JAC T9 EV pickup goes CKD in Kulim in January 2027, 12 months before the Malaysia EV tax exemption ends

Sep 28

5 min read

Updated: Oct 8

By Arjun Nair · Policy & Industry columnist · 28 Sep 2026

JAC T9 EV pickup goes CKD in Kulim in January 2027, 12 months before the Malaysia EV tax exemption ends

The first CKD EV pickup arrives with one year left on the tax clock, so the real question is what comes after 31 December 2027.

At a glance

		Source
Model	JAC T9 EV pickup	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
CBU launch price (Mar 2025)	RM199,888 OTR before insurance	Paultan.org
CKD plant	Kulim, Kedah	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
CKD EV production	From January 2027	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
CKD EV exemption ends	31 Dec 2027	Autobuzz.my, Carz.com.my

TL;DR

Malaysia's EV tax exemption for locally assembled (CKD) EVs runs to 31 Dec 2027, according to Autobuzz.my and Carz.com.my.
SoyaCincau reports CKD JAC T9 EV production in Kulim from January 2027. By our count, that leaves 12 months of exemption under the current rule.
The next decision to watch is any CKD extension past 2027, starting with Budget 2027, which The Star says comes in early October 2026.

Autobuzz.my and Carz.com.my both report that the EV tax exemption in Malaysia for 2027 applies only to cars assembled here. JAC's T9 EV pickup joins that club in January 2027, SoyaCincau reports. By our count, it walks in 12 months before the doors close on 31 December 2027.

So the question for a pickup buyer is simple. Does going CKD make the T9 EV cheaper, and for how long?

Infographic: JAC T9 EV pickup goes CKD in Kulim in January 2027, 12 months before the Malaysia EV tax exemption ends

What is the difference between CKD and CBU?

CBU means "completely built up". The car comes from the factory abroad in one piece. CKD means "completely knocked down". The parts come in, and a local plant puts the car together.

The tax rule follows this split. According to Autobuzz.my, Budget 2023 extended the excise and import duty exemption for CBU EVs to 31 December 2025. It also proposed to extend the excise duty and sales tax exemption for CKD EVs to 31 December 2027.

Then the CBU window closed. In October 2025, Carz.com.my reported that a Ministry of Finance revenue report confirmed the 31 December 2025 end date. From 2026, CBU EVs pay import duty and excise duty again. Both outlets put the CKD exemption end at 31 December 2027.

Thinking about an EV? Drive one for a few days before you buy.

What did JAC and Feytech announce?

On 28 September 2026, SoyaCincau and Paultan.org reported that JAC distributor Evolvelectric Motors signed an agreement with FT Assembly, a Feytech Holdings subsidiary. FT Assembly will put together the T9 pickup in Kulim, Kedah, in PHEV, EV and diesel forms.

The key numbers, with the outlet for each:

Item	Figure	Source
Initial investment	RM3.6 million	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
Further investment	Up to RM8 million over three years	Paultan.org
Plant size	84,000 sq ft	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
First-year capacity	3,000 units	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
Local content target	Up to 30%	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
Claimed economic value	RM230 million a year	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
CKD PHEV start	November 2026	SoyaCincau, Paultan.org
CKD EV start	January 2027	SoyaCincau

The PHEV goes first. Paultan.org reports that it lands in early November as a CBU, then CKD production starts. The diesel follows, and the EV comes last.

Who wins from the CKD move?

The EV buyer can win, but only on paper so far. Paultan.org reports that the CBU T9 EV launched in March 2025 at RM199,888 on-the-road before insurance, during the CBU exemption. Neither JAC release gives a CKD price. A lower price is possible. It is not announced.

Feytech also wins. SoyaCincau says it makes seat systems and covers for Perodua, Proton, Chery, Jaecoo, Jetour, Mazda, Hyundai and Kia. This is its first full vehicle assembly job.

Kedah gets a new plant. On our arithmetic, RM3.6 million / 3,000 units of first-year capacity = about RM1,200 of investment per unit.

Who loses, and what does the release not say?

The first loser is the timing. The EV, the one variant the exemption covers by name, is last in the queue. If production starts in January 2027 as SoyaCincau reports, it gets 12 months of CKD exemption under the current rule. Twelve months. For a new plant, that is barely enough time to learn where the canteen is.

The PHEV goes first, but we found no source that says a PHEV qualifies for the CKD EV exemption. Any PHEV tax saving is unconfirmed until JAC or the ministry says so.

The RM230 million figure from the joint release also needs care. On our arithmetic, divide it by the 3,000-unit capacity and you get about RM76,700 per unit. That is below the RM120,000 diesel and the RM199,888 EV prices from the March 2025 launch (Paultan.org). So the figure is not showroom revenue. The release does not explain how it was calculated.

Finally, the 30% local content target in both reports is "up to". Neither report gives the content level on day one.

How does this compare with earlier cycles?

Malaysia has seen this film before. According to Autobuzz.my, the Budget 2023 extensions gave CBU and CKD EVs two more years each. Carz.com.my reported that the Malaysian Automotive Association later asked for 2027 for CBU and 2030 for CKD. The CBU request did not succeed, and CBU EVs lost their exemption on schedule at the end of 2025.

The lesson from that cycle: the government did not move the CBU deadline. A buyer should not assume a CKD extension until it is in a Budget.

There is also the ASEAN angle. Evolvelectric CEO Lau Yit Mun said Japanese and American brands build their pickups in Thailand. JAC wants Malaysia as its base, and it is looking at export "subject to favourable conditions".

For running cost against petrol, our Tesla vs petrol cost guide shows the method.

What should you watch next?

Watch three dates:

Early October 2026: Budget 2027, which The Star reports the Prime Minister will table in early October. Look for any line on the CKD EV exemption after 2027.
November 2026: the T9 PHEV price, first CBU and then CKD, per the Paultan.org timeline. That shows whether local assembly moves the sticker.
January 2027: the CKD T9 EV price against the RM199,888 CBU launch price that Paultan.org reported.

Arjun's take

I have watched many exemption windows open and close. The CBU one closed on time, with no mercy. So I read this deal as a bet that the CKD window will stay open past 2027. Maybe it will, but that is my guess, not a fact. Buyers should wait for the CKD EV price in writing before they sell their diesel, lah. At the end of the day, a 12-month tax window, by my count, is a short runway for a new plant.