ABSTRACT
The Malaysian government started to promote the automobile industry in the 1980s in order to develop the technical capability of the Malaysian production industry. Malaysian industrialization went through four distinct stages between 1967 and the 1990s (Alavi 1996): (1) import substitution industrialization between 1957 and 1970; (2) export-oriented industrialization between 1970 and 1980; (3) import substitution industrialization, especially to promote heavy industry, between 1980 and 1985; and (4) the current push for further export-oriented industrialization. During the third stage, the Malaysian government promoted the automobile industry, hoping that it would foster higher economic growth through stronger backward and forward industrial linkages. Within the Malaysian automobile industry, knowledge in basic metals and engineering were thought to be particularly essential for technological development. The automobile industry involves material producers, partmakers and assemblers spread out over various industries.
