Hi may I say that it is not only the Malays that refuse to use meters , although it is the law to do so , most taxi drivers try to get a fixed fare well above the meter rate , see them stopping when flagged down and then moving off without any passengers especially in tourist areas as they know that another tourist is ripe for the taking !
This is not only happening in KL , the authorities in Penang have been fighting an uphill battle with the taxis to use their fitted meters , it took years to get them to fit meters but a waste of time if they will not use them . In this instance it is not only tourists that have to pay the inflated fare above meter showing .
When I was last there the taxi drivers went on strike as they stated that they could not make money on metered fares , well some of them did but if you offered them the going rate , ie Georgetown - Batu Ferringhi M$35 , METER ABOUT M$20 they would take you but they would ask if stopped by police that it was metered fare , which was switched on , that is how I know fare was M$20 .