RM88 CNY offer package for SmartTAG + Touch n Go or PLUSMiles card

Currently, there is a Chinese New Year offer package for SmartTAG + Touch n Go or PLUSMiles card selling at RM88 (normal price: RM120 + RM10 = RM130).

Offer period: 21 Jan 2012 - 29 Jan 2012

Where to buy?

• Touch 'n Go Hub at Bangsar South, KL Sentral or Wisma Nufri
• Reload 'n Go counters at Seremban R&R, Sg. Buloh OBR and Temerloh R&R
• Touch 'n Go service centre along PLUS Highway and MTD Highway
• Touch 'n Go SPOT counters at:
• Shell, Hentian Sebelah Juru, Lebuhraya PLUS Arah Utara
• Esso, Hentian Sebelah Juru, Lebuhraya PLUS Arah Selatan
• Shell, R&R Tapah, Lebuhraya PLUS Arah Utara
• Shell, R&R Tapah, Lebuhraya PLUS Arah Selatan
• Petronas, Lebuhraya Sg Besi Arah Utara
• BHPetrol, Lebuhraya Sg Besi Arah Selatan
• Petronas, R&R Ayer Keroh, Lebuhraya PLUS Arah Utara
• Shell, R&R Pagoh, Lebuhraya PLUS Arah Utara
• Petronas, R&R Skudai, Lebuhraya PLUS
• Shell, Gombak, Lebuhraya MRR2, Arah Batu Caves
• Petronas, Lingkaran Karak, Lebuhraya MRR2

Click here for more information about RM88 CNY offer package for SmartTAG + Touch n Go or PLUSMiles card.

Installed D-Plus pedal lock in my car

I have heard about the wonder of pedal lock such as Locktech in securing the car from theft for quite some times. Today, I finally installed one in my car when I visited Brother's shop. The brand is D-Plus, also made in Thailand as Locktech, and feature-wise it seems like both are very identical.

This lock has dual locking system. At the first level, pull the beige handle and the brake pedal will be locked and not depressible. At the second level, push the second lock beside the handle, and the second lock need to be unlocked before the first lock can be released. Both the locks are using the same key.

While this lock is engaged, the car engine cannot be started.

Somebody has uploaded a video to YouTube to show this D-Plus lock in action.

Live traffic condition updates in Twitter by Malaysian Highway Authority (Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia, LLM)

In this festive season, a lot of us are taking a long break and travelling back to hometown or going on vacation. It is anticipated that the traffic volume on PLUS highway will increase tremendously.

Do you know that you can check the live highways traffic condition updates in Twitter by Malaysian Highway Authority (Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia, LLM)? The landing page is http://twitter.com/#!/LLMinfotrafik.

Its gonna be very handy and convenient for you if you can access Twitter with your smartphone, like this:

Also, Twitter loads much faster than the LLM Traffic website (http://www.llmtrafik.gov.my/), another place for you to check the highway traffic conditions.

You can also make a call to 1800887752 (7am - 10pm) for live traffic update.

May your journey be safe and smooth. Enjoy your holiday!

(Click the share button below to share this info with your friends...)

Google conducts R&D on self-driving automated cars

Recently, there are some news about Google test driving their new innovative toy - self-driving automated cars that can start, stop, steer and run without any human intervention.

This project involved 7 cars (6 Toyota Priuses and 1 Audi TT) that have mostly been driven without any human assistance for at least 1000 miles (or 1609 kilometers) on major California roads. In fact, they've already gone through more than 140,000 miles (or 225,260 kilometers) with only occasional human control.

The cars know speed limits, traffic patterns and road maps. This is made possible by a rotating sensor on the roof to create an environment around the car, a video-camera behind the windshield for pedestrians and traffic lights, radar on the front and back bumper, GPS and motion sensors, controlled by computer with artificial-intelligence software that can sense anything near the car and mimic the decisions made by a human driver.

Google claimed that these automated self-driving cars can react faster than humans, have 360-degree perception and do not get distracted, sleepy or intoxicated. As a result, this can reduce accident on the road.

The car can even be programmed for different driving personalities — from "cautious" to "aggressive" mode.

This project is the brainchild of Sebastian Thrun, 43, director of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, a Google engineer and the co-inventor of the Street View mapping service.

Though this invention is still far from production yet, we can probably foresee the automated car KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand) that we watched in the TV show Knight Rider to come into reality in the near future.

Toyota Avanza enhancement - Titan high-low adjustable performance suspension system

I have upgraded the stock suspension of my Toyota Avanza to Titan high-low adjustable performance suspension system.

Titan is a well-known Malaysian brand of serviceable car shock absorber and suspension components, manufactured by a company called MPd Auto Centre Sdn Bhd founded in 1999 by Richard How, and located at No. 38, Jalan Mewah 3/3, Taman Perindustrian Hata, Pandan Mewah, 68000 Ampang.

Titan is highly recommended by AOCM as a replacement for the stock suspension of Toyota Avanza (either the 1.3 or the 1.5 models). Although its initial cost is higher than normal absorber, it has advantages such as:

• Height is adjustable to tune for the suspension dampening rate
• Can be custom made according to your requirement
• The package includes the whole car suspension system, i.e. absorber, spring, damper, panhard rod modification, etc.
• Serviceable, no need to replace the whole thing in the future, thus lower maintenance cost
• Has second hand resell value

Built upon inverted monotube design, Titan suspension can be adjusted to be stiffer for racing performance, and also adjustable to be softer for comfort driving. With this, the car can be tuned to greatly reduce its bumpiness and bounciness on the ride. In fact, you will be amazed by Titan's performance in handling uneven road conditions, road bumps and road holes.

If Titan is used together with the Ultra Racing bars, Toyota Avanza can have a greatly improved steady and stable ride, as well as safer and better handling for high speed and cornering.

For those who complain about stock suspension system of Toyota Avanza, this could be your solution.

Fixed Garmin suction cup mount fall off from windscreen problem

After about 1 year of usage, the suction cup mount of my Garmin GPS often fall off after about 1 hour sticking onto the windscreen. Sometimes, it even fall off at shorter time, especially during rainy day.

I found an easy solution to fix this problem. Just merse it into hot water (70-80 degree Celcius) for about 1-2 minutes, and the rubber suction cup will restore its suction power!

If you also faced the same problem, try this solution and share with us whether it works for you or not. If you have other solutions as well, please share with me too.

Upgraded Toyota Avanza 1.5 stock Dunlop SP10 185/65R15 88S tyres to Goodyear Eagle NCT5 195/60R15 88V

It is time for my Toyota Avanza 1.5G to have new set of tyres, and the stock tyres with spec of 185/65R15 is not so popular, and limited choice. As a result, I decided to change the spec to 195/60R15 which is more popular, has more choice and easier to get.

The stock tyres for Toyota Avanza 1.5G are Dunlop SP10 185/65R15 88S. They are quite durable, and I've used them for 3 years, running over a mileage of over 60,000 kilometers, before I finally replace them.

Stock tyre - Dunlop SP10

I've chosen the wider Goodyear Eagle NCT5 195/60R15 88V as the replacement.

New tyre - Goodyear Eagle NCT5

This Goodyear Eagle NCT5 tyre gives better handling and firmer grip than Dunlop SP10. Since it is 88V, it is designed to be able to run in higher speed as fast as 240km/h too, although I don't think the 1.5 engine of my Avanza can get close to that kind of speed.

Although the original 15" rim can be used, the new tyre is about 1" wider than before, and I was advised by the tyre shop to change to a new set of 15" rim to match with the new tyre's spec. The stock rims are traded in. Then, I was told that this new rim need a centre cone ring to fit better to the chasis and avoid possible vibration. The wheel nut need to be changed as well.

Here is what I've paid, including workmanship for installation:

• 4x new Goodyear Eagle NCT5 195/60R15 88V tyre, manufactured in 17th week of 2010 (about 2 weeks ago): RM840
• 4x 15" Taiwan made ADR sport rim, traded in with stock rim: RM660
• 4x centre cone: RM50
• Wheel nuts: RM50
• 4x steel valve: FOC
• Balancing and alignment: FOC

Hope that I've got a good price for the wheels replacement.

You might probably be interested to also read about:

• Information on the tyre wall 

Air fresheners might contain toxic substances

Do you use air freshner in your office? living room? bedroom? toilet? car?

A report from the Women in Europe for a Common Future (WECF) organization titled "Foul-smelling whiff from air fresheners!" alerted that air fresheners do not "purify" the ambient air, but on the contrary pollute it by releasing well-known toxic substances.

The European Consumers' Organisation (BEUC) and 5 of its member organisations had tested on 76 air fresheners products, and found out many contain:

• Formaldehyde and benzene - which could cause cancer in humans
• Acetaldehyde or styrene - that irritates the respiratory tract, allergens and potential carcinogens
• Toluene, chlorbenzene, glycol ethers, phthalates and artificial musk - all known to be dangerous to health

Not to mention all the other chemicals not assessed in this test and about which we know nothing.

These products represent a real risk to health not only of allergy sufferers, asthmatics, pregnant or nursing women and children, but also to anyone using them continuously.

As a result, it is advisable not to use air fresheners to avoid exposure to those toxic substances. Perhaps air ionizer is a better alternative.

Taxable amount from company car, petrol card, driver, etc.

If your employer provides you a company car, petrol card and/or car driver, you will notice that an amount will be treated as Benefit-In-Kind (BIK) in your EA Form, which is taxable.

The following table shows how the value of such taxable BIK value is calculated.

The annual BIK value of driver provided is RM7,200.

For example, if you are provided with a Honda Accord 2.4 which its cost is fall under the range of RM150,001-RM200,000, and you are also provided with a petrol card but no driver, your taxable BIK income will be RM7,000 + RM1,800 = RM8,800.

If your tax rate is 27%, then you will need to pay RM8,800 x 27% = RM2,376 for this BIK in your income tax. (Note: the maximum personal income tax rate will be reduced to 26% from assessment year 2010 onwards.)

This amount is normally already divided and deducted in your monthly PCB deduction.

Latest Garmin GPS pricelist of vendors in Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei

If you are planning to buy a Garmin GPS navigator, either the Nuvi, Fitness or Zumo, there is a place for you to check the price offered by various vendors in Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei.

Click here to access to the shared Google spreadsheet about Garmin latest pricelist.

Let's express our great thanks to Noah, the creator and maintainer of this pricelist info.

My Garmin Nuvi 255W GPS navigator

I have just bought a Garmin Nuvi 255W portable GPS navigator in PIKOM PC Fair II 2009 at the price of RM849. It is a SING/MAL unit which comes with new features such as Junction View, Lane Assist, etc.

Here are some useful information for those who are also interested in this model of Garmin GPS navigator. Note that this unit is a localized version sold in Malaysia and Singapore only.

In the packaging box, there is:

• The Garmin Nuvi 255W GPS navigator
• Vehicle suction cup mount
• Vehicle power cable
• Dashboard disk
• Quick start manual

Free gifts from vendor as PC Fair promotion:

• Screen protector film
• Garmin leather case
• USB cable

There is no complete user manual come with the box, but the full user manual in PDF format can be downloaded from Garmin website.

The following maps are preloaded in the GPS navigator:

• City Navigator Singapore/Malaysia NT v4.02
• Malsingmaps Malaysia/Singapore/Brunei NT 2009.5
• Thailand v9.0 EN (No Pain)

And I managed to install Malfreemaps v1.68 together with MFM SRTM Topo v1.02 available in http://www.malfreemaps.com/.

How do we know this is a SING/MAL unit which supports Junction View and Lane Assist?

• Underneath the packaging box, the SKU number should be 010-00718-69 and barcode labeled with "nuvi 255W, SING/MAL".
• In Tools > Settings > System > About screen, you should be able to see "SgMy Software Ver. 2.70".
• You can set the unit into simulation mode and travel through some major junctions around KL urban area to see how it works. Ask the vendor to demo to you on the unit that you're going to buy.
  

There are many ways to navigate and set destination in the Garmin Nuvi 255W GPS. You can set the location by address, telephone number, various points of interest (POI, such as those shown below), intersections, coordinates, etc.

This unit supports the "speak street name" feature, but you have to select a speaking voice that support for Text-to-speech (TTS) in order for this feature to function. There is one mandarin speaker voice which support TTS, but she will just spell out the name like "J-A-L-A-N ..." instead of pronouncing it as "Jalan ...". Anyhow, the American and British TTS are working well with Malaysian road names.

GPS gadget buying guide

The Global Positioning System (GPS) gadget has become one of the attraction in the recent PIKOM PC Fair II 2009 held in KL Convention Centre, and I have just purchased one.

Although most (if not all) of us can survive without using a GPS on travelling, GPS is no doubt a fun and handy device to guide our journey, because:

• It can help us to discover new paths that we never tried before.
• It can determine for us which is the fastest / shortest / fuel saving / most comfortable / ... path to destination.
  
• It can guide us to avoid certain paths, such as toll roads, traffic jam area, etc.
  
• It is extremely useful when travelling outstation or overseas, as we no longer need the traditional paper map, compass, ask people-on-street for direction, etc. (provided the GPS has the map of the place)
  
• It can alert us on danger road condition ahead, traffic limit, speed traps, point of attractions, etc.
• It can help us to easily locate and go to the nearest petrol station, restaurant, hospital, police station, etc. (especially during emergency)
  
• With it, we can join the interesting "geocaching" activity as our new hobby.
  
• And many more interesting things...
  

Here are my considerations when selecting the GPS:

1. Price - Yes, my first consideration is the pricing, as GPS is considered a "want" instead of a "need". I would not consider any GPS which cost above RM1,000. There are GPS gadgets that come with additional features such as bluetooth, multimedia (can play MP3, movie, etc.) which are beyond its basic function and make the unit cost higher, which I think we don't really need to pay for the price for those fancy things. However, we should think about getting the best of the price we are paying for, instead of just simply choosing a cheap unit which probably might disappoint us later.

2. Availability of maps - Without the maps, GPS is considered useless. Therefore, the GPS I choose must have many maps around the globe available for download or purchase when needed. Those maps must be actively developed and maintained. It would be even better if there are maps available for free.

3. Clear display and voice - We rely on the GPS screen and voice to guide our way. Therefore, the screen display should be clear, sharp and non-glare during daytime and night time. The voice also need to be clear and loud enough. Availability of voice in native languages such as Cantonese, Hokkien, Hakka, etc. is a plus.

4. Handy size - I personally like the 4.3" widescreen make of GPS. The screen is big enough for us to see clearly, while this size is still portable and can be put in our pocket. The 3.5" units seems to be small, and the 5" units are a little bit bulky.

5. Accuracy - The GPS must be very accurate in positioning the location. At the same time, the map must also be accurate in plotting the location. The variation between the actual location and GPS shown location must not exceed 5 meters.

6. Respond speed - The GPS must be fast in signaling with the satellites, perform fast recalculation on changed route, inform us early on turning and POIs ahead, etc. This is very much depends on the GPS chipset and the processor speed in the unit. It would be very annoying if your GPS respond is slow.

7. Stable signaling - The GPS must be fast as well as stable in contacting and receiving signals from the satellites. Conditions of lost contact with satellites should not occur unless the unit is in-house or heavily covered from the sky. Recovery after the obstacle is cleared (such as coming out from a long tunnel) must be quick.

8. Navigation and searching features - The GPS should be easy to use, with handful of good navigation and searching features.

9. Memory - The larger the memory, more maps and records can be kept. The internal memory should be at least 2GB, with support of external memory such as SD card.

10. Cool features - Cool features such as 3-D map, junction views, lane assist, pronounce road names, etc. are most welcomed as long as the price of the unit is still within budget.

11. Battery life and ease of charging - The battery should be able to last for at least 4 hours. It would be nice if the GPS can be charged from computer using USB cable, as the USB cable is one of the cheapest charging cable (cost around RM15 only) compared with car charger, household AC charger, etc.

12. Self-service - I would like to be able to upgrade the GPS firmware, upload maps, manipulate maps, etc. with software or tools that is easy to use and made available for the users.

13. Warranty & service - The vendor must be known to provide good warranty and service support, including maps updating services in the future.

14. Free gifts - Free maps (and subsequence updating service of the maps), pocket casing, screen protector film, etc. are nice to negotiate for.

15. Extra features - The least considerations are those extra features such as picture viewer, photo viewer, multimedia functions, calculator, currency converter, etc.

Based on the above, I've chosen my Garmin Nuvi 255w (SING/MAL unit) which cost me RM849 in the PIKOM PC Fair II 2009.

From RON97 to RON95?

The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister has just announced that the current RON92 petrol sold in the country will be replaced by RON95, and selling at the price of RM1.75 per litre. It will be made available nationwide by 1 September 2009.

The price of RON97 super-fuel will also be increased from the current RM1.80 per litre to RM2.00 from 1 September 2009 onwards, which is a rise of 11.11%. This is a drastic move to encourage the people to switch from current RON97 to RON95. It is argued that RON95 can be used in majority of the petrol-fueled cars on the road.

How will be the performance of RON95 compared with RON97? We have no idea yet until we have used the RON95 and benchmark it with RON97.

However, we can make reference to the comparison between Shell Super (RON97) and Shell V-Power (RON98). The information about Shell V-Power is RON98 can be confirmed in Shell Malaysia website (you can click the link to go to the "V-Power Fuel Composition" page in that website).

So what's the different between Shell V-Power (RON98) and Shell Super (RON97)? What will be the different between RON97 and RON95 then?

And no doubt, the Shell V-Power will also be priced higher by 1 September 2009, following the price increase of RON97.

It is a pity that we are told to downgrade the fuel we use in our car from RON97 to RON95, or have to pay a higher price to maintain the same after 1 September 2009. While the global world is moving forward, why we always have a feeling that we are moving backward?

CIMB Petronas Mastercard offers 5% rebate every 1st day of the month

CIMB Petronas Mastercard is a credit card that is free for life (no annual fee) and provides 2% rebate on spendings at Petronas service stations, 0.5% rebate on other retail transactions. Beside that, card holder can enjoy special discounts and privileges when using it to make payment in more than 500 outlets nationwide.

Now, on top of that, this credit card will also provide 5% rebate on spendings at Petronas service stations made in the 1st day of every month, until October 2009.

However, this rebate is capped to a maximum spending of RM200 or rebate of RM10 on every 1st day of the month, and subjected to a maximum spending of RM2,500 at Petronas service stations or rebate of RM50 per card per month.

This doesn't look as attractive as their previous campaign which provided 3% rebate (everyday) for spending in Petronas service stations, which has already ended on 17 November 2008. Yet, it is better than none.

Silicone wiper with lifetime warranty

The boneless rubber wipers that I last bought have already served me for about 20 months now. Although they are still usable, I noticed that the rubber colour has faded over time. Therefore, I decided to replace them with silicone wipers, which are about the same price of my boneless rubber wipers.

I have selected silicone wipers this time, as silicone material (made of silicon-oxygen polymer) is known to be very durable and will not degrade from prolonged exposure to sunlight, UV, ozone, washer fluid, road residue, chemicals, etc. (Some people or even vendors called this kind of wiper as "silicon wiper", but I think the correct term should be "silicone wiper" instead.)

I ordered the SWV silicone wipers through their website. This brand has been around for years, and the wipers are said to be imported from USA and manufactured by the same manufacturer of SilBlade.

The price can be calculated online by providing the make and model of my car. After making my order with their online form, they called me 2 days after to arrange for delivery and installation. The payment term is cash on delivery (COD), and to my surprise, no deposit is needed before delivery.

They sent a guy to deliver and install the wipers to me at the location chosen by me. I was also given a Lifetime Warranty Card, and they'll provide onsite support for the wipers. The wipers can wipe really clean, and I am happy with them.

My boneless rubber wipers are now kept in my storeroom as they are still usable. Perhaps will give them to friend who want to try out boneless wipers.

Convertible car seat for infant and young toddler

Car seat is necessary for you to carry your child in your car, and the child is not yet tall enough to use the seat belt of the car. It will provide protection to the child in case of collision.

I bought a convertible car seat for my son and has been using it since he was more than 1 month old until now (2 years+). I think it can still be used until he reaches 3 years old. The convertible car seat can be rear-facing as well as front-facing.




Here are some common senses about car seat that I would like to share with you:

• If your car has air-bag for front passenger, the car seat should be installed at the back seat and never be installed next to the driver. This is because the air bag might hurt or suffocate the child. It is even more dangerous if the car seat is in rear-facing position, imagine what will happen when the air bag blown out.
• The child should be rear-facing at least until he/she is 1 year old and also his/her weight has already exceeded 20 pounds (9.1 kg). This is because the neck bone of infant is still very soft and easy to break. With the child lying down securely, the rear-facing car seat will provide support and protection to the head and neck of the child in case of collision.
• Switch to front-facing when the legs are too long for rear-facing position.
• Consider a convertible car seat which can be rear-facing as well as front-facing, so that it can be used for a longer period (until 3-4 years old).
• You should change the car seat to booster seat for older toddler, until he/she can use the car seat belt without the booster seat, which is when the shoulder belt can rest against his/her chest and not the neck or higher position.

Toyota 0% Easy Payment Plan with CIMB credit cards

If you have any credit card issued by CIMB bank, including the Direct Access credit cards, and also have Toyota vehicle that you schedule for service/repair at authorized Toyota Service Centre, now you can enjoy their 0% interest Easy Payment Plan for payment above RM300.

Under the plan, if you spend above RM300 for your car service and/or repair with CIMB or Direct Access credit card at authorized Toyota Service Centre in Malaysia, you can opt for the credit card to charge you in 3 months installment with 0% interest. If the spending is above RM700, you can opt for 6 months installment with 0% interest.

This is particularly helpful if you want to do a major service (such as routine service + air-cond service), or major repair (which not claim from your car insurance).

Getting extra mileage and save fuel cost with Fuel Saver

Ever since the petrol price in Malaysia skyrocketed by 40% from RM1.92 to the historical high of RM2.70 on 5 June 2008, I had been looking for effective fuel saving product to help in saving some fuel expenses. I heard and read that many fuel saving products are in fact non-effective, until I decided to try out this product called Fuel Saver.

The reason I gave Fuel Saver a try was that it is inexpensive at the price of only RM99 including installation. To date, I have installed this Fuel Saver in my car for more than 3 months, and so far it performs pretty well.

Before the installation, I put it near my Ultra Racing Stabilizer Bar and it shown its magnetic nature by sticking onto the steel bar. You might want to visit to Fuel Saver's website to learn more about the theory of how it works, and read about its emission test result and Dynamometers test results to show it really works.

Here are some of my observations after installation:

• I feel that the engine run smoother and a little bit more powerful than before.
• I notice that when the engine is started after resting for quite a while, water will be dripping from the exhaust pipe. This is a sign of complete combustion which produces only carbon dioxide and water. The water will be vapourized when the engine turns hot. In fact, the sign of water dripping already shown after I installed the Zaptor performance voltage stabilizer, but the amount was not as much as now.
• I can get the most extra mileage when travelling long distance (>100 km) at high speed, compared with the same travelling distance and style before installation. This Toyota Avanza 1.5G auto 7-seater (using semi-synthetic engine oil) can run more than 60km further with the same amount of fuel for such a long distance journey, challenging the 600km target before the fuel tank warning light up.
• If the car is frequently travelling in short distance with some traffic lights at speed not more than 90 km/h most of the time, the extra mileage is minimal and there is not much fuel saving. The extra distance could be merely 10km only.

I find this fuel saving gadget a good investment, even though the petrol price in Malaysia has been gradually reduced to RM2.30 now since 15 October 2008 and could be further reduced again in the near future.

WD-40 can help in removing road tax sticker

Our road tax sticker is pretty sticky, with a layer of adhesive that glue it firmly onto the windscreen. When it is time to renew the road tax, many find it difficult to peel off the existing sticker without leaving stain of glue and/or small pieces of the sticker.

I found that WD-40 is pretty useful in helping us to peel off the existing road tax sticker from the windscreen cleanly, without leaving any stain or residue. Just gently peel off the sticker as usual, and don't worry about the adhesive and residue that is hard to remove. Then, spray some WD-40 onto a piece of dry cloth, and wipe them off from the windscreen. Now, you will have a clean space to put on your new road tax sticker.

Besides, I have V-Kool tinted on my windscreen, and I found that this WD-40 (sprayed on cloth) will not harm the tinted film, and hence this method is safe to use on tinted windscreen too.

About car engine oil

Whenever we bring our car to workshop for periodic maintenance service, the engine oil will be changed. Here are some of the essential knowledge about car engine oil that is practical to be known by every car owner.

The main function of the engine oil is to lubricate the piston movement, reduce direct contact between moving parts in the engine, and hence decrease the friction, wear & tear and heat produced. Some of its other functions are to clean up the engine, prevent oxidation and corrosion, etc.

There are 3 types of car engine oil available in the market:

• Mineral oil: is the natural oil refined from petroleum. It needs to be changed every 5,000km.
  
• Full-synthetic oil: is artificially synthesized (man-made) and consist of chemical compounds which were not originally present in natural petroleum. It has higher viscosity index than mineral oil, more expensive to produce and hence has a higher price tag too. It provides good protection to engine, able to enhances engine performance and power, and can help in fuel economy savings. It needs to be changed every 10,000km.
  
• Semi-synthetic oil (synthetic formulation / synthetic blends): blends of mineral oil with no more than 30% of synthetic oil, to get some of the benefit from synthetic oil with a lower price tag. It provides better engine protection than mineral oil and performs better in reducing wear and tear. It needs to be changed every 7,500km.

The kinematic viscosity of car engine oil is graded with the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) gradings. The kinematic viscosity is measured at a reference temperature of 100°C. The higher the viscosity, the higher the SAE grade number is.

Nowadays a multi-grade SAE designation is normally used, which carries 2 numbers separated by a "W" in between. For example, here are the SAE gradings of engine oil used by the Toyota service centres in Malaysia:

• Full-synthetic: 5W-40
• Synthetic formulation: 10W-40
• Premium mineral: 15W-50

The letter "W" denotes "Winter". The number before "W" indicates its cold crank performance. Lower number indicates the oil can be pumped by your engine even at a lower temperature. A 0W oil is well tested at -35°C, a 5W at -30°C, a 10W is tested at -25°C and a 15W is tested at -15°C. The number after "W" is the kinematic viscosity of the oil at high temperature. Oil with lower viscosity number is thiner.

It is advisable that you use the engine oil with the SAE rating as recommended by the car manufacturer. You can find this information in the car manual.

Bear in mind that the SAE grading does not state the quality of the oil. The quality of oil is determined by its API (American Petroleum Institute) rating.

For petrol engine using spark-plug ignition, the API listings start with letter "S" (meaning Service category), and for diesel engine using compression ignition, the API listings start with letter "C" (meaning Commercial category). Higher alphabet position of the 2nd letter denotes a better quality. For example, the SM rating has a better quality than SL. CJ-4 is better than CI-4.

Currently Toyota service centres in Malaysia use SM grade full synthetic oil, and SL grade for both synthetic formulation and premium mineral oil. Their diesel engine oil is CF grade.