With the VW Das Auto Show happening over the weekend, the Bukit Jalil Stadium has been transformed, well not the actual stadium itself but if you happened to drive by it you would definitely notice a huge white dome right in the parking lot. I was quite lucky to get invited together with a bunch of Nuffnang bloggers to attend the media opening of the VW Das Auto Show.
Upon entering the car park, because I was driving a Golf, the guards were nice to lead me towards the Volkswagen Vehicles only parking. At the end of the event I did find out that the sign actually meant that it was for Volkswagen Group Malaysia’s staff but of course my ignorance did get the better of me and I just proceeded to park amongst the other VW marques. There was plenty of parking space available and over the weekend, parking will be free.
I arrived a little earlier and was greeted with the registration counter amidst a huge room.
While waiting for the other bloggers to arrive, I managed to catch up with Nicholas and also meet Tian Chad and Huai Bin. After registering at the counter and receiving our own personal goody packs, we were ushered into a hall right next to the registration counter where light refreshments were served.
After a couple of orange juices, catching with some of my sales advisors from the Wearnes VW branch and also talking to some of the other bloggers, I went about checking out several booths which were selling VW merchandises such as key chains, caps, polo shirts and more.
If you get bored waiting about or are feeling a little bit restless, there are a number of racing simulators available to try out.
This is definitely how Gran Turismo 5 is meant to be played and not using the usual PS3 joystick. I wonder how much would a set up like this cost if I were to get it right in my living room.
After munching through several tidbits which were rather tasty, the group were then ushered into the main dome. I reckon there were about 200+ participants this morning.
We were then seated at the center of the dome while surrounded by large screens.
Elaine Daly took to the center stage as the emcee for the show.
The first speaker, Petra Schreiber, Marketing Director at Volkswagen Group Malaysia, then presented about the Volkswagen brand and what Das Auto meant. Volkswagen is committed to create high-end cars for every segment hence the true meaning of Das Auto which translate to the The Car.
Then as the speeches continued, the first 3 cars were showcased in a very unique manner, words can hardly describe the event as you really need to be there to fully experience it, the dome, the music, the projections and the cars themselves. 3 guesses on which were the first 3 cars.
The Volkswagen Golf has been around and it truly is an iconic model which truly represents what a hot hatchback should be. Frankly, I think I am in love with the 3-door version of the Golf R. Seriously, a nice sun-roof, 260 horses under that hood, the beautiful Talladega rims and that wicked AWD system, this is the car for me. Now I wonder how long it would take for me to even save up for the down-payment for this car.
After the Golf came the showcase of the Cross Touran and the Sharan. Both of these are MPV’s and as explained, try driving one and you wouldn’t feel as if you were driving an MPV but rather a sporty vehicle.
The moment the MPV’s were driven off, then came the VW Passat. Now this car has been on the radar of the Malaysian public ever since the announcement that this is one of the models which will be assembled here in Malaysia.
And as the Passat arrived at the front, Daniel Tan, the director for Volkswagen Group Malaysia alighted from the car to give the next speech.
The Passat shouldn’t be a real surprise for you all here as I did post previously about the Superbowl advertisement which I thought was extremely hilarious and creative! See the advertisement here.
Petra then returned with an electric scooter which was completely silent and wowed the crowd. There was a huge applause as she then continued to talk about how Volkswagen Blue is the next green. In case you aren’t too familiar with the Blue Motion versions of the VW vehicles, you can check it out here.
Then as she continued with her speech, the main show began as the Volkswagen models started rolling in.
The awesome Scirocco R!
The two Polos, the Polo Sedan will also be assembled here in Malaysia.
The VW Amarok! Definitely very rare in our country.
The new VW EOS with the top down, this car is definitely a babe magnet. Trust me and I can prove it later.
The VW Jetta, the last of the 3 models which will be assembled here in Malaysia
In total there will be 13 VW models that will be rolling in the dome and the finale was a surprise. It was the new VW Beetle!
Decked out in red, this baby really does look like a mini Porsche 911.
And as the event started to close off, we were greeted with a choir of children singing together with a guest appearance by Ella!
At the end of the event, me being the ever curious person decided to go and capture a couple more photos of the Beetle because my earlier shot were blocked by the folks in front.
A full frontal of the Beetle!
The interior really did look sexy, covered in the same red as the car, the styling is really awesome.
A flat bottom steering wheel with red finishing.
Looks very much like the RNS510 to me.
Manual shifters for a bit of fun!
Beautiful looking rims
Ample space in the boot, surprisingly!
Sound system by the guys who brought the world, the Stratocaster, yes, Fender, baybeh!
As we were ushered out of the dome, the display isn’t over yet! We were then brought into a huge area where all of the existing models currently sold at the dealers were on display. At the same time the sales advisors were also there to explain about each model and give you a personal tour of the cars.
Of course I took the opportunity to molest the latest model which was launched a couple of weeks ago, the Polo GTI.
Earlier I mentioned that the EOS was a babe magnet and believe me, it really was.
Non-stop, ladies were climbing into the car, checking it out, having their photos taken! Believe me, I couldn’t even get a photo of the car without anyone in it. I guess the colour of this particular one did help as well.
At the end of the tour, I managed to quickly grabbed a quick photo of some of us who were just around the area. A big thanks to Volkswagen for inviting me to be one of the participants for this fantastic event.
As I walked out to the exit, I noticed a strange and rare sight indeed, a tiger driving through the streets of the Sepang Track.
The Volkswagen Das Auto Show will be going on throughout the weekend, so do swing by
and check it out at:
Bukit Jalil National Stadium
September 10 – 11 (10am – 10pm)
http://www.dasautoshow.com.my
