Ashraaq Wahab
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Ashraaq has always been fascinated by things that go. He's intensely passionate about cars and trains, and has a keen interest in aviation too. He dabbled in the marine sector for a bit but found ships to be too slow. He's happiest when behind the wheel of a vehicle on a test drive for a feature. Coming from a Marketing and Management background, automotive journalism and writing has been a satisfying career shift for him. Ashraaq's also a collector of model cars and trains, dabbles in vintage hi-fi (particularly vinyl and CD) and is perpetually on a 'see-food' diet.
Author's Latest Articles
Thomas the Troopy
The Toyota Land Cruiser needs no introduction… really. Since 1951, over ten million have been sold worldwide. Sri Lanka has enjoyed her fair share of Land Cruisers as well. Thanks to the vehicular appetites of our politicians and the well-heeled, you see plenty of 200-series examples on the roads ...
2023 Hyundai Ioniq 5
Electric vehicles are slowly trickling into our car-starved shores, due to a permit system. We’ve seen quite a few cars on social media, and here, we were fortunate to get our hands on the very first Hyundai Ioniq 5 to land in Sri Lanka. Imported by the agents Abans Auto, the kind folks there dese...
1961 Ford Consul 315
The Ford Consul Classic, known as the Ford Consul 315 for export markets debuted in 1961. The Consul Classic was meant to be a scaled-down version of the American-market Ford Galaxie 500 for the UK market, envisioned to be “suitable for the golf club car park”. This tells you about Ford’s aspi...
Reliant Regal
The first time I saw a Reliant was on TV, in an episode of Mr. Bean in the early Nineties. As Rowan Atkinson’s beloved character relentlessly punished this hapless light blue three-wheeled van in ways bordering on sadistic, I wondered if it was the result of the studio’s creativity. Surely, it w...
1988 Volvo 240GL
As the sun directly blazes overhead, I barely feel it while lazily steering this 1988 Volvo 240GL down Ministry of Defence Road (yes, that’s the official name of the road on Google maps). Driving in fourth gear at an indicated 40mph, engine purring away and air conditioning impressively chilling t...
Mahindra KUV100 D75 AMT
Over three years ago, we sampled the Mahindra KUV100, the first locally assembled vehicle to come out of Ideal Motors’ brand-spanking-new assembly facility in Mathugama, Kalutara District. The company had impressive plans for its facility, at least they did until the economic crisis hit everyone l...
Daihatsu Copen & Honda S660 Club Sri Lanka Drive
The rain was pouring with verve on the morning of Sunday of 11th June, but that didn’t stop 13 dedicated aficionados of the Daihatsu Copen & Honda S660 Club Sri Lanka from gathering at Galle Face for a drive to the Beach Park at Port City. One by one, these pint-sized two-seaters showed up, their ...
1982 Renault Fuego TL
The famed automotive journalist L. J. K. Setright wrote of the Fuego, “…is blessed with a body which is not only roomy and aerodynamically efficient, but is also beautiful…” Introduced in 1980, this three-door French sports hatchback did indeed turn heads with its distinctive style and caugh...
Kelum WJ Projects Drive to Negombo
An automotive engineer by profession, Kelum Wijayawardhana is currently Director of Engineering and Operations at Modicon Automotive, a component manufacturer for local automotive assembly operations. A mechanical engineer by profession, Kelum has been captivated by cars ever since he can remember. ...
1974 Rover P6 3500 V8
When the Rover P6 debuted in 1963, it looked positively futuristic. The penmanship was from Charles Spencer King, who also drew the Rover SD1 and the Range Rover. This car was a clean sheet design, and Rover’s entrant to the executive car segment. The first variant was the Rover 2000, powered by -...
BYD e6 Second Generation
Sri Lanka is starved of new cars, thanks to an import ban since 2020. We see random vehicles trickle in, primarily purchased for embassies, but the rest of the country’s automotive scene is in a veritable time-freeze from 2020. One of those rare gems that managed to come into the country after tha...
1964 Triumph TR4
Anyone who has driven a Triumph always seems to have a grin on their face when steering these diminutive British roadsters with their perky engines and rorty engine notes. Triumph is a well-known name in Sri Lanka; our parents and grandparents definitely remember them by sight alone. Sadly, the Triu...
Locally Assembled Hyundai Grand i10 is launched
The locally assembled Hyundai Grand i10 was revealed by Abans Motors at a launch ceremony held at the Colombo City Center recently. The event was attended by President Ranil Wickremasinghe, the South Korean Ambassador and many other dignitaries. ...
2022 Proton Saga
On 9th July 1985, the first Proton Saga entered the Malaysian car market. The brainchild of Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, then-Minister of Trade and Industry, he envisioned a national automaker for Malaysia, and Proton was born. The Saga was its first product, based on the 1983 Mitsubishi Lancer Fiore, and ...
2018 Audi A5 Coupe
Audi’s been banging out the A5 since 2007, as part of their range-plugging drive. In fact, as of 2022, you can buy an Audi from A1 to A8, save for A2, but I’m sure they will plug that in time to come. The A5 was introduced as a compact executive car, for those who wanted a more stylish A4, as we...