beach for a holiday. I believe in going for a motorcycling holiday. I only laid one condition to my wife before we got married. Never stop me from riding. She never has. While the car world has been tainted by electric vehi cles and car companies struggle to find their identities, motorcycle makers are just set on making even more awesome bikes. I have been on-road, off-road, over all kinds of surfaces, and have even been lucky enough to ride a motorcycle to the highest motorable road in the world. So it pains me to say this but I support the call to ban motorcy cles from highways in Malaysia. I believe motorcyclists have had it coming. Not all of us mis behave on the highways, but let’s face it, there are many who do and this small group have made it difficult for the rest of us. The actions of some are horrid to say the least. For years we have watched powerlessly as “Mat Rempits” terrorise the high ways with their stunts. This is a plague that the authorities seem powerless to stop. It seems like they simply cannot do anything about it. But that does not mean they have not tried. They have. Roadblocks have been set up on highways, but some motorcy clists would just turn around in the middle of the highway and ride against the flow of traffic. We can’t help it if they don’t care about their lives, but why endan ger others? Motorcyclists, especially those riding smaller bikes like the hum ble kapcai , seem to have no problem at all to ride their bikes against the flow of traffic. Whether it is on major high ways or even on urban roads. This is extremely dangerous and people can die because of their actions. Then there is the issue of “slip streaming” other vehicles. This is the act of following a larger vehi cle so closely that you do not feel the air hitting you. All of us have seen it. A motorcyclists following a truck so

closely that it seems like the rider can simply jump onto the truck like they do in the Fast & Furious movies. They do this for comfort.

I understand that, but it is extremely dangerous as well. The dangers of these motorcyclists seems to know no bounds. While motor cycles get better in terms of tech, the rid ers seem to be regress ing in terms of intelli

WRITTEN BY KESHY DHILLON

Style & substance Toyota Corolla Cross HEV GR Sport gets update

gence and skill. Over 4000 motorcyclists died on our roads in 2024 alone. That’s is roughly about 11 deaths per day, an unacceptable figure by any measure. So what choice do the authorities have? Ban motorcy cles from the highways. The mechanism on how to do this may be a mammoth task, but there may be good things to come from this. Motorcyclists who can’t travel on the highways will be forced to use the trunk roads when travelling out of state. This will provide more areas for them to stop for shelter as there are many small kam pungs and towns along the way. They may have a drink or some food on their journey and this may indirectly spark the eco nomic scales of these forgotten k ampungs and towns. Sure, their journey may take longer, but it is better to arrive alive than to become a statistic. And besides, the manage ment of some of the highways have introduced the smart lane system that effectively turns the emergency lane into a fourth lane. This is done to ease conges tion but it also means that motor cyclists have nowhere else to go but to ride in between the cars and heavy vehicles once again. Why risk it? Isn’t it better to ride on the trunk roads? There is a lot more to see and do anyway. But the real barrier here is political will. We simply do not have any of it. There is plenty of talk and lots of noise, but there is not a single minister worth his weight in salt that will take the risk of losing his voter bank to push this through. The sheer number of motor cyclists in this country means that they potentially stand to lose a large chunk of their voter base. There may even be demonstra tions on the streets. So the real question is not about whether or not motorcy clists should be on the highways, it is about who is brave enough to stop them.

UMW TOYOTA has introduced the updated 2026 Toyota Corolla Cross HEV GR Sport, with revisions centred on exterior and interior styling. Pricing remains unchanged at RM 148,800. On the exterior, the 2026 Cross GR Sport features a revised front grille design, now without the gloss black surrounds previously seen. Minor changes have also been made to the skid plate, fog lamp surrounds, side mould ings and rear skid plate. Toyota also notes updated rear emblem colour treatments as part of the update. The headlights, GR Sport-specific smoked tail-lights and 18-inch alloy wheels carry over unchanged. Exterior colour options remain the same three choices, which are Platinum White Pearl, Dark Turquoise and Red Mica Metallic, all paired with a contrasting black roof. Inside, the SUV now comes with red seat belts, and the red contrast stitching has also been extended to the door trims, steering wheel and seats, with the steering wheel now gaining a GR badge.

The front seats further receive GR logos embroidered on the headrests, while GR branding is also extended to the key fob, alongside dark silver interior trim accents. Elsewhere, equipment levels remain unchanged. The Corolla Cross GR Sport con tinues to feature a 12.3-inch digital instru ment cluster and a 10.1-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support. There are no mechanical changes. The car retains the same 1.8-litre hybrid powertrain, pairing a 1.8-litre Atkinson-cycle engine paired with an electric motor for a combined system output of 120hp, delivered to the front wheels via a hybrid-specific e-CVT transmission. It continues to feature a sport-tuned sus pension calibrated for Malaysian road condi tions. Warranty coverage is unchanged, with a five-year, unlimited-mileage vehicle war ranty, alongside a dedicated hybrid warranty covering the battery, power management control unit and inverter. Customers may also opt for an additional two-year extended warranty at extra cost.