Castrol Launches CARAMA In Malaysia

Remember my previous blog post for "Facing Car Servicing Issues?". I did a brief introduction about what is Carama. The good news is Castrol has successfully launched CARAMA in Malaysia early this month. CARAMA, Malaysia’s FIRST Online Service for Trusted Car Care.

Castrol, one of the world’s leading premium lubricant specialists has extended its service beyond its lubricant business to the car care industry. Today, Castrol announced the launch of ‘Carama’ - a web and mobile enabled portal which simplifies car care, maintenance and workshop guide for consumers in an easy-to-use and one-stop solution. Ultimately, Carama helps to rebuild the relationship and trust between car owners and workshops.

A recent survey with over 400 respondents in Klang Valley showed the need for independent workshops to build a trusted relationship with car owners, providing them with transparency in pricing and assurance in the quality of workmanship, skills and equipment.

Carama Certified Shops was then conceptualised to address this issue by providing an overall quality score, based on a 40 point rigorous screening by our panel of independent third party experts, ensuring that these shops meet the highest standards of quality, skills, transparency, customer service, health and safety compliance. 

Commenting on the exciting new initiative, Sumeet Wadhwa, General Manager - Castrol Innoventures (Strategic innovation arm of Castrol), said: “Carama is envisioned to be the ‘go to’ site for car care in Malaysia, although we are still in the early stages of the portal’s development. Car owners have a high level of concern and uncertainty regarding maintenance costs, price and quality of repair for their vehicles. Carama will streamline the selection process and provide car owners peace-of-mind and confidence that they have made the right decision in their choice of the workshop.”

 

The Carama portal provides core features like accredited repair shop locator, spare parts calculator, my car logbook and Carama rewards. Car owners will also be able to share consumer reviews based on actual experiences of Carama Certified and Listed Shops. As Malaysia’s first social graph car care portal, Carama connects car owners to share their experiences and car maintenance tips with friends, family and the general public.

Wadhwa added Carama’s benefit to workshops and mechanics: “Carama will also benefit independent workshops and mechanics by generating valuable business leads for those who lack the capability to market their workshops, especially online.”

According to Roy Williamson, Managing Director of Castrol InnoVentures, “Carama’s vision is to become the  number one player in aftermarket car care and service space by connecting consumers, workshops and affiliates, through a one stop web and mobile enabled platform, leveraging Castrol’s heritage of trust and customer relationships. We are confident that Carama will change the aftermarket car care experience for all car owners, simplifying the maintenance of their car.”

Be amongst the first to experience Carama and get rewarded by just signing up at http://www.carama.com/.

Facing Car Servicing Issues?

Facing Car Servicing Issues? Yes, I'm facing this problems since the day I have a car. When I was in uni, daddy will send the car for servicing and I just don't have to do anything. Now, I'm working and no longer is my daddy's little girl, I have to send my car for servicing. Problems comes......

• Always not sure if the workshop I'm going to is the best choice for my car.
• Am I paying the right price?
• Is that particular repair is really needed? 

So many ???

I need to find a trusted mechanic for my car service and repair! 

Just want to share with you the current car service problems in Malaysia.

Car service problems in Malaysia:

I do not know if I’m paying the right price for my car servicing.

Malaysians are skeptical when it comes to price when they service their car. There is not a lot of information available on products and service price, and may feel that they are overpaying.

I do not know whether my car mechanic is trusted or not.

Many Malaysians do not know a lot about the local workshops and mechanics in their city or town; there is low visibility of their presence or their specialty. Because of this, there is a trust deficit amongst Malaysians for car mechanics. While some would seek the advice of their friends for trusted workshops, others continue to go back to their same mechanic even if they do not specialize in their car.

I have very limited knowledge about car servicing.

There’s a lack of knowledge among most and often would trust their mechanic on parts and servicing. Yet, there is that lingering doubt on whether this is repair really is needed. 

The survey shows that:

• 63% of Malaysians find it difficult to find a trusted mechanic

• 68% of Malaysians refer to friends and family for current mechanic

• 1/3 of Malaysians have high likelihood to change their current mechanic

• 1/3 of Malaysians have more than 5 years old car.

How?

Don't worry! 

Due to a real consumer grey zone in terms of trust and knowledge for car servicing in Malaysia, Carama has engaged me to help Malaysians to find a mechanic they can trust.  

What's Carama?   

• it is a web portal designed to act as a trusted source of information for consumers, with the convenience of a one-stop platform to make an informed decision. 

• Car owners can now select workshops based on quality, specialization, convenience, recommendations from experts and/or reviews from fellow car owners.
• Carama will be officially launching this month (stay tuned!)

I am so proud that I am part of the team to help you find a trusted mechanic. :D  

Stay tuned for the launch of Carama later this month!

In lieu of Hari Raya, Carama has provided me the safety tips that I feel will be worth sharing with you guys. It’s 8 steps to ready for a roadtrip. 

Don't forget to sign up at www.carama.com & get RM20 off your next service!

Drive safe while you are returning to hometown! 

Selamat Hari Raya!

♥ 

JustNorahs