Archive for Malaysian Makes

Good news for anyone who plans to buy a Proton in the next two months. Proton Edar is currently having a contest where anyone who buys a Proton from between the 1st of June 2009 to the 31st of August 2009 will be able to be eligible for entry. What you need to do is answer a few pre-determined questions (should be easy) and complete a slogan of less than 20 words beginning with “I prefer a PROTON because…”

Every week, 30 entries will be selected from the entries received during that week. Out of this 30 entries, 17 will be selected as weekly winners for the week, while the remainder will be entered into a monthly pool to win the monthly winner prizes. Out of the 17 weekly winners, 2 will win RM5,000 each, while the rest will win a Proton GPS navigation unit.

Next we go to the monthly pool. There should be about 13 entries every week (30 minus 17), and with roughly 4 weeks a month you should have 52 entries each month. From this monthly pool, a number of entries will be selected. One entry from the monthly selection will win the monthly prize of RM20,000, while the rest goes into a Grand Prize pool, which will be picked at the end of the contest. The Grand Prize is RM50,000 cash.

The prizes will be awarded based on the number of correct answers and the best creative slogan based on Proton Edar Sdn Bhd’s panel of judges.

So as a recap of the prizes:

Weekly selection 2 x RM5000.00
Weekly 15 consolation x GPS System
Monthly selection 1 x RM20,000.00
Grand Prize 1 x RM50,000.00

Click here for more details on the contest.

Proton will be attempting to stave off Perodua’s attack with a smaller but cheaper Perodua D46T MPV combined with a more desirable Toyota-associated brand because of the original model (it will be derived from the Toyota Passo Sette) this coming November.

The D46T is no secret, we’ve already seen the exterior and interior of what the Perodua version will look like, and the Toyota Passo Sette has already been around for quite sometime for all to see. In fact, one of the Passo Sette we’ve seen on Malaysian roads on road tests may in fact be likely to be owned by Proton.

The weapon of choice will be a cheaper version of the Exora. Right now the Exora is only available in M-Line and H-Line variants, with the only differences between them being creature comforts and minor styling differences.

A cheaper Exora will be further downgraded in terms of equipment, and will likely feature a manual gearbox, which actually could be more of a blessing for the Exora, as the auto while capable of taking the vehicle up to cruising speed and keeping it there, is rather sluggy to move around at city speeds.

Reader Kenneth spotted this Exora on the Penang bridge. It has light disguises on but we all know it’s an Exora. The LED tail lamps are still there but if this is a version of the production B-Line or manual model, we can see some evidence of downspeccing in the form of steel wheels with a cover instead of proper alloy wheels.

Look after the jump for the rest of the spy photos and a video.

Click here to read the rest of Proton readying Exora B-Line Manual for launch?

Thanks to reader awak for alerting me about a new update for the Naza Citra, or should we call it the Naza Citra 1.5 now since there is a Citra 2 Rondo and this particular version is an update to the Citra 1. The old second generation Kia Carens has been given a new breath of life by Naza Kia and is priced lower than the Citra 2 Rondo.

The new design is very curiously Saga-like with a blackened area between the upper and lower center grille on the front end, and the rear design features a new rear bumper with an integrated diffuser-lookalike design.

A quick check on local classifieds sites already reveal many salesmen posting up entries and prices range between RM59,888 to RM65,888, making this one of the cheapest 2.0 liter MPVs around, though what you’ll be getting is a model that first debuted in 2002.

Look after the jump for more images of the new Citra facelift.

Click here to read the rest of Another facelift for the old Naza Citra?

If you listen to the radio often you may have noticed Perodua (they seem to do alot of radio advertising) are currently promoting a sports kit package for the Perodua Myvi. No it’s not an aftermarket retrofit kit to turn your Myvi into a Myvi SE in terms of looks, but a new bodykit that includes front and rear lips, side skirts, chrome lining around the front grille, chrome door handles, rear spoiler and door visors.

A quick check reveals that this package costs RM1,799 and can be purchased from any Perodua showroom. Sorry for the low resolution photos above, they were snapped with a camera phone! But I think all the details of the bodykit can be seen.

The Proton Satria Neo S2000 will be participating in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, and Proton officially unveiled its line-up at the 2-day Rally Show festival (6th and 7th June), held at the ground of the Chatsworth House.

The Satria Neo Super 2000 will be pilot by a team consisting of two-times British rally champion Guy Wilks and co-driver Phil Pugh. The S2000 car was designed and built by British team Mellors Elliot Motorsport (MEM).

“We are very excited to have Guy Wilks driving for Proton in the IRC. After his stunning performance in the recent Pirelli Rally, we are positive about our capabilities to put up a strong challenge. MEM has done a great job with the Proton Satria Neo S2000 and we will continue to improve as the year progresses,” said Proton MD Dato’ Haji Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir.

“This is fantastic news and a fantastic opportunity. Proton and MEM are highly ambitious but also very realistic as newcomers. We need to make progress in every round and be ready to fight for the championship in 2010,” said Guy Wilks.

The Proton Satria Neo Super 2000 uses the Satria Neo’s chassis and a 2.0 liter engine which is derived from a 1.8 liter Renault engine, similiar to the one you will find in the Waja 1.8X. It produces 278 horsepower at 7,600rpm.

The IRC uses the standard FIA points system: 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1. The best seven scores added together will decide final championship results. There are 7 races remaining this year – Belgium Ypres Rally, Rally Russia, Rali Vingo Madeira, Czech Republic, Spain, Rally Sanremo and finally Scotland. All are Asphalt rallies except Russia and Scotland.

Look after the jump for more pix of the Neo S2000.

Click here to read the rest of Wilks and Pugh to pilot Proton Satria Neo Super 2000 in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge

Apparently Perodua played a teaser video for its upcoming Perodua D46T 7-seater MPV based on the Toyota Passo Sette at the SMIDEC exhibition this month!

Continue reading for the full scoop on the new Perodua MPV!

Click here to read the rest of Perodua MPV D46T unveiled fully undisguised in SMIDEC teaser, launch in November!

The Proton Saga 1.6 liter B-Line with manual transmission is now available for public booking on Proton Edar’s website. The B-Line M/T listed at RM39,000 is the sole 1.6 liter model on sale, and is only available in Chilli Red. That’s about roughly a RM3k premium over the 1.3 liter B-Line M/T.

No specs for the B-Line 1.6L M/T have been made known on the site but based on various ads placed on online classifieds: it has power windows for the front, air conditioning, an alarm system and a CD player so it should satisfy the bare requirements of creature comforts, but with no safety features as there is no airbag.

The car comes with steel wheels so if you want to spend some money you can quickly junk them and put something else on to match the more powerful engine.

Interestingly the cheapest and most affordable N-Line which was priced at RM31.5k seems to be completely gone from Proton Edar’s website now.

It is not unusual for car manufacturers to launch a car model with the very baseline model priced without profit or even at a loss to draw customers to showrooms, and then later get the sales staff to try to sell them the more profitable trim levels. This baseline model will then be phased out later.

Also, is it just me or have the prices changed since launch?

Proton is in the red again for the financial year 2008/2009 after a short stint of profitability for the 2007/2008 financial year. Profit of RM144 million in the previous financial year dropped to a loss of RM338 million for the financial year ended 31st March 2009.

Chairman Dato’ Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh says the results are primarily due to impairment of property, plant and equipment (PPE) and inventory write-down of certain models impacted by volume contraction, and is reflective of the current global economic condition.

He added that the second half of the financial year was dversely affected by the accelerated amortisation of certain dies and jigs as well as the increased costs of components and raw materials arising from higher foreign currency exchange rates, particularly, the Japanese Yen and the US Dollar.

He noted that despite the loss, revenue had actually improved from RM5.62 billion in FY2007/2008 to RM6.49 billion in FY2008/2009, an increase of RM864.98 million. Proton currently has a cash balance of RM899.5 million, down from RM1,173.9 million in FY2007/2008. They also expect to receive a RM81 million R&D grant through the National Automotive Policy for the financial year.

“As a fully fledged automotive company, we spent a substantial amount on the development of new models such as the Proton Exora and Lotus Evora during the year. While this had affected our cash reserves, we will be able to recover when the cars are sold,” said the group’s managing director Dato’ Haji Syed Zainal Abidin.

Dato Haji also adds that Proton intends to double their total sales volume by 2010, with the bulk of improvement coming from improvements in export market sales. The Proton Exora will be launched in Indonesia in July 2009. Proton sold 156,845 cars in FY2008/2009, up from 139,942 in FY2008/2007. Out of that amount, 16,746 or just over 10% were export cars and 2,280 were Lotus cars.

In other Proton related news, the Proton Exora is now eligible for the Proton Xchange programme effective immediately, where customers will be able to trade in their old cars with minimum lifespan of 10 years for a RM5,000 discount.

Look after the jump for the full Q4 results announcement by Proton.

Click here to read the rest of Proton posts RM338 million FY2008/2009 loss!

A Toyota Passo Sette 3-row MPV or rather the upcoming new Perodua MPV was spotted by reader Goniothalamus on his KL-Bentong journey.

The compact people mover had barely any disguise on, with only a few simple black tapes covering key identification marks such as the badges. In fact looking at the position of the badges that are covered up and the typical Japanese rear window black tinting, it could potentially just be an actual Passo Sette from Japan (compare to this photo), which means this car doesn’t necessarily belong to Perodua.

Toyota Passo Sette Interior

Perodua MD Datuk Syed Hafiz has previously indicated that the Perodua MPV (codenamed Perodua D46T for now) will be sold with a price tag of between RM57k to RM66k and a launch date has been set for somewhere in Q3 this year, which would be anywhere between July to September.

It has already been previously spotted in Malaysia from as early as April this year (check out Perodua MPV photo and video spyshot) and Perodua has also exhibited the Perodua MPV’s interior in Johor.

Look after the jump for all the spyshots.

Click here to read the rest of Perodua MPV or Toyota Passo Sette spotted again!

The Proton Saga will be entering the Australian market in early 2010. Proton will sell the Saga with a 1.6 liter Campro engine, an engine size up from the 1.3 liter consumer version we get here.

Proton Cars Australia says the Proton Saga will be Australia’s cheapest sedan, which won’t necessarily mean it will be Australia’s cheapest car as most cheap cars are 5-door hatches, which would not lay claim to the cheapest sedan title.

According to Proton Cars Australia, there are currently 25,000 Protons on the road down under right now and hopefully the new Saga will increase those numbers.

While a 1.6 liter version of the Proton Saga isn’t officially on sale in Malaysia yet, there have been classifieds ads appearing all over (such as this) advertising limited units of a Saga 1.6 for sale. The specs include a 1.6 Campro IAFM engine with a 5-speed manual gearbox. The ads also say it is only available in solid red which leads me to believe these are the taxi cars being sold to consumers who want it.

Prices range from between RM39k to RM43k from what I’ve seen and the equipment is minimal, with steel wheels and no airbags, but there are front power windows.