The name ZF is unlikely to ring a bell for many people. However, ZF (also known as the ZF Group, or ZF Friedrichshafen AG) was founded in 1915 and specialize in engineering, design, research and development, and manufacturing in the automotive industry. Their products focus on several key areas: driveline technology, chassis technology, axle systems consisting of manual and automatic transmissions, chassis components, shock absorbers and suspension struts, electronic damping systems, clutches, torque converters and drivelines.
For a company of such heritage, it is no surprise that ZF Group is represented across the world. Whilst their primary market remains in Europe, they also have strong presence in the Asia-Pacific region including Australia, the Americas, Middle East and Africa. Although the APAC regional headquarters is based in Singapore, there is a ZF Sales and Service here in Malaysia. They are known for their competency with supporting customers in Original Equipment (OE), Parts, Sales and Workshop Service businesses catering to automotive and marine industries. Here in Malaysia, they are also responsible for SACHS, LEMFÖRDER, BOGE and ZF Parts – the aftermarket product brands under the ZF Group, offering a large spectrum of products, after-sales service, to advice and technical training.
ZF products are supplied to many automotive makers including Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche, MAN, and SCANIA, to name a few. As an example, a large number of components used in VW and Audi passenger cars are supplied by ZF; including suspension, steering assembly, and transmission bits. We’ve heard that KIA are close to signing a deal to purchase a 9-speed automatic transmission developed by ZF. Because ZF caters to a large amount of car enthusiasts who are looking for OE parts, they decided to host several product training seminars for the local car club community in Malaysia. This training focuses on the various products developed by ZF and how these products could be incorporated into vehicles of existing owners, increasing their technical and product knowledge and competency with tuning their cars.
‘(00) was also invited to participate in this workshop, and the particular session saw strong attendance by the folks from VWClubMalaysia with over 20 cars turning up. The cars came in different stages of tune: from stock standard, to cars with exterior visual tweaks, including even a heavily modified Scirocco that graced the recent TIMETOATTACK. Whilst many will remember it for its delicious brushed aluminum wrap, some will also acknowledge it for coming second in the TTA #2 Exotic Mods Euros Hall of Fame.
For this particular event, Volkswagen Group Malaysia (VGM) once again loaned us a car to travel in. This time, it was also an ‘R’ car; the Passat CC R-line which we fell in love with (you can read our full review here). What’s not to like? A burbly V6, AWD, hugely comfortable, with a blistering zerotohundred time of 5.6 seconds; quicker than the other cars in the ‘R’ stable. Unlike the other ‘R’ cars, the exterior changes in this car are very subtle – enough to surprise many of its German rivals. With fewer than 20 units in Malaysia, the CC-R is an undoubtedly rare machine and for the club members who turned up, a fantastic opportunity for them to see (and hear!) one in the flesh.
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