2025 is the year of EVs in Malaysia with two more locally-made EVs launched, namely the e.MAS 5 and QV-E at more affordable prices. In addition, the introduction of the BUDI95 targeted petrol subsidy was also introduced. What else is interesting? Here is a list of the 10 most interesting automotive news of 2025.
1. Proton e.MAS5 Launched – Proton's Second Electric Car
The Proton e.MAS 5 was launched in October as the second EV produced by the local company with two versions, namely Prime and Premium and a range of up to 325 KM WLTP. The Proton e.MAS 5 is sold at a price of RM 59,800 for the Prime version, while RM 72,800 for the premium version.
It comes with a 6-year warranty without any mileage limit, and a warranty on the battery and components for 8 years or 160,000 km of mileage, whichever comes first. With the e.MAS 5 offering, the local EV industry is getting more interesting after the e.MAS 7 was launched late last year. After a long wait for an EV at a more “comfortable” price. The e.MAS 5 is here for those who don’t want to spend more to use a zero-carbon emission vehicle.
2. Perodua QV-E Launched at RM 80,000 – Battery Rented Separately
The Perodua QV-E was launched earlier this month at RM 80,000 with the battery sold separately. This fulfills Perodua’s promise to offer a local EV at a price below RM100,000 to compete with the Proton e.MAS 5 which went on sale in October.
The Perodua QV-E has a 52 kWh battery that can provide a range of 440km NEDC. With a front-wheel drive electric motor that provides a maximum power of 150 kW and 285Nm of torque, it also has a maximum speed limit of 165km/h.
Despite its attractive selling price, the first fully locally designed EV has been hit by controversy due to various terms and conditions imposed on battery rentals. Among them is that the QV-E cannot be used as a ride-hailing or commercial vehicle. Failure to pay the battery rental for 2 months will result in the vehicle being remotely shut down by Perodua.
3. Budi Madani RON95 Subsidy (BUDI95) Introduced on 30 September
The targeted subsidy program for RON95 petrol, called Budi Madani RON95 (BUDI95), was introduced on 30 September 2025. The selling price of RON95 petrol will be set at a ceiling price of RM1.99 per litre for those eligible to receive BUDI95 and RM2.60 per litre for those who are not eligible. Meanwhile, the price of RON97 petrol will remain at the current market price of RM3.21 per litre. This is also the price that foreign vehicles entering Malaysia will have to pay to fill up with petrol.
For ordinary citizens, a quota of 300 litres of petrol is given every month. For ride-hailing service drivers, a monthly quota of 800 liters per month is given with a minimum travel distance of 5,000km per month. If the amount of petrol filled exceeds this limit, the vehicle owner will have to pay the current market price.
Malaysians also do not need to do any registration because the subsidy verification process uses the existing MyKad which will be verified through terminals at petrol stations and also at fuel pump terminals.
4. Rapid KL Will Start Electric Bus Services Starting in 2026
Rapid KL will start electric bus services starting in 2026. This was announced by Transport Minister Anthony Loke in July at the acceptance ceremony of the final batch of 310 new Rapid KL diesel buses. The electric buses used are manufactured by a Chinese company but will be fully assembled in Johor. This allows for the transfer of foreign technology to be done with local companies.
These electric buses will then operate on routes with high demand in. Klang Valley and Penang. The tender to supply electric buses has already closed with an announcement to be made later.
Rapid KL has been using electric buses since 2015 for its Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service, but on a small scale. Then in 2022, 4 electric buses made by BYD were tested for three months. They cover Route 400; Damai Perdana to Lebuh Pudu Hub and Route 650 from Taman Desa to Pasar Seni hub.
5. Tesla Approves $1 Trillion Remuneration Package For Elon Musk
Tesla shareholders approved a $1 trillion (~RM 4.18 trillion) remuneration package for CEO Elon Musk in November. The approval was given after receiving the approval of 75% of shareholders in a vote held this week.
This compensation is given to Musk as an incentive to ensure that he remains Tesla CEO for another 10 years by achieving several targets set during that period. Tesla's board of directors proposed this remuneration package last September.
This $1 trillion compensation is in the form of 12% of Tesla shares if he manages to increase the company's market value to $8.6 trillion within a decade. At this time, Tesla's market value is around $1.1 trillion. If Musk succeeds in achieving the target, he will hold almost 29% of the company's shares.
Other targets that Musk needs to achieve include;
Release 1 million Cybercab self-driving taxis for commercial purposes.
Release 1 million Optimus robots also for commercial purposes.
Increase Tesla's profits to $400 billion from the current $17 billion.
Achieve 20 million EV deliveries
During this 10-year period, Musk will not receive any salary or cash bonuses from the company. This huge compensation offer will make Musk the first person to reach trillionaire status. He is currently the richest person in the world with a fortune of $491 billion with his closest challenger Larry Ellison "only" having $298 billion.
6.JPJ Introduces New Design for Malaysian Driving License
The Road Transport Department (JPJ) of Malaysia has introduced a new design for the Malaysian Driving License in May. This new design, apart from its illustrations and graphics, also comes with enhanced security features.
This new design uses a background image of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, as well as an abstract wave motif on the front. On the back, it uses the Istana Negara graphic with an abstract flora motif.
JPJ also says that it has a durability of use for 10 years. However, the physical version of this driving license is only limited to those who are going abroad, and not only citizens. Instead, users will be given a digital version. The transition to the new version is also expected to be done in stages according to JPJ branches nationwide.
7.Chevy Silverado EV Breaks EV Travel Record With 1704 km on a Single Charge
The two main issues with the use of electric vehicles (EVs) in Malaysia are the price being too high and the second is the limited travel range. This issue is not helped by the disproportionate increase in charging stations compared to the number of EVs on the road. This is not an issue if you drive a Chevy Silverado EV that just recorded a range of 1,704.6 km (1,059.2 miles) on a single charge with an energy consumption of 7.88 km/kWh (4.9 miles/kWh).
The Chevy Silverado EV broke the world record held by the Lucid Air Grand Touring which drove 1,205 km (749 miles) on a single charge in mid-July. To achieve this 1,704.6 km distance, Chevy made several changes to the original vehicle which had a driving range of 7893 km (493 miles).
First of all the windshield wiper blades were made smaller to reduce air resistance. The tires were then inflated to their highest pressure and the spare tire was removed. A cargo cover was added and the cabin air conditioning was turned off for the duration of the trip. Finally, the EV truck was driven at a maximum speed of 32-40 mph.
Despite breaking the record set by the Lucid Air Grand Touring, Chevy did not apply for their success to be recognized by the Guinness Book of Records. Therefore, if after this you read that the record is held by the Lucid Air Grand Touring, this is a Guinness Record and not an absolute world record.
8. China Will Mandate Doors That Can Be Opened Manually Inside and Outside the Vehicle
Cars, especially EVs, are equipped with automatic doors that use electric power. Many EVs in the Malaysian market have handleless doors that are opened using a button. But Chinese authorities want to mandate that doors be equipped with mechanical systems on the inside and outside of vehicles for emergency purposes. The doors must also have handles that can be pulled out and not the hidden type (for aerodynamic purposes) as is popularly used now.
What happens in EV accidents is that the electrical power is cut off and passengers are trapped inside the vehicle. The mechanical systems involved are often hidden and in a panic situation there have been several cases of passengers burning to death. Electric doors also do not allow people outside to open the doors.
China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will refine the requirements for mechanical doors on all vehicles in November. If the proposal is approved, all new vehicles in China will have to include this feature by mid-2027.
9. CATL Battery Technology Provides 520KM Range After 5 Minutes of Charging
In addition to launching the world's first commercial sodium-ion battery, CATL also announced a new battery technology that allows it to provide a range of up to 520km after charging for just 5 minutes. This second-generation Shenxing Superfast Charging Battery technology is also the first LFP battery with a range of 800km and supports 12C charging.
To achieve this very fast charging level, a new technology with a power of 1.3 MW is required. For comparison, the highest charging power in Malaysia currently is 400kW offered by DC Handal. This 12C charging allows up to 2.5 km of travel distance to be added every second the battery is charged. This will realize the dream of EV batteries being charged as fast as filling a tank of petrol.
With this, CATL has successfully overtaken BYD's Super e-Platform technology which offers a travel distance of 400 km in 5 minutes with a charging power of 1MW. BYD's technology has already been used in the BYD Han L and Tang L. It is still unknown which companies will use this Shenxing 2.0 battery but CATL supplies batteries to Tesla, BMW, Volkswagen, Ford, Hyundai, Honda, Toyota, Geely, NIO, and many more.
10. 100 Electric Trucks Operate Self-Driving in Mines Using Huawei’s 5G Technology
Huawei’s self-driving and 5G-Advanced technologies have been combined with 100 Huaneng Ruichi trucks to conduct mining operations in Mongolia, China. This is the first time in the world that self-driving and 5G-A technologies have been used in large-scale and real-world operations.
The use of this technology is in response to the Chinese government’s desire to increase the use of safer, smarter electric vehicles and make mining operations greener. Each Huaneng Ruichi truck can carry up to 90 metric tons of cargo with 120% efficiency compared to human truck drivers.
Huawei Cloud provides Commercial Vehicle Autonomous Driving Cloud Service (CVADCS) technology that enables real-time route mapping in mines. According to Huawei, this improves route optimization, reduces waiting times and improves operational efficiency.
Huawei’s 5G-A technology enables data upload speeds of up to 500 Mbps with a latency of 20 ms. Huawei says this technology will be enhanced to allow up to 300 self-driving vehicles to be monitored simultaneously 24 hours a day.