Cycle & Carriage Bintang Launches Mercedes-Benz Star Mobile Service

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 7 (Bernama) -- Cycle & Carriage Bintang Bhd, the largest dealer network of Mercedes-Benz passenger vehicles in Malaysia, has launched the Mercedes-Benz Star Mobile to enable its customers to have scheduled maintenance at their home or office. Cycle & Carriage Bintang Chief Executive Officer Wilfrid Foo said the Mercedes-Benz Star Mobile, housed within a Mercedes-Benz Vito, would provide services such as scheduled maintenance, wiper blade replacements, key battery or infrared replacements and battery replacements right at a customer’s doorstep. “Considering this service is the first-of-its-kind in Malaysia, we plan to test the market using only one vehicle and covering only the Klang Valley. “Our goal is to learn our customers’ different needs and preferences, and if it succeeds, we will move forward in upscaling the service by adding more vehicles and coverage areas,” he told reporters after the launch of the service here Friday. The Mercedes-Benz Star Mobile is manned by two qualified technicians and fully equipped with the Xentry Diagnosis system, special tools and technician hand tools to perform off-site repair and maintenance jobs. In conjunction with the Mercedes-Benz Star Mobile launch, Cycle & Carriage is waiving the service fee for the first three months and customers could schedule an appointment with any Cycle & Carriage dealership within the Klang Valley to enjoy the new service. Meanwhile, on Dec 3, Cycle & Carriage Bintang announced on Bursa Malaysia that it would dispose of its 49 per cent stake in Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Sdn Bhd for RM66 million, following Daimler AG’s decision to exercise its call option. The disposal is expected to take place on Nov 30 next year -- being the expiry of 12 months from the date of the notice from Daimler and Cycle & Carriage Bintang will no longer be entitled to the annual dividend of about RM11.2 million. Asked about plans on how RM66 million proceeds will be spent, Foo said it would be channelled as working capital and repaying bank loans. On an alternative source of income once it will no longer receive the RM11.2 million dividend, he said: “There are a lot of opportunities in the value stream of any business and we are focusing on investing behind our people, system and infrastructure as this will help us deliver great customer service. “We have been doing this and it has been working for us, proven by our improving financial performance in the past quarters,” he added. -- BERNAMA