Big Test: Can you drive to KL with just the SP app?
24 Nov 2025|3,529 views
SP Mobility and JomCharge have collaborated to make electric vehicle charging seamless for both Singaporeans and Malaysians travelling across the border. But is this truly the case?
To put the app to the test, we decided to take a typical electric car (so nothing with an oversized battery or a ridiculous power output) and make the trip up to Kuala Lumpur and back to see just how easy it can be to keep your car charged up with just the SP app alone. Here's what went down…
We head out to Malaysia with a near fully-charged battery
Sunway Hotel Big Box
We start the trip at close to 10:00am in the morning and are heading for the Tuas causeway with the IM 5 stating that it has 374km of range left. This 'Luxury' variant of the IM 5 we are in, equipped with a 75kWh battery and offering a total power output that allows it to be registered here with a Cat A COE, should give us an energy efficiency that comes close enough to what a typical electric car owner will face when making their own drive up.
Our first targeted charging stop is at Sunway Hotel Big Box. Just close to 15km away from Tuas checkpoint, it's a perfect stop and charge point for those who have left Singapore without charging up the night before. There's two 60kW DC chargers here, and one of these is supposed to give us our first taste of booting up a foreign charger with the SP app. But it doesn't go quite as planned.
We circle the parking lot of Big Box Retail Park after mistaking a Tesla Supercharging spot for the one we were looking for - a silly mistake in hindsight but one that will prove recurring as we head further north.
Our first charging spot was unoccupied, but Sunway Hotel insisted we had to pay a valet charge to use this charger so we promptly left
We leave the SP app and dig into the JomCharge one to retrieve a photo of the location of the actual charger and find the one we need is patiently waiting for us off to the side at the entrance to the hotel lobby itself, but we are not clear of charging woes just yet.
Attempting to stop next to this charger promptly brings the hotel bellhop hot on our tail, with a message informing us that there's a RM45 valet charge to park at the designated charging lot. Bugger.
The chargers at Eco Galleria proved difficult to find and the DC plugs were in use when we arrived, so we resorted to charging at the 40kW AC charger
A slight detour
The three seated within the IM 5 are unashamedly cheap, but we all agree not to pay this 'surcharge' on principle and opt instead to make a quick detour for the nearest charger on the SP app.
It's located at Eco Galleria, a location that shouldn't be alien to many Singaporeans. But once again, we have trouble finding the actual charger, which is located at the basement of levels of a location that offers both ground level parking and comes with an attached multi-storey to boot.
A quick lunch later saw our IM 5 almost fully charged up by the time we returned
Short disruption overcome, we meet with another issue once at the charging point: The two 60kW DC chargers are occupied, so we take the sole remaining 40kW AC charger (of the two offered at this location) and head out for lunch.
The IM 5 can be charged at a maximum power of 11kW if you're plugged into an alternating current charger and we take a total of 19.4kWh from this spot after leaving our car plugged in for a total of one hour and 55 minutes, translating to an actual average charge power of close to 9.7kW at a cost of $0.328/kWh (Singaporean dollars, that is, and before an additional platform fee of $0.35).
We made a detour for a charging spot in Malacca during this trip but you shouldn't need to by the time this article goes live
Malacca Marvelux Hotel (a not-so-slight detour)
With bellies and battery near to full, our IM5 informs us that we now have 426km of range. That's more than enough to make the trip all the way to Kuala Lumpur, of course.
But we need to make a detour because there's something we need to point out about the current charging network. Open the charging station map on the SP app and you'll find that there's one weakness in the network of chargers: There's only one stop between Johor Bahru and Kuala Lumpur itself.
That means that all who leave Johor without the necessary range to complete the drive to Kuala Lumpur (close to 320km if you're wondering) will need to make a rest stop here.
The charging spot at Marvelux Hotel has one CCS plug and one CHAdeMO plug. This information is not reflected on the SP app
So, we naturally had to make the journey to see this one critical charger in SP's Malaysian charging network for ourselves. And that means braving the congestion typically found on the arterials leading into and out of Malacca town.
This charger is located at the Marvelux Hotel and when we arrive, the IM 5 is at a 49% state-of-charge. There's two 20kW AC and another two 50kW DC chargers here. But another surprise lies in store: One of the 50kW DC plugs here is a CHAdeMO plug, which you won't be able to use if your car comes with a CCS charging port.
The SP app makes no distinction between the two ports, so note that while there are two plugs in this location, there's a fair chance that the CCS one which you need to use will be occupied if the app tells you that one car is already making use of a DC plug. The JomCharge app, however, does inform you which of these plugs is being used so there's the option to refer to this if you really need to know if delays are to be expected.
There are a healthy number of charging spots within Johor and Kuala Lumpur but there was only one charging stop on the SP app between the two cities when we made this journey. New JomChargers along the North-South highway have since been added to the SP app
We leave the Marvelux Hotel after a quick snack to avoid the worst of the traffic. This 36-minute stop gives the IM 5 adds a total of 25.6kWh of charge and we are charged at $0.469/kWh. Onwards to Kuala Lumpur.
*Our drive up to Kuala Lumpur was done on 10 November 2025. SP has since added a few more JomCharge chargers between Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru into its app since 14 November 2025. The most convenient for those driving along the North-South Highway include Caltex Ayer Keroh (near Malacca) and Senawang Layby (near Seremban). Both these locations offer fast chargers and are available for both North-bound and South-bound traffic.
It was late by the time we had arrived in at the Pullman Hotel in Malaysia's capital
Pullman Hotel KLCC
The sun has already set by the time we have reached the Malaysian capital. We charge up at Pullman Hotel KLCC, a location that offers one 40kW AC plug and two 50kW DC ports.
The bellhop here guides us as we reverse into our lot and later assists a neighbouring Taycan out of his while we are charging - a welcome and dramatic change from the reception we received at Sunway Hotel Big Box.
This charging point once again comes with one CCS and one CHAdeMO plug - lucky for us the neighbouring car was utilising the CHAdeMO one when we arrived
We only give the IM 5 as much time as it takes to film before leaving this time - all three too eager for a shower and dinner. A total of 29 minutes sees 23kWh being pushed into the car here, at a per-kilowatt-hour cost of $0.469. State-of-charge of the IM 5: 74%.
Time to eat up and rest.
The Cititel Hotel charging point offers two 120kW DC chargers but take note that the chargers state that an idle fee applies if you leave your car here
Cititel Hotel Mid Valley
7:30am and we are packing our bags back into the IM 5. We need to charge our car back to a near full state because today we will be taking the car on a long jog back to Johor without any charging stops in between. But instead of heading back to Pullman Hotel, we instead set course for Cititel Hotel Mid Valley. There's an appointment we must make - find out more about this in a later article or hang around at our YouTube channel to see just what this is!
Cititel Hotel Mid Valley marks the second charging spot in our little drive that has its DC plugs occupied when we arrive, but no matter: We are going to spend some time here, and the 40kW AC chargers prove more than enough for our needs. We see the IM 5 climbing from a 72% state-of-charge to a full 100% after two hours and 35 minutes of charging. Total cost: Just $9.01.
It's time to put the range of the IM5 to the test.
Toppen Shopping Centre is a great location to stop at if you're looking for a quick charge: There's four 200kW plugs here and plenty of food and shopping options to boot!
Toppen Shopping Centre Johor
And it performs admirably. We make one final stop before heading back across the border yet again targeting a location that shouldn’t be foreign to many Singaporeans: Toppen Shopping Centre Johor.
The remaining charge on the car when we arrive stands at a healthy 30%. Still more than enough to make to trip across the causeway and back home. But we want to stop for a spot of food and shopping.
If your car does not have the range or efficiency to match the IM 5, don't fret. There's a total of four DC plugs here offering a whopping total of 200kW, alongside two more 40kW AC plugs, making it quite the viable stop location for those planning to cover more miles within Malaysia still. We charge up here for just 31-minutes, enough to add another 49kWh of electricity into the IM 5, at a cost of just $23.40.
Time to head home.
Conclusions and recommendations
So, should you also make the drive all the way up to Kuala Lumpur with just the SP app alone?
To start, the network available for those driving between the two cities on the SP app alone is rather comprehensive. There are plenty of charging points available throughout Johor Bahru and Kuala Lumpur itself, and plenty of these do offer fast DC charging.
These chargers didn't seem to be prohibitively busy either: Of all the charging spots visited on our drive up and back, we were only denied access to a DC plug by another user twice. Take note, however, that most of our charging sessions were done on a weekday afternoon, so your mileage here may vary.
Another point worth adding is that for those more accustomed to taking short breaks along the drive up to Kuala Lumpur, this should not add any difficulty to the trip. So long as you leave Singapore at a decent state-of-charge, the available AC chargers should be enough to keep your car sufficiently juiced up even if you're looking to travel about within Kuala Lumpur before heading back.
And for those who want to minimise their time spent charging up, there's also plenty of fast chargers available on the app. With the new DC charging points added into the SP app, a user should have little trouble keeping their car topped up on the same journey with just one quick stop at the 200kW we visited at Toppen and then stopping for another charge at the 50kW DC charger at Caltex Ayer Keroh on the way up and back.
Having said this, we will add that the SP app should differentiate between CCS and CHAdeMO plugs. Your Singaporean car is most likely to sport a CCS charging port, and you won't be able to make use of a CHAdeMO plug to charge up without an adapter.
And as a final point, it would be nice if the SP app did offer pictures of the charging point itself so locating the actual charging station once you're at the correct address is a bit easier. Perhaps we three Singaporeans are not quite accustomed to the massive carparks that define the more suburban locations across Malaysia, but images of the chargers are already available on the JomCharge app itself, and locally, charging provider CDG Engie already offers photos of the charging station on its app for easier wayfinding.
The IM 5 utilised for this drive was kindly provided by Eurokars Leasing. Whether you're looking for a short-term rental solution or a vehicle to lease, Eurokars Leasing has selection of premium vehicles tailored for any lifestyle. Visit Eurokars Leasing here to find out more.
Thinking of getting your own electric vehicle? These articles should interest you:
Here's all the basics you need to know about electric vehicles
Or perhaps you're wondering which charging provider to use here in Singapore?
SP Mobility and JomCharge have collaborated to make electric vehicle charging seamless for both Singaporeans and Malaysians travelling across the border. But is this truly the case?
To put the app to the test, we decided to take a typical electric car (so nothing with an oversized battery or a ridiculous power output) and make the trip up to Kuala Lumpur and back to see just how easy it can be to keep your car charged up with just the SP app alone. Here's what went down…
We head out to Malaysia with a near fully-charged battery
Sunway Hotel Big Box
We start the trip at close to 10:00am in the morning and are heading for the Tuas causeway with the IM 5 stating that it has 374km of range left. This 'Luxury' variant of the IM 5 we are in, equipped with a 75kWh battery and offering a total power output that allows it to be registered here with a Cat A COE, should give us an energy efficiency that comes close enough to what a typical electric car owner will face when making their own drive up.
Our first targeted charging stop is at Sunway Hotel Big Box. Just close to 15km away from Tuas checkpoint, it's a perfect stop and charge point for those who have left Singapore without charging up the night before. There's two 60kW DC chargers here, and one of these is supposed to give us our first taste of booting up a foreign charger with the SP app. But it doesn't go quite as planned.
We circle the parking lot of Big Box Retail Park after mistaking a Tesla Supercharging spot for the one we were looking for - a silly mistake in hindsight but one that will prove recurring as we head further north.
Our first charging spot was unoccupied, but Sunway Hotel insisted we had to pay a valet charge to use this charger so we promptly left
We leave the SP app and dig into the JomCharge one to retrieve a photo of the location of the actual charger and find the one we need is patiently waiting for us off to the side at the entrance to the hotel lobby itself, but we are not clear of charging woes just yet.
Attempting to stop next to this charger promptly brings the hotel bellhop hot on our tail, with a message informing us that there's a RM45 valet charge to park at the designated charging lot. Bugger.
The chargers at Eco Galleria proved difficult to find and the DC plugs were in use when we arrived, so we resorted to charging at the 40kW AC charger
A slight detour
The three seated within the IM 5 are unashamedly cheap, but we all agree not to pay this 'surcharge' on principle and opt instead to make a quick detour for the nearest charger on the SP app.
It's located at Eco Galleria, a location that shouldn't be alien to many Singaporeans. But once again, we have trouble finding the actual charger, which is located at the basement of levels of a location that offers both ground level parking and comes with an attached multi-storey to boot.
A quick lunch later saw our IM 5 almost fully charged up by the time we returned
Short disruption overcome, we meet with another issue once at the charging point: The two 60kW DC chargers are occupied, so we take the sole remaining 40kW AC charger (of the two offered at this location) and head out for lunch.
The IM 5 can be charged at a maximum power of 11kW if you're plugged into an alternating current charger and we take a total of 19.4kWh from this spot after leaving our car plugged in for a total of one hour and 55 minutes, translating to an actual average charge power of close to 9.7kW at a cost of $0.328/kWh (Singaporean dollars, that is, and before an additional platform fee of $0.35).
We made a detour for a charging spot in Malacca during this trip but you shouldn't need to by the time this article goes live
Malacca Marvelux Hotel (a not-so-slight detour)
With bellies and battery near to full, our IM5 informs us that we now have 426km of range. That's more than enough to make the trip all the way to Kuala Lumpur, of course.
But we need to make a detour because there's something we need to point out about the current charging network. Open the charging station map on the SP app and you'll find that there's one weakness in the network of chargers: There's only one stop between Johor Bahru and Kuala Lumpur itself.
That means that all who leave Johor without the necessary range to complete the drive to Kuala Lumpur (close to 320km if you're wondering) will need to make a rest stop here.
The charging spot at Marvelux Hotel has one CCS plug and one CHAdeMO plug. This information is not reflected on the SP app
So, we naturally had to make the journey to see this one critical charger in SP's Malaysian charging network for ourselves. And that means braving the congestion typically found on the arterials leading into and out of Malacca town.
This charger is located at the Marvelux Hotel and when we arrive, the IM 5 is at a 49% state-of-charge. There's two 20kW AC and another two 50kW DC chargers here. But another surprise lies in store: One of the 50kW DC plugs here is a CHAdeMO plug, which you won't be able to use if your car comes with a CCS charging port.
The SP app makes no distinction between the two ports, so note that while there are two plugs in this location, there's a fair chance that the CCS one which you need to use will be occupied if the app tells you that one car is already making use of a DC plug. The JomCharge app, however, does inform you which of these plugs is being used so there's the option to refer to this if you really need to know if delays are to be expected.
There are a healthy number of charging spots within Johor and Kuala Lumpur but there was only one charging stop on the SP app between the two cities when we made this journey. New JomChargers along the North-South highway have since been added to the SP app
We leave the Marvelux Hotel after a quick snack to avoid the worst of the traffic. This 36-minute stop gives the IM 5 adds a total of 25.6kWh of charge and we are charged at $0.469/kWh. Onwards to Kuala Lumpur.
*Our drive up to Kuala Lumpur was done on 10 November 2025. SP has since added a few more JomCharge chargers between Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru into its app since 14 November 2025. The most convenient for those driving along the North-South Highway include Caltex Ayer Keroh (near Malacca) and Senawang Layby (near Seremban). Both these locations offer fast chargers and are available for both North-bound and South-bound traffic.
It was late by the time we had arrived in at the Pullman Hotel in Malaysia's capital
Pullman Hotel KLCC
The sun has already set by the time we have reached the Malaysian capital. We charge up at Pullman Hotel KLCC, a location that offers one 40kW AC plug and two 50kW DC ports.
The bellhop here guides us as we reverse into our lot and later assists a neighbouring Taycan out of his while we are charging - a welcome and dramatic change from the reception we received at Sunway Hotel Big Box.
This charging point once again comes with one CCS and one CHAdeMO plug - lucky for us the neighbouring car was utilising the CHAdeMO one when we arrived
We only give the IM 5 as much time as it takes to film before leaving this time - all three too eager for a shower and dinner. A total of 29 minutes sees 23kWh being pushed into the car here, at a per-kilowatt-hour cost of $0.469. State-of-charge of the IM 5: 74%.
Time to eat up and rest.
The Cititel Hotel charging point offers two 120kW DC chargers but take note that the chargers state that an idle fee applies if you leave your car here
Cititel Hotel Mid Valley
7:30am and we are packing our bags back into the IM 5. We need to charge our car back to a near full state because today we will be taking the car on a long jog back to Johor without any charging stops in between. But instead of heading back to Pullman Hotel, we instead set course for Cititel Hotel Mid Valley. There's an appointment we must make - find out more about this in a later article or hang around at our YouTube channel to see just what this is!
Cititel Hotel Mid Valley marks the second charging spot in our little drive that has its DC plugs occupied when we arrive, but no matter: We are going to spend some time here, and the 40kW AC chargers prove more than enough for our needs. We see the IM 5 climbing from a 72% state-of-charge to a full 100% after two hours and 35 minutes of charging. Total cost: Just $9.01.
It's time to put the range of the IM5 to the test.
Toppen Shopping Centre is a great location to stop at if you're looking for a quick charge: There's four 200kW plugs here and plenty of food and shopping options to boot!
Toppen Shopping Centre Johor
And it performs admirably. We make one final stop before heading back across the border yet again targeting a location that shouldn’t be foreign to many Singaporeans: Toppen Shopping Centre Johor.
The remaining charge on the car when we arrive stands at a healthy 30%. Still more than enough to make to trip across the causeway and back home. But we want to stop for a spot of food and shopping.
If your car does not have the range or efficiency to match the IM 5, don't fret. There's a total of four DC plugs here offering a whopping total of 200kW, alongside two more 40kW AC plugs, making it quite the viable stop location for those planning to cover more miles within Malaysia still. We charge up here for just 31-minutes, enough to add another 49kWh of electricity into the IM 5, at a cost of just $23.40.
Time to head home.
Conclusions and recommendations
So, should you also make the drive all the way up to Kuala Lumpur with just the SP app alone?
To start, the network available for those driving between the two cities on the SP app alone is rather comprehensive. There are plenty of charging points available throughout Johor Bahru and Kuala Lumpur itself, and plenty of these do offer fast DC charging.
These chargers didn't seem to be prohibitively busy either: Of all the charging spots visited on our drive up and back, we were only denied access to a DC plug by another user twice. Take note, however, that most of our charging sessions were done on a weekday afternoon, so your mileage here may vary.
Another point worth adding is that for those more accustomed to taking short breaks along the drive up to Kuala Lumpur, this should not add any difficulty to the trip. So long as you leave Singapore at a decent state-of-charge, the available AC chargers should be enough to keep your car sufficiently juiced up even if you're looking to travel about within Kuala Lumpur before heading back.
And for those who want to minimise their time spent charging up, there's also plenty of fast chargers available on the app. With the new DC charging points added into the SP app, a user should have little trouble keeping their car topped up on the same journey with just one quick stop at the 200kW we visited at Toppen and then stopping for another charge at the 50kW DC charger at Caltex Ayer Keroh on the way up and back.
Having said this, we will add that the SP app should differentiate between CCS and CHAdeMO plugs. Your Singaporean car is most likely to sport a CCS charging port, and you won't be able to make use of a CHAdeMO plug to charge up without an adapter.
And as a final point, it would be nice if the SP app did offer pictures of the charging point itself so locating the actual charging station once you're at the correct address is a bit easier. Perhaps we three Singaporeans are not quite accustomed to the massive carparks that define the more suburban locations across Malaysia, but images of the chargers are already available on the JomCharge app itself, and locally, charging provider CDG Engie already offers photos of the charging station on its app for easier wayfinding.
The IM 5 utilised for this drive was kindly provided by Eurokars Leasing. Whether you're looking for a short-term rental solution or a vehicle to lease, Eurokars Leasing has selection of premium vehicles tailored for any lifestyle. Visit Eurokars Leasing here to find out more.
Thinking of getting your own electric vehicle? These articles should interest you:
Here's all the basics you need to know about electric vehicles
Or perhaps you're wondering which charging provider to use here in Singapore?
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