Driving through Malaysia's Fraser Hill | FerrariChat
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Driving through Malaysia's Fraser Hill

Discussion in 'Asia' started by SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011.

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  1. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #1 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2011
    Hello fellow Fchatters, I've always wanted to visit this much spoke about hill top in the central of Malaysia. It's not exactly high @ 1500m above sea level as the nearby Genting with it's famous casino stands 6000ft on it's tip while most people will also go to the Cameron highlands further north & cooler. Locals call it Bukit Fraser.

    Anyway, this was once a British retreat village where the folks try to escape the crowded KL city & heat.

    As usual, I decided on this right after an office meeting @ 3.30pm, no planning whatsoever & since I have an old 996C2 Targa tip which I thought might be fun in the hill. I quickly called a local friend for advice on the route which I mapped over here:
    http://maps.google.com.my/maps/myplaces?vpsrc=6&ctz=-480&abauth=b01d4101:z72j4O3nSSrUe_ayePAjowOUNgM&vps=2&ei=ySbGTobuHYTDkgXOo_mvDA&num=10

    Sorry, not a Ferrari as my 456GT is in the workshop while others are either out of action, too soft or not around.
     
  2. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #2 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I know some HK Porsche guys send their cars over for drives while Singapore's enthusiasts do it all the time but I'll pen this down with some pics along. My route takes you from left to right & covers 2 of the 3 ways to go over this hill. The journey normally takes 2hrs or so to reach from KL city, pretty long as the last 30% are very tight & in raining season, you'll see landslide, fallen trees, stones etc. which I meet them all :(

    You'd use the same highway towards Genting via the Karak highway but continue ahead & don't get seduced by the casino ;) you'll soon pass the tunnel & then some fast sweeping descent & finally a toll @ Bentong where you'll take the first left exit towards that town.

    It's an old town that's with fruit produce & you'll see make-shift stalls selling huge "Nangka", watermelon, durians etc.

    Traffic here is a rather idylic 30-40km/h....
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  3. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #3 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  4. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #4 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  5. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #5 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  6. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #6 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    The initial section was great 2-3gear but then you'll soon reach the mid section where it's very tight, probably 1.5m across per lane. I think big GT cars like 599, Murcie will have problem here & the hairpins are sometimes good for only one car width while you get the occasional opposite truck coming down or some bikers. This is a strictly 2nd gear uphill & I could do no more than 80km/h, very nice twisties. Easily over 100 turns with less than 50m between each

    Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to take some pics of this section as I was concentrating on the drive. My passenger soon threw out :p & took over the wheel :(

    After a while, you'll reach the sign
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  7. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
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    Jon Wijaya
    #7 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    It began to rain again here & a last section of 8km leads you up to the village. This is a one way only traffic that is open on alternate hour for ascent or descent & I was lucky!

    Very wet, foggy & lots of debris. If you guys come on convoy, I would advice a break of 1min per car, it's tight.
     
  8. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
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    Jon Wijaya
    #8 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  9. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
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    Jon Wijaya
    #9 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  10. MaxPower

    MaxPower Two Time F1 World Champ

    Mar 28, 2006
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    #10 MaxPower, Nov 18, 2011
    dayam ...
     
  11. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
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    #11 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    But soon, we hit an unexpected rock the size of a football! Arghh, thankgoodness it only caused some deep scratches to the lower bumper. A lot of trees fell in this rainy season & you can see repairs on walls due to landslide.
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  12. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
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    #12 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  13. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
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    Jon Wijaya
    #13 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  14. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
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    Jon Wijaya
    #14 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I don't know how long or tricky the descent is but darkness comes very fast in this part of the world & soon we were greeted by rain again then thick fog.....


    I thought we passed that sign on the way up?! Yes, it is the same sign & the route brings you down to the base of the village for the way downhill. dejavu....& driving alone.

    I later found some spooky Malaysian tales of flesh eating demons in the forest :eek:

    But we actually wound down the window & open the targa for some cool air! haha
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  15. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
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    Jon Wijaya
    #15 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Anyway, that 90km to KL turns out to be well over 1hr drive down, very twisty (I lost count @ 200 turns) but you guys can check the map, a lot of fallen trees & visibility was down to 20m with highbeam. No street lamps, reflectors or even traffic.

    It should be a blast to do in the day & dry.

    We then hit a stretch of very good fast roads which I'm sure would offer fantastic scenery as there was a part where we drove over a lake!

    Finally we reached some civilisation @ Kuala Kubu Bharu and then it's basically following the sign back to city which can be misleading as there are two routes, the old one will take you ages.....I broke off & found the main highway back from Rawang.
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  16. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
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    Jon Wijaya
    #16 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2011
    What I like about this route is the variety of scenery & roads. (I did one down south last month in Kluala Pilah which was quite a blast as well & much faster route of 3-4gears)

    Condition of this route is largely very good with little pot-holes but do watch out for debris or fallen trees & traffic is almost non-existance (weekday) I have virtually the whole B-road & mountain roads to myself. Imagine if you have a high pitched roaring Ferrari, it'll be fun to scare some monkeys ^^

    You can even have seafood on the way back & I suspect the catch are from the nearby lake.

    Let me know if you guys need directions.
     
  17. kazuya369

    kazuya369 Karting

    Jul 28, 2005
    91
    KL/Sg
    #17 kazuya369, Nov 18, 2011
    Awesome shots and experience Jon....would love to convoy together with my Porker one day.
     
  18. winkelhock

    winkelhock Formula Junior

    Jun 16, 2006
    764
    #18 winkelhock, Nov 18, 2011
    Nice Jon!!

    Hope to be able to join you one day,tks for sharing.
     
  19. SFchallenge

    SFchallenge F1 World Champ

    Jun 28, 2004
    11,945
    Sgp, KL, HK & London
    Full Name:
    Jon Wijaya
    #19 SFchallenge, Nov 18, 2011
    Thanks guys. Half-a-dozen cars should be good for this trip, I would like to do it again in another car, this 996 is on 50 section tyres, shocks are tired & front lower link bushes are worn out but still managed to have a lot of fun. Big turbo cars will show their lag on hillclimbs like this, so bring your NA & manual stuff!
     
  20. iam2cute

    iam2cute Formula Junior

    Aug 19, 2006
    405
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    Alan
    #20 iam2cute, Nov 20, 2011
    very very nice write up Jon.....Makes me wanna do the same thing......please post more pictures.....!!!!
     
  21. MaxPower

    MaxPower Two Time F1 World Champ

    Mar 28, 2006
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    #21 MaxPower, Nov 20, 2011
    great pics jon ... as usual ...
     
  22. winkelhock

    winkelhock Formula Junior

    Jun 16, 2006
    764
    #22 winkelhock, Nov 20, 2011
    Bring my SMART!!
     
  23. ferrariKP

    ferrariKP F1 Rookie

    Jul 29, 2004
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    #23 ferrariKP, Nov 20, 2011
    Awesome write-up and pics, Jon :)

    Thx for sharing mate,
     
  24. jpohl402

    jpohl402 Formula Junior

    Dec 2, 2007
    763
    PHX/PIE/OMA--> ALL 3
    #24 jpohl402, Nov 20, 2011
    very cool, I enjoyed the photos & write-up
     
  25. Remy Zero

    Remy Zero Two Time F1 World Champ

    Apr 26, 2005
    23,476
    KL, Malaysia
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    MC Cool Breeze
    #25 Remy Zero, Dec 1, 2011
    From my experience, i think Cameron Highlands offers a better package. I think it actually takes longer to reach up Cameron, plus, there's a whole lot of stuff you could do there. Bear in mind though, town areas such as Brinchang and Ringlet are close to impossible to pass, if your driving a wide car like a 599.

    Credit to Jon for sharing your stories and pictures.
     
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