PETALING JAYA: At first glance, car enthusiasts and horror fans may seem to have little in common. This October, however, both these diverse groups can have a spooktacular time together at Night Tour: Night at the Museo.
Organised by JPM Collection, this event gives visitors the exclusive chance to explore the JPM Museo in Kota Damansara, which hosts over 100 exotic and luxury cars from the collection of local businessman and automobile collector Chin Jit Pyng.
This venue is usually only open to the public on selected dates. However, in conjunction with Halloween, this tour has been given a spine-chilling twist: look out for masks and monsters lurking alongside the McLarens and Mercedes Benzes!
JPM Collection managing director Chin Tzer Minn said they opened JPM Museo for the public in July this year.
“We decided to see how the response was, and it was very good. We had people from Singapore, Thailand, all over the world, come down to see the cars,” he said.
“Now, we’ve transformed the place for Halloween. Don’t worry, it’s not very scary! It’s mostly fun decorations, and there are new things for you to come and see. Ultimately the main part of the tour is the cars, and the stories behind them.”
Why the limited entry to the public? Tzer Minn laughed and said it was to encourage prompt visits.
“Malaysians, they take things for granted. If they don’t go today, they’ll always say they’ll go tomorrow. So we decided to do it like this, to build up some excitement,” he said.
Tzer Minn said his father, Jit Pyng (also the chairman of JPM Group) had been collecting cars for about 40 years. In earlier days, his aim was to buy and resell them: in 2011, however, he started putting a collection together.
Founded in 1998, JPM Motorsport began as a jet-ski racing team, before branching out into auto racing. They participated in and won several prestigious championships, including the JUGRA Challenge Super Saloon, Malaysia Super Car Series and the Asian Touring Car Series.
The group also engaged in staging motorsports events, and is perhaps most known for organising Super GT Malaysia’s 20th anniversary in 2013.
In 2016, JPM Motorsport expanded to create JPM Collection, a classic and rare car collection group. Its mission is to bring top automotive lifestyle brands from across the globe to Asia.
The JPM Museo is mostly organised by geographical location: one section, for example, hosts sleek Spanish and Italian supercars, while other rooms showcase renowned British and Japanese automobiles.
Ferrari, Lamborghini, Jaguar, Porsche, Mercedes Benz… all the most prestigious names in the business make appearances here!
Tour visitors will be shown around the venue by a guide, who will relate the history behind the cars on display. They might even rev up some of their engines for you!
One highlight is a section devoted to cars from films: admire an Aston Martin from the James Bond series, or the actual Ford GT40 featured in Crazy Rich Asians.
Then head to another part of the Museo, and check out a 1940 Cadillac Fleetwood, as seen in the Godfather films: how’s that for an offer you can’t refuse?
Once you’re done checking out cars, you can tour the Museo’s large collection of superbikes, or chill at their café. There’s also a section where you can play racing simulators!
“This tour is not just for car fanatics. We hope it will educate people and give them an experience. We tried to make it as interesting as possible. We hope to have even kids enjoy themselves, and understand more about cars,” Tzer Minn concluded.
Night Tour: Night at the Museo
Venue:
JPM Museo
Lot 8C, Jalan Teknologi 3/4,
Taman Sains Selangor,
1, Kota Damansara,
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Ticket prices:
Tour is free when purchasing JPM Collection’s Halloween Edition Merch Kit at RM128 (adults) or RM108 (students/kids).
When:
Fridays & Saturdays from Oct 6-25, 7pm & 11pm
Visit the JPM Lamoda website for more information and for admission.