Daihatsu Gran Max Fulfils Multi-Purpose Needs

DMSB has demonstrated that as a truly versatile commercial vehicle, Daihatsu Gran Max has no limits on what it can be used for.

The Truly Versatile and Practical Workhorse  

Major efforts have been made by Daihatsu Malaysia (DMSB) to showcase the versatility and practicality of their range of commercial vehicles such as the Daihatsu Gran Max, especially to small and medium-sized business owners and entrepreneurs.

One might have seen several concept variations of the Gran Max van on display at certain trade shows, such as a mobile boutique, a mobile café, or the fully-functional mobile clinic used as part of DMSB’s support of Columbia Asia’s Hospital initiative. Another concept is the Green Van, a Gran Max panel van custom built for the ‘Rewilding Roadshow’.

DMSB has demonstrated that as a truly versatile commercial vehicle, Daihatsu Gran Max has no limits on what it can be used for. Apart from gaining its popularity amongst the food truck communities, the company says that the Gran Max is perfect for many delivery-based businesses such as retail, trading, catering and utilities, as well as being ideal for use as a marketing tool to support various public relations and Cooperate Social Responsibility activities.

In this issue, we interviewed two Gran Max owners – Christopher Chuah and Hafifi Oraif Hamzah on their user experiences, as well as Free Tree Society (FTS) President Baida Hercus who shared with us how the Gran Max Green Van has supported their ‘Rewilding Roadshow’ programme, a community project sponsored by DMSB to encourage urban conservation and the greening of urban spaces.

Chris: Gran Max remains relevant from B2C to B2B

Pagi Coffee Co. CEO Christopher Chuah said the Gran Max has been his first and only truck.  He purchased the truck in November, 2017 to start off his mobile coffee truck business. 

All the necessities to run his mobile coffee business, he pointed out, are incorporated in the Gran Max. It is value for money, and the Return on Investment is faster. In addition, the Gran Max also offers affordability in the form of lower maintenance costs.

Two other decisive factors, he pointed out, are convenience and accessibility. “There is a Daihatsu authorised service centre near where I stay, which is very convenient. We do routine maintenance, and Gran Max has never encountered major issues. It has proven itself as a reliable and solid vehicle.”

Chris added that on one occasion, he drove the Gran Max all the way from Kuala Lumpur to Penang and was amazed with its climbing ability during the journey. It managed to conquer the hilly slopes with confidence. He also praised Gran Max’s car-like handling and comfort, as well as its stability and fuel consumption.

Having graduated as a dentist in 2016, Chris, a coffee lover by nature, established his coffee business while waiting for a government posting. He freely admits that expanding the business has been a challenge at times.

Most recently, he has teamed up with sandwich specialist Fayzan Ruslan and now they run a small café called Atap by Pagi Coffee Co. together at SS15, Subang Jaya. Both met when they were running their respective trucks. However, Chris stressed that the Gran Max is very much diversified in business and still serves a purpose to him even when most of his time is spent at the café currently.

“We will use our Gran Max as a business-to-business (B2B) tool rather than a business-to-consumer (B2C) tool. Instead of daily operation, there have been some companies who are interested in collaborating with Pagi Coffee Co. and are looking for branding product placement on our truck, which is intended for cross branding, marketing campaigns and roadshows. They can hire our mobile coffee truck for their events.”

Support your local business by visiting Atap by Pagi Coffee Co. @ SS15,Subang Jaya or check out www.pagicoffee.co for special collobaration & events catering hire. #DaihatsuSupportLokal.

Hanfifi: Easy handling with spacious cargo space  

Fieda Resources (M) Sdn Bhd Director Hanfifi Oraif gives the Gran Max truck two thumbs up for its proven durability and reliability after 5 years of usage. He says, it was his colleague that recommended the Gran Max to him, claiming that it is one of the best compact trucks in the market.

“We bought the truck in 2015 due to business expansion. Before we set up this company, we were selling nasi lemak at the roadside in Shah Alam. My sister then got a job in a coffee shop and the owner outsourced rendang chicken to us, which paved the way to our frozen rendang chicken and beef business today.”

Before they ventured into frozen rendang chicken and beef, they were in food catering services, and that was the main reason they invested in the Gran Max truck. “We used our private cars in the beginning, but the storage space is very limited. The Gran Max truck is very ideal, it is affordable with spacious loading capacity. Furthermore, compared to a one-tonne lorry, Gran Max drives like a car. It is easy to handle with power steering, offering greater ride comfort.”

Today, the company uses the truck every two days to deliver 5 tonnes of frozen products in Klang Valley.

For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), vehicle operating costs are an important element for business optimisation. “We are satisfied with the overall performance of Gran Max,” said Hafifi. “Our 5-year old Gran Max has been running well and we have never encountered any major issues.  It has good fuel efficiency. When we shifted our office from Shah Alam to our own premises at Kuang Raya, Rawang, we were a bit worried that it would cause a spike in our petrol bill, but there’s not much of a difference.”

Hafifi stressed the importance of routine preventive maintenance, as it helps to prevent breakdowns, eliminating related safety concerns and costly repairs. “Gran Max’s maintenance cost is low. We always send our Gran Max truck back to DMSB’s owned service centre for servicing, as we believe that no one knows Gran Max better than them. With the good maintenance service that is provided by them, we hardly ever fail the Computerised Vehicle Inspection Centre (PUSPAKOM) inspection.”

Support your local business by checking out Fieda’s Kitchen Facebook @fiedaskitchen to order their frozen rendang. #DaihatsuSuppportLokal.

Hercus: Daihatsu Green Van always a crowd-puller

For FTS, the Daihatsu Green Van is more than a concept vehicle. “We told Daihatsu that we need a van that looks good enough for use at events and practical enough to store many plants. The resulting Green Van was designed with our needs in mind for creating a platform called the ‘Rewilding Roadshow’ to showcase to urbanites how we can use small spaces to go green in a big way,” said Baida Hercus. 

The Green Van, she commented, reflects how cargo space and body application can be maximised through innovative customisation. “There is plenty of storage area for us to store plants, event materials and merchandise that we can sell.  It is very practical with a TV and a canopy that we can use for events and a roof rack which we can use to store or display extra items. We haven’t had the chance to drive it out yet for mobile pop-up events due to Covid-19, but it is certainly smaller and less daunting than driving a huge truck. The decal is cute too! There are animals hidden among buildings and plants that showcase one of our main objectives – to plant to support urban biodiversity.”

Her favourite feature, she said, is the storage drawers at the van that they use the most. These storage drawers are very neat and can hold a large number of plants and display them beautifully.

“I also love the retractable awning. It turns the display area into something more homely and provides shade (from sun/rain) for visitors and for us when we are working to maintain the garden,” she added. 

According to Hercus, the Daihatsu Green Van has made a name for itself amongst the park visitor and environmental communities. “We get tagged in a lot of posts, and to date we have given away almost 700 plants. Last weekend alone, we gave away more than 115 plants. We also received emails asking if the van will be running and if we are giving away plants, people are actively seeking to visit us.” 

She has always envisioned the Daihatsu Green Van, being a commercial vehicle to be associated with healthy lifestyle living and cater to doing great cause for the community, it doesn’t get any better than that! 

In conjunction with Malaysia Day in September, she revealed that they have a planned Planting Workshop. Covid-19, she said, has put a halt on their mobile roadshow movement for now but the original plan is to drive the van to different sites and spread the message of the need to plant and rewild our urban spaces, and she hopes to do that in the next couple of the months. 

Support your local organisations by visiting the Rewilding Roadshow exhibition by Free Tree Society & support by Daihatsu Malaysia every weekend at Taman Tugu Nursery from 8am to 11am. #DaihatsuSupportLokal.

To learn more about Daihatsu Gran Max, DMSB invites interested business owners and entrepreneurs to pay a visit to the Daihatsu showroom. 

大发Gran Max满足多功能需求

马来西亚大发（DMSB） 做了重大努力，专为小规模业主和企业，展示了他们的商用车系列如大发Gran Max的多功能性和实用性。

你可能在某些贸易展中看过不同概念的Gran Max货车，比如流动精品店、流动咖啡馆或者作为马来西亚大发支持亚洲哥伦比亚医院倡议，功能齐全的流动诊所。另一个概念是绿色货车，一辆为了“修复路秀”（Rewilding Roadshow ）而特别量身打造的 Gran Max 厢型车。

马来西亚大发展示作为一辆真正的多功能商用车，Gran Max的无限用途。该公司表示Gran Max除了在美食卡车方面拥有知名度外，也非常适用于零售、贸易、餐营业及公用事业等运送业务，以及作为支持各种公共关系与企业社会责任活动的行销工具。

这一期，我们访问两名Gran Max车主 –Christopher Chuah和哈菲夫（Hafifi Oraif Hamzah）有关他们使用Gran Max的经验。还有，我们也请Free Tree Society（FTS）会长赫库斯（Baida Hercus） 谈谈Gran Max绿色货车如何支持他们的“修复路秀”计划，一个马来西亚大发赞助，鼓励保护和绿化城市空间的社区项目。

Chris：从B2C到B2B，Gran Max始终具相关性

Pagi咖啡公司首席执行员Christopher Chuah表示，Gran Max是他的第一辆也是唯一的一辆卡车。他在2017年11月时购买了该卡车来开始其流动咖啡卡车的生意。 

他指出，所有他经营流动咖啡业务的必要装备都能够被纳入Gran Max卡车中。它物有所值，而且投资回报快。此外，Gran Max的维修成本低，经济实惠。

他指出，另外两个决定性的因素是便利与可及性。“靠近我住的地方正好有家大发授权服务中心，相当方便。我们进行定期维修，而Gran Max从来不曾发生任何大问题。它被证实是辆可靠和坚固的车子。”

Chris补充说，有一次，他开着Gran Max从吉隆坡到槟城，Gran Max充满信心地征服山坡，它在该旅途中的攀爬能力让他刮目相看。他也称赞Gran Max如轿车般的操控和舒适性，以及其稳定性和油耗。

天生爱喝咖啡的Chris 是一名牙医。2016年毕业后，他在等候政府委派之际，创立了他自己的咖啡业务。他坦言，扩展业务有时是一个挑战。

近期，他和三文治专家菲占（Fayzan Ruslan） 联手，在梳邦再也SS15开设了一间称为Atap by Pagi Cofffee Co.的小小咖啡馆。他们两人在各自经营美食卡车时认识，志同道合的他们决定一起合作。然而，Chris强调Gran Max适用于多元化业务，虽然目前他将大部分时间放在经营咖啡馆上，但Gran Max为他来说仍有用途。

“Gran Max将成为我们企业对企业（B2B），而非企业对消费者（B2C）的工具。除了日常营运，我们会将Gran Max用于交叉品牌推广、行销运动及路秀，比如有些公司有意与Pagi咖啡公司合作，或在我们的卡车上‘植入’他们的产品广告。他们能够租用我们的流动咖啡卡车作为他们的活动用途。”

光顾位于梳邦再也SS15的 Atap by Pagi Coffee Co.或查看www.pagicoffee.co有关特殊合作及活动餐饮租赁 ，支持本地业务。#DaihatsuSupportLokal. 

哈菲夫：易操控且货舱宽敞

Fieda资源（马）私人有限公司董事哈菲夫，对使用5年，已获证实的Gran Max耐用性和可靠性赞不绝口。他说，是他的同事将Gran Max推荐给他，并宣称该卡车是市场上最好的小型卡车。

“2015年，我们因扩展业务而购买了这辆卡车。在成立自己的公司前，我们在沙亚南卖椰浆饭。我的姐姐后来在咖啡店打工，咖啡店的老板将仁当咖喱鸡（rendang chicken）外包给我们，这也为我们今天的冷冻仁当咖喱鸡和仁当咖喱牛业务奠定了基础。”

在他们进军冷冻仁当咖喱鸡和仁当咖喱牛业务前，他们提供食品餐饮业服务，而这正是他们投资于Gran Max卡车的主要原因。“我们最初以私家车来运送食品和餐饮，但是私家车的储存空间毕竟有限。Gran Max卡车非常理想，它经济实惠又具有宽敞的载荷。此外，与1吨罗里相比，Gran Max开起来像在开轿车。配备动力转向，易于操控的它 ，驾乘起来非常舒适。”

如今，该公司每两天就在巴生谷以Gran Max卡车运送5吨的冷冻产品。

对中小型企业来说，汽车的营运成本是优化业务的重要元素。“我们非常满意Gran Max的整体性能。”哈菲夫说。“我们5年的Gran Max 运跑良好，而且没有发生任何重大问题。它非常节油。当我们将办事处从沙亚南迁徙到自己位于万扰Kuang Raya的办公场所时，我们很担心汽油账单会飙高，结果分别不大。”

哈菲夫强调定期维修的重要性，因为它可协助避免停机，消除相关的安全问题和昂贵的维修成本。“Gran Max 的维修成本低。我们总是将我们的Gran Max送回马来西亚大发持有的服务中心进行维修，因为我们相信没有人比他们更了解Gran Max。在他们所提供的良好维修服务下，我们的Gran Max无法通过电脑验车中心（PUSPAKOM）检验的情况，可说是微乎其微！”

查看Fieda’s Kitchen 脸书 @fiedaskitchen，订购他们的冷冻仁当食品，支持本地业务。#DaihatsuSuppportLokal.

赫库斯：大发绿色货车总是吸引人潮

对FTS来说，大发绿色货车不仅仅是概念车。“我们告诉大发我们需要一辆看起来很漂亮且实用，能够存放许多植物的货车。这绿色货车便是按我们为创立一个“修复路秀”平台需求所设计，以便我们向城市居民展示如何运用小空间进行大幅度绿化。”赫库斯表示。

她评论说，这辆绿色货车展示如何通过创意的量身打造，大幅度提升货车货舱空间和车身应用。“Gran Max绿色货车拥有许多存放植物、活动原材料及商品的储存空间。它相当实用，并备有我们在举办活动时使用的一台电视和一个帐篷，以及用来存放或展示额外物件的车顶行李架。由于新冠肺炎的原因，我们仍未有机会开着它来进行一些快闪的移动活动，但我相信体积较小的它，显然比大卡车容易驾驭。车上的贴花也很可爱！动物们隐藏在建筑物和植物中，这展示了我们的主要目的，也就是透过种植支持城市生物多样性。”

至于她最喜欢的特点，她表示是货车上的收纳柜。这些收纳柜非常整齐，能够装大量的植物，并将它们漂亮地展示出来。

“我也非常喜欢可伸缩性的雨篷。它不仅将我们的展示区变得家常，还可提供遮荫，使访客，还有努力维护花园的我们免受阳光暴晒和雨淋。”她补充。

据赫库斯表示，大发绿色货车在公园参观者和环保团体中赢得了名声。“我们在很多帖子中被标记，截至目前为止我们已经送出了大约700棵植物。我们还收到电邮询问我们货车是否运行和有没有派送植物，人们正在积极地寻访我们。”

她总是设想大发绿色货车是一辆与健康生活方式有关，能够迎合社会公益事业的商用车，没有比它更好的了！

她透露说，配合马来西亚日，他们计划了一个种植工作坊。她说，新冠肺炎停止了他们的移动路秀活动，但他们的原计划是将货车开到不同的场所和传播我们需要通过种植来修复城市空间的信息，她也希望在接下来的几个月里能够落实这点。

参观马来西亚大发赞助，每个周末早上8时至11时于Taman Tugu苗圃举行的“Free Tree Society“修复路秀”，支持本地组织。#DaihatsuSupportLokal.

马来西亚大发邀请有兴趣的业主和企业家前往该公司的展示厅，了解更多有关大发Gran Max 货车的详情。