Interior of TD2000 has look of a classic British sportscar

TD Cars (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd has appointed TDesire Sdn Bhd as the sole distributor for its TD2000 classic sportscar in Malaysia. With the appointment of this new distributor, TD Cars (Malaysia) expects that marketing of the model will be more aggressive and see increased numbers on the roads.

The TD2000 was originally developed and sold in Australia and in 1998. rights to the design and trademarks were acquired by Malaysian businessmen who has established TD Cars (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd. All manufacturing equipment was transferred to Malaysia and production of the model was assigned to Automotive Conversion Engineering Sdn Bhd in Shah Alam, Selangor.

“Although we acquired the full rights to the design of the TD2000, we realised that it needed to be updated and re-engineering work was carried out. A major change was the engine which had previously been an old Nissan type but when we re-engineered it, we put in a modern Toyota 3S-FE engine which is the same type as used in the Celica model before,” said Edward Teo, Managing Director of TD Cars (Malaysia). Mr Teo said that the 2.0-litre EFI engines, together with 5-speed manual and 4-speed automatic transmissions, are supplied brand new from Japan by Toyota Tsusho Corporation, a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation.

Other changes were also made in materials and the braking system with servo assistance and improved disc brakes provided. In as far as safety was concerned, the TD2000 design had been subjected to crash tests in California earlier and met the required standards for such cars. The plant in Shah Alam is also inspected and audited annually by engineers from Australia’s Commonwealth Department of Transport and Regional Services to ensure compliance with the strict Australia Design Rules.

“However, we were careful not to take away the unique styling of the car which mimics the British sportscars of the 1940s and 1950s, especially the MG TD of 1950  which was the most popular model in the MG T-series. It is the retro look which has drawn many people in Malaysia and overseas to own a TD2000,” said Mr Teo.

TD Cars (Malaysia) also developed a lefthand drive variant, greatly expanding its sales potential. Though it has never been highlighted, the TD2000 was the first Malaysia-made car to be exported to Japan some years ago and it has also found customers in Australia, Brunei, Belgium, Finland, Egypt, India, Kuwait, Macau, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates. It was a special occasion when the first official shipment of TD2000s landed in England in May last year.

“Sending the car to the UK had special meaning for us because of the background of the TD2000 which can be traced to the MG TD that was produced there in the 1950s. It was like the car was ‘going home’ to its birthplace,” said Mr Teo.

TDesire will have a showroom in the Subang Jaya township facing the New Pantai Valley Expressway in Selangor which will also be the base for all its future operations. There are also plans to open a second showroom along the busy Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong (LDP) in Bandar Sunway and don’t be surprised to see the TD2000 on display in selected 6-star hotels around Kuala Lumpur.

"The TD2000 has an exclusive market of its own. It is no threat to existing car companies with their respective established brands. The target market is the very niche people who have already owned many of the normal production vehicles," said K.B. Woo, President & CEO of TDesire.

Prices (excluding insurance, private registration) for the TD2000 are RM183,571 for the automatic version and RM178, 252 for the manual version. The cars are ‘topless’ and come with a hood which can be folded down. Customers have a wide range of optional extras which they can add to the car to personalize it and as each unit is hand-built, it is possible to have virtually any colour.

• The TD2000 'goes home'