Perodua Engine Oil - Lousy Container Design

My complain to Perodua.

The semi synthethic engine oil bottle cap design is bad. I always request to the remaining oil to keep for next service to save money. And EVERYTIME it leaks! For an item costing nearly a hundred ringgit, you'd hope the design is robust and not leaky. Please help fix the design of the container.

ps- besides the above complain, I am ACTUALLY FULLY SATISFIED with their service quality. Very professional, and friendly. Great follow up usually as well.

UPDATED:
1 March 09 - Perodua called me up to understand my concerns. They will now look into this.

Giant Penang Byn Baru Accident Trap - Case Closed

Updated April 2009 : My recent visits to Giant Bayan Baru has shown positive action from Giant's management. They have taken steps to improve the traffic flow and avoid dangerous parking. Syabas Giant.

My f/back to Giant thru their website.

Please note that the giant entrance (facing the Malay Restaurant), at the entrance, it is very dangerous and accident prone. Eventhough Giant has placed 'stands' to avoid bikes and cars from parking on near the entrance/exit outside Giant, bikes and cars tend to park as close as possible. Imagine this, one car coming out, one car entering, one car parked on the road shoulder and bikes on the other shoulder. Too dangerous. Please take measures. If you need a photo or further info please email me. Or you can follow up on my blog.
fyi-penang.blogspot.com

ps- I have already complained at that Giant's customer service but nothing has yet to happen (2weeks ago)

Let's see what they reply or do.

Here's Giant's Reply.

Dear En. yyyyyy,

Thank you for your kind feedback on our parking safety.

We will immediately review the car park entrance area to avoid any mishap from happening.

I will highlight this matter to my Complex division team to rectify the problem.

We will feedback to you of our investigation and remedial action on the above matters.

Thank you once again for your concerns and time to bring this to our attention.


Azizul – pls review the above matter and feedback to customer accordingly.

Wang – pls investigate about customer highlight his concerns at Customer Service counter about 2 weeks ago but was not brought
up to yours or mine attention.

Thanks,

Cheers,
C.C.Yeap
Hypermarket General Manager
Giant Bayan Baru (GHBB)
019-xxxxxx

Not bad, I got a reply in 1 day with actions measured clearly.

Giant Citibank compared to Tesco RHB Credit Card - A Review

Helping you save $ (Money) with a comparison of Hypermarket-Credit Cards Review

A comparison between RHB Tesco Credit Card with Citibank Giant Credit Card

Yes, credit cards have joined in the hypermarket wars. Initially Giant surprised everyone with a 2% Giant Rebate thru purchases at Giant with co-brand Citibank C/C. And now, Tesco has it's own version, with RHB.

Here's a detailed comparison.

There are 4-5 major players in the Hypermarket Business in Malaysia. Eventhough Makro (or was it Macro) started this whole 'large single storey mass shopping', it was more concentrated for business, and didn't accept all but one c/card. It was a hit, but only until the competition didn't arrive.

In Penang, you have a couple of Macro's one in Seberang and one in Sg Dua (now Tesco Extra). It seems to me, in Tesco Extra, the Extra means extra messy????

Anyway, Carrefour landed in Seberang Jaya. My my, wasn't it the envy of Penang Islanders. Some of us drove there to do shopping! And they had Go-Cart as well. Beat that.

And then somewhere / somehow Giant started appearing. By the way, one of the first 'Giant' in Penang Island was a dwarf to be honest. It was in Penang Plaza, Burma Road, and that is a SMALL place for a Giant Hypermarket. What an oxymoron! We call it Baby Giant.

And then here it came, Tesco. First near the Gelugor round-about. Well I really like shopping there. Somehow I find it more arranged and cheaper. Actually I've come to believe that there's no such thing in any of this hypermarket that has EVERYTHING's cheaper, just selected stuff will be cheap here, and more expensive else where. So depends on your buying items.

Then Macro started to ramp down. (yeah that's a sad word). Tesco bought it over and made it Tesco Extra. NOT my place to be. It seems disorganized, sure does give you the 'store / godown' feel. Maybe businesses like it?

Anyway going back credit card wars. I guess it started with loyalty programs. Carrefour tied up with Real Rewards. And then Tesco with Bonuslink. Somehow Giant never bothered. And I think they were loosing out on business due to this.
Note that many studies do point out that in the end, loyalty programs just add COST, and the cost gets passed over to the customer, i.e why many budget airlines don't have loyalty programs.

Suddenly, Tesco and Bonuslink broke the LINK! No more bonuslink card, but Clubcard Member points. Not bad, since you get discount vouchers and rebate vouchers based on your purchases.

And then out of the blue, Giant goes WHAM. Here's Giant-Citibank Visa. Based on Citibank's website (on date of this blog entry)

• Get a 2% rebate on purchases at Giant


• Weekly Special Card member prices (you need to read the newspapers often I guess to find out what's the weekly special, not really a plus for me, coz what if I read online papers!)
  


• Free 2GB Flash drive - I think this is a limited time offer.
  


• Up to 1% rebate on spending outside Giant Malaysia


• So far I've received a rebate once, when my rebate total passed RM20. I believe they will send a RM20 rebate voucher everytime you achieve this. Reasonable.
  

I don't know about the rest, but my shopping pattern did sway to Giant once I got the Giant - Citibank Credit Card. But somehow I found Giant expensive, my main comparison being Dutch Lady Milk.

Before I go one, did you notice this WEIRD combo between hypermarkets and banks? Giant always claims to be a Malaysian Brand, but somehow it decided to do a JV with a Foreign Bank i.e Citibank (locally incorporated though). And Tesco, a British brand, decided to co-brand with a local Bank, i.e. RHB. Interesting, nothing wrong to me, just interesting.

So what's the offer from Tesco-RHB?


Comparing the Credit Card. (note they also have a Debit Card). On normal days when you shop in Tesco, you get 2% cash back and on top of a 2x clubcard points! And when you shop at other places, 1x clubcard points. And when your shop on the last weekend of the month, you get 5% cash back + 2x clubcard points. Impressive. Personally I'd prefer 5x% back on last week of the month rather then last weekend, why ? Just imagine the crowd in Tesco on the the last weekend of the month!. Anyway, writing this, I found something 'out' in their promo at
http://www.rhbbank.com.my/personal/cards/tesco-rhb/minisite/#credit

The example mentions below

"Example:

You spend
RM100 on last weekend of the month, RM300 on other weeks in Tesco and RM600 elsewhere

You will get
RM11 Cash Back + 700 Clubcard Points (equivalent to RM7.00 Clubcard Cash Vouchers) = RM18.00 Savings

FREE ! The RM88 credit card annual fee and the RM20 supplementary fee will be waived for the first year.

*Cash Back is on 40% of total monthly spend with a maximum cash back of RM50 per month."

Something doesn't jive here. Why only 700 clubcard points? Let's try to break it down
RM100 on last weekend of the month :
i. 100*5% = RM5
ii.100*2x clubcard points = 200points

RM300 on other weeks in Tesco
i. 300*2% = RM6
ii.300*2x clubcard points = 600points

RM600 elsewhere
i. 600*1x clubcard points = 600points

So shoulds I get
i. RM11
ii. Clubpoints of 1400? Their website mentions 700 clubcard points?

UPDATED 3rd March 2009 - RHB just got back to me, and note I calculated the points wrongly. It is NOT 1 point for RM1, but 1 point for RM2, that explains how I got 1400 points instead of 700points. Below is their reply :

	SPENDING		2X CLUB CARD POINTS – WHEN YOU USE YOUR CLUB CARD TOGETHER WITH YOUR TESCO-RHB CREDT CARD AT TESCO CLUB CARD POINTS	1X CLUB CARD POINTS – WHEN YOU SPEND WITHOUT CLUB CARD CLUB CARD POINTS	CASH BACK
OUTSIDE TESCO	RM600		300	300	0
TESCO (LAST WEEKEND) - 5%	RM100		100	50	RM5
TESCO (NORMAL DAY) -2%	RM300		300	150	RM6
TOTAL	RM1000		700	500	RM11

Good job to RHB for the prompt reply.

Anyway, based on this, it does seem Tesco offers the better value in this comparison, as you stand to get 5% cash back on the last weekend and 1x club points. It get's little confusing though, since on other purchases (non-Tesco) you get 1x clubcard points, but for Giant-Citibank you get up to 1% rebate.

UPDATED 3rd March - Again, since RHB-Tesco gives 1 point for every RM2, I guess it can be 'equated' to 0.5% cash back for purchases outside Tesco. Also note, the 2% cash back for purchases from Tesco is ONLY TRUE up to 40% of your TOTAL Monthly statement, ie per their attached doc with the c/card which I just received;
e.g. if you total spend for the month is RM5000, and out of that you spent RM3,000 in Tesco, the 2% cash back is based on a 40% cap of the total spend, ie 40% of RM5000 which equals to RM40. Note also the max cash back per month is RM5o.

Another interesting point to note is, studies have shown that loyalty/rewards points in the end just incur additional cost to the banks/promoter, as people tend to outsmart the system, ie only use Tesco-RHB card in Tesco, and use other cards that offer better value eg RHB Travel to fill up petrol. So by capping the cash back based on 40% of your total monthly statement bill, it will 'incline' people to also use the card outside Tesco, which is where I guess RHB makes money.

I didn't like this 'feature' that much, but it does make business sense.



I would give Tesco a plus for one reason though. They have proactively encouraged recycling. They give 1 Green Clubcard (equivalent to 1 Clubcard) for each plastic bag that you brought and use. Malaysians being bargain hunters might be attracted to this concept which is a win-win-win. Win for Tesco for reducing plastic bag costs (or at least replacing it with clubcard points), get good PR through this responsible act, members get a 'reward' for recycling besides feeling good, and the environment has lesser bags to worry about.

Their other green campaign Tesco Bag for Life - Guranteed for Life also is good. Where else would you get a life time gurantee for a Plastic Bag!

Negative side ? Knowing some Malaysians, will try to use as many of our owns bags, ie 1 item 1 bag if we could so we get more points!

Not bad if you ask me.

Need help finding the above hypermarkets.

For Tesco Gelugor/Jelutong - Click here
For Tesco Extra Sungai (Sg) Dua - Click here
For Giant Bayan Baru - Click here
For Giant Penang Plaza, Burma Road - Click here

ps- Most of above is based on my memory / experience only. Could be wrong facts! Also you have Sunshine and Mydin as options.

Vicco Toothpaste

Vicco Vajradanti Herbal Toothpaste

Did you just go, Vicco what toothpaste? Yes, usually when I tell people that I mostly use Vicco Herbal Toothpaste to brush my teeth, the reply I get is "Vico the chocolate energy drink?". I say no, Vicco with 2 C's.

Yes it is a Herbal Toothpaste from India. And is available is stores in Malaysia. I am not sure now whether it can be 'classified' as a Ayurveda / Ayurvedic Toothpaste though. But it does have Herbal Toothpaste printed on it.

Interestingly the colour of the paste is brownish, probably due to the natural mixture of the paste having herbal contents. Its not the typically 'white' paste. But then again, why are the typical toothpaste white in color. Naturally or colored?

Vicco Toothpaste (not sure what they mean The Original??)

From their website :
"The pure extracts of 20 herbs and barks, tested over generations, have been blended into a potent combination that not only cleans teeth, but also protects and strengthens them.

Vicco Vajradanti offers this unique formula in a dental care paste that has natural astringent, antiseptic, and analgesic properties. These ingredients also stimulate and reinforce gums, while resisting plaque formation. It gives you strong gums, which makes your bite mighty, which no cosmetic toothpaste can ever give."

The Ingredients listed for my curious readers

Based on my experience it does give a fresh feel (cinnamon like) and most importantly I find it 'soft' on my gums. Some other conventional toothpaste sometimes leave my gums hurting, especially the one in the green tube. Another good thing that I've noted about the Vicco Toothpaste is that it reduces my occurrence of getting mouth ulcer. I know ulcers can be caused by many reasons, including stress I believe, but on average I do experience lesser ulcers.

Another 2 things to note is, probably compared to Colgate, it doesn't give me up to '24 hours' of fresh feel. Sure feels fresh after using Vicco, but not as long. But then again, I usually brush more then once in 24hours :) . Another thing is I noticed that my teeth doesn't 'turn' whitish using Vicco. But then again I am a heavy tea drinker. While mentioning tea, I just love Chotu's Masalla tea. But then how do the other toothpaste that claim to whiten teeth work? Usually I'd relate whitening to bleaching, but in this case I don't know.

Now that I'm writing about teeth color. I start to ask myself, are our teeth actually 'built' by God to be white like those white school uniform detergent ads? I came across this website The HK ToothClub and it mentions

"Since the enamel of permanent teeth is slightly transparent, the yellowish colour of dentine is shown through it. Therefore, permanent teeth will appear slightly yellowish. As we get older, the dentine increasingly grows thicker, and it is normal that our teeth become more yellowish."

So what's all the hype about having white teeth anyway? Ok too yellow or black teeth might be a turn off, but I'd rather stick with my natural colour. By the way, usually when I smile, I seldom bare my teeth, more of a closed lipped guy. Pun not intended!

Another interesting point the website explains is that deciduous teeth (deciduous means baby teeth right?) are not as transparent as our permanent teeth and that's why they look Milky White! Guess what they call 'baby' teeth in Malay; yes, Gigi Susu (Milky Teeth!).

Anyway back to Vicco, you can usually find this toothpaste in Indian Grocery stores, I usually get it from Little India in Penang.

Need help getting the toothpaste, yup go ahead and leave your contact email / number in the comments and I'll see how I can help.

Ok, enjoy brushing!

ps- I just realized while searching Vicco in Wikipedia is that Vicco is a city in Perry County, Kentucky, United States.

Ghajini in Penang

Yes, at last Ghajini is in Penang. We've been waiting for some time for Ghajini to come to Penang. It's not always Penangites get the opportunity to watch Hindi Movies in the Cinema.

However this few months have been filled with surprises. First with Shah Rukh Khan's rab ne bana di jodi. SRK does have the fan factor in Malaysia. I went to watch the movie on a weeekday at Cathay Prangin and the crowd was still significant, even compared to the other movies showing there! (not sure was it opening night or ?) . Anyway we really enjoyed the movie, and the tagline describes the movie best "There is an extraordinary love story in every ordinary jodi (couple)". I certainly agree. We all have our extraordinary story.

Somehow I've come to agree with my bro that Cathay Prangin does have it's pull itself. The seats are more plush and comfortable. Especially the Couple Seats. Compared to GSC Queensbay, I found Cathay Prangin Cinema Seats and experience better.

For GSC, the screen size also depends on which cinema hall you get. For Cathay I'm not really sure though.

A few weeks back I emailed Cathay to request and inquire whether they will be showing Ghajini or not after not being able to get thru the Penang line. Cathay's reply was prompt and professional. Below's their reply :

Dear Valued Customer,

Greetings from Cathay Cineplexes!

We apologise for the inconveniences caused while trying to gather information about Ghajini. We thank you for your feedback as this will help us to improve our quality of service to serve you better. Rest assured that our Head of Operations is aware and will look into the matter highlighted seriously.

Unfortunately the movie Ghajini will not be showing at Cathay Cineplex Prangin Mall. To check out our upcoming movies, kindly log on to http://www.cathaycineplexes.com.my/

Meanwhile. we hope that this will not deter you from patronizing our cinemas and we look forward to your next visit.

Thank you for taking the time to write in to us and for your continuous support.

Thanks and Regards
The Management
Cathay Cineplexes

Back to Ghajini, it is now showing in Lotus Five Star SSC Kompleks Bukit Jambul in Penang. You can check out their timings at www.cinema.com.my. I tried calling them today and got an update on the timing. Their number is 04-6401515

Overall I enjoyed the movie. It wasn't the best movie I've seen, but I would rate it good overall. Amir Khan's performance was stellar, and enjoy his 8 packs!