On May 20th, 2023, UMW Grantt Lubricants and ENZO car mats presented CarTell Gymkhana Vol. III where participants and spectators alike witnessed an exhilarating scene of smoke, screeching tires and big smiles, attracting a mix of enthusiastic newcomers and familiar faces eager to put their vehicles and skills to the test.
Held between 9.30am and 4.30pm at Car Park W2 of the Shah Alam Stadium, the event brought together car and driving enthusiasts of all types, persuasions, and backgrounds, united by their shared passion.
Gymkhana is a motorsport event characterised by a timed lap around a tight, technical course. These events feature a designated track with various obstacles like cones, tires, and barrels. Drivers must navigate through the track, employing a wide range of driving techniques.
Similar to gymkhana, autocross events also use cone-based obstacles for drivers to navigate through. However, autocross is more like a scaled-down road course, whereas gymkhana obstacles often include slaloms, 180-degree turns, 360-degree turns, figure-eight turns, and sometimes parking boxes.
In gymkhana, the type of vehicle or car is less critical to success. Even if two individuals have identical cars, their performance and times can differ significantly. The key factors that determine success in gymkhana are a driver’s familiarity with their own vehicle, knowledge of the course, and driving ability. Ultimately, the focus in gymkhana is not primarily on the car itself, but on the driver’s skills and understanding of the sport.
That said, Cartell’s Gymkhana Volume III used two vehicle classifications: Showroom+ and Prepared. In ‘Showroom+’, the vehicle is left nearly identical to how it emerged from the factory (though some safety or minor upgrades are allowed) whereas ‘prepared’ cars clearly exhibit performance-enhancing modifications.
Carlist, of course, has always been an outspoken proponent of these kinds of grassroots events that make motorsport as accessible as possible to the general public. To that end, members of the CarTell community on Facebook were given a special participation fee of just RM60 where the typical going rate to compete is around RM150.
All manner of vehicles turned up to join in on the fun, from the rear-drive staples like BMWs to the more recent and very popular Toyota GT86 and Subaru BRZ. Apart from that there were a bevy of very agile front-drive hatchbacks including a near factory-fresh D74A Perodua Axia. See, it really doesn’t matter what car you drive, as long as you have fun driving it!
When a car’s engine is subjected to intense stress during a gymkhana, selecting the right lubricant becomes crucial to ensure the vehicle withstands the demands of the event and remains drivable afterward.
This is precisely why CarTell has maintained its partnership with UMW Grantt Lubricants and their high quality products that let your car perform at its peak while maintaining protection.
Special thanks as well to ENZO car mats which offers the most durable, customisable, and precisely constructed aftermarket car mats we’ve ever tried. They’re an improvement to the run-of-the-mill car mats most cars are fitted with in almost every way, not to mention how well they stay wedged in to your car’s interior floor.
Carlist.my and CarTell aren’t done with our Gymkhana plans for 2023, however. We’ll be back before long for our next motorsport outing, so stay tuned!