Joel Tam, Author at AutoApp

by Joel Tam 18 March 2026

World Design Premiere Of The BMW i3 – 5 Reasons Why It Will change The Game

There’s a shift happening in the EV world. Yes, the Chinese brands moved early, with faster systems, better charging, and sharper digital experiences. But the new BMW i3 feels like the point where that changes, at least for the Munich-based brand. 1. It’s not the first Neue Klasse car, and it’s definitely not the last The Neue Klasse technically begins with the iX3. That’s where the platform debuts.But the i3 is where ...

by Joel Tam 12 March 2026

Featured, Food, Lifestyle

A Fresh Take on Breakfast at Performance Motors

About a year ago, we sat down with the team at Performance Motors to sample their breakfast menu as part of PML's BMW Experience. The idea was simple but thoughtful: give customers something a little more enjoyable while they waited for their cars to be serviced. Fast forward a year, and the team has revisited the menu, refining it with a few new additions and tweaks to better serve their customers. What's ...

by Joel Tam 28 February 2026

Featured, Local, News

Stamford Tyres Opens Singapore’s First Pirelli-Branded Store

Stamford Tyres has just added another milestone to its retail network, officially opening its first Pirelli-branded Store at Caltex Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim. Attending the launch earlier today, it was clear that this isn’t just another tyre shop with a few Pirelli flags erected around the shop. This is a fully branded collaboration space. One that's been designed to bring together Pirelli’s performance identity with Stamford Tyres’ long-standing service reputation. This new outlet ...

by Joel Tam 12 February 2026

Featured, Local, News

Singapore Revises PARF Rebate Schedule and Cap in Budget 2026

Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has announced changes to the Preferential Additional Registration Fee (PARF) rebate structure, which will take effect for cars registered from 13 February 2026 onwards. The move, unveiled as part of Budget 2026, tightens the rebate percentages and halves the maximum rebate cap — a shift that will affect owners who deregister their vehicles early, and could influence decisions around keeping or replacing cars. What’s Changing PARF rebates reward ...

by Joel Tam 11 February 2026

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

Toyota Vios Hybrid 1.5 Review

The Toyota Vios has always played a very specific role in Singapore. It has been the dependable one. The practical one. The car families recommend, the one ride-hailing drivers trust, the one that quietly gets on with life without needing applause. But exciting, it is not. This new version, however, surprised me more than I expected. In fact, I kept finding myself saying, “Eh, not bad leh,” which in local speak is ...

by Joel Tam 10 February 2026

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

MINI John Cooper Works Cooper 3-dr Review

Hot hatches are supposed to shout. They should bark on start-up, crackle on lift-off and generally behave like they had too much sugar before leaving the factory. Which is why the first surprise with the latest JCW Cooper is this. It doesn’t. Fire it up, and you are met with… a slightly louder-than-normal exhaust note. But otherwise, it's civilised, polite, almost suspiciously well-behaved. If you closed your eyes, you might think you ...

by Joel Tam 10 February 2026

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

Audi Q5 S Line Review

There is a reason you see quite a few Audi Q5 models (across the generations) on the road. For years, it has quietly been the brand’s global best-seller, the default answer for buyers who want something premium, modern and not from 'the other two brands'. But does the new model still deliver? In this day and age of 'bargain' SUVs from the east, it's getting harder to make a case ...

by Joel Tam 10 February 2026

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

Audi A6 Sportback e-tron Review

The A6 Sportback e-tron brings me back to a time when driving an Audi felt wonderfully straightforward. I still remember the mid-2000s, when the brand began rolling out its TFSI engines. The cars were quick without being intimidating, efficient without feeling dull, and beautifully engineered, making you feel like a better driver than you probably were. You got in, pointed it at a road, and everything just worked. Somewhere along the way, that ...

by Joel Tam 10 February 2026

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

Cupra Terramar 1.5 eTSI Review

There is something quite charming about a brand that prioritises looks above everything. Cupra has always leaned into drama. Sharp surfacing, moody lighting, copper highlights everywhere. The Terramar continues that theatre, except now it wraps the attitude into something family-sized and daily usable. I spent my time with the 1.5 eTSI mild hybrid, which, on paper, may not scream headline numbers, but in real life, especially in a cramped city ...

by Joel Tam 10 February 2026

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

BYD Sealion 7 Dynamic Review

The Sealion 7 has become a very common sight on our roads. I have seen it at events, sat in it during other drives, and heard plenty of opinions from owners and fellow journalists. What I had not done until this point was spend proper time behind the wheel of the Cat A version (shocking, I know). This one is the Dynamic, the entry point into the range. On paper, it ...

by Joel Tam 28 December 2025

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

MINI Countryman C Review

There was a time when choosing a MINI meant choosing small. Those days are well and truly over when the Countryman was introduced back in 2011. Yes, we were there. The all new MINI Countryman C is the largest MINI you can buy today and also its most accessible Countryman yet. Priced under the $250,000 mark (depending on COE and discounts), this is MINI’s entry level answer to a segment increasingly ...

by Joel Tam 26 December 2025

Featured, Lifestyle, Travel

50 & Forward: A BMW 3 Series Road Trip to Penang

Turning 50 has a way of slowing your thoughts down, not in a dramatic, midlife-crisis sense, but in a calmer, more reflective way. You begin to pay closer attention to the things that have stayed with you, rather than the things that came and went. Driving has always been part of that story In 2025, I turn 50.The BMW 3 Series turns 50, too, marking its 50th anniversary. That coincidence felt more like ...

by Joel Tam 8 December 2025

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

Zeekr 7X Performance Review

If you still think Chinese EVs are all flash and no finesse, the Zeekr 7X Performance will change your mind. So yes, we have indeed driven many EV SUVs. But the Zeekr 7X is refreshingly different. It looks futuristic, drives with intent and packs enough power to challenge some proper sports SUVs. Yet it retains the brand’s signature maturity and polish that set it apart from many of its rivals. Looks ...

by Joel Tam 25 November 2025

Mercedes Benz GLC 200 parked by road at Gillman Barracks

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

Mercedes-Benz GLC200 Review

After weeks of driving a mix of electric cars, getting back into something petrol-powered felt almost nostalgic. The Mercedes GLC200 SUV may be the entry-level model in the range, but it still carries the poise and polish you expect from the brand with the three-pointed star. Performance That Fits Singapore Perfectly Under the bonnet sits a 2.0-litre inline-four turbocharged engine producing 201 bhp. On paper, that may not sound like much by ...

by Joel Tam 15 November 2025

Featured, Latest Cars, Reviews

smart #5 Pro 76 kWh Review

Most people who know the smart brand remember those tiny two-seater city cars that used to zip around European streets (we had a couple here, too). They were quirky, efficient and almost toy-like in size. Those cars defined smart for years. Today, the brand is in a very different chapter. Backed by Mercedes-Benz and Geely, smart has reinvented itself with a new purpose. The smart #5 sits right at the ...