Naza, GM’s latest Malaysian partner, is aiming to be much more than just an importer and distributor of Chevrolet cars in the country; the company wants to be the ASEAN production hub for GM. This ambition was revealed by Datuk SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin, joint group executive chairman of the Naza Group.
“GM sees Malaysia as a very strategic market,” he said, adding that the US carmaker wants to turn Malaysia “into a regional hub” for export of certain models (could he be talking about the Chevrolet Cruze?). But to make local assembly viable, one needs numbers and Datuk SM Faisal said that Naza hopes to raise local Chevrolet sales to between 35,000 and 40,000 cars by 2015, before establishing an assembly facility in Malaysia.
“We have to set up a facility. We are exploring how we can become an ASEAN hub,” he added. GM’s regional base is currently in Thailand, where its Rayong plant has been standing since 1996.
In any case, the targeted figures are ambitious for the reborn (in Malaysia) marque, and not many are as optimistic.Ahmad Maghfur Usman, an analyst with OSK Research told AFP: “I think the target of 40,000 units is a bit ambitious. Malaysian buyers still prefer Japanese makes due to their fuel efficiency, quality and better resale value.” Do you agree?
On a separate note, Naza Quest (the subsidiary was formerly called Pavilion Crest) has inked a deal with AmBank that will see the lender become the “official finance provider” for Chevrolet dealers. In the first year, RM50 million will be allocated for this program, which will take care of capital expenditure and working capital financing for authorised Chevrolet dealers. Naza Quest COO Datuk Maruan Mohd Said said that Chevrolet brand will have a total of 21 3S centres by the end of 2010, from the present 11.
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Naza should focus on its partnership with Kia, instead of putting all the eggs in one basket. Local Kia sales are still behind its Jap counterparts, when in UK and europe, the marque is beating or at least catching up fast with the japs. Peugeot is also not doing that well.
how do u measure whether the brands you mentioned are doing well or not? just curious how you came up with your conclusion.
in future can get a cheaper cruze or captiva? good!
P1 can tabao la, there goes our RND Money.
P1+P2 lo, easy. = 1rebatcher!!
Naza is very very aggressive, i like it.!!!!
good for malaysian!!! at least there are some potent malaysian.
40,000 cars in a year?? wow….that sounds really ambitious to me, and it’s not like Chevrolet doesn’t have any “history” in Malaysia before. And the fact that Chevrolet has to face stiff competitions from Hyundai and Kia doesn’t help much either.
I am totally agree with Malaysia becoming as regional production hub for a certain car manufacturer, but judging by what Chevrolet has to offer now in Malaysia and also the rest of the world, and the way american car manufacturers do their business, I am really not sure if Naza could have achieved that.
Personally, I would rather prefer them to become a regional production hub for Kia, at least Kia has some really exciting cars to offer to Malaysian market, and it’d be great if those cars could be available at an affordable price, like what Naza is doing with Forte (pricing wise).
The analyst is bit too objective…..quality relating to Japanese, yes, but the recent waves of recalls, including Lexus, City, Accord, Vios, Corrola, had shown the world that they are vulnerable as well.
If they are able to price it about the same as all proton platform, I dont see why Chevrolat cannot sell 40k a year.
FYI, the whole world is having recall, a lot, now. It’s just that all the attention are drawn towards Toyota’s. Hyundai, Kia, even Ferrari had recalls recently.
Japanese cars have long been recognised to have good quality and it’s somwhow true. Despite small and occasional mechanical problems, i can’t really find major problems with Japanese cars. They, especially Toyota are still my better choices when i’m buying a car.
Toyota’s sticky pedal problem, was not a BIG problem?? I wonder how?? Its involve life man!!
There was a Toyota Vios recall??? When?
Sales of 35000 to 40000 for Chevrolet by 2015? Naza really needs to provide a variety of vehicle models and very good after sales service for the resale value. Not just talk and promise to General Motors.
I heard that they will bring in more Chevy cars into the market. For now they’re focusing on improving their 3S capability to ensure Service won’t be a problem. Only then will they start to bring the new stuff. I’ve heard even the Camaro’s coming in.
Even if Cruze is selling at 80K, I would say it might be selling at 10K-15K units per annum max.
Belum pandai berjalan sudah mahu terbang. Improve your after-sale service first.
I second that! Even their KIA after sale service still ‘tonggang langgang’…still want to focus other brand ka? Don’t be greedy man, focus on KIA…that one got potential!!
aku setuju dgn statement ni. mesti improve service, baru org mau yakin
Put in more 3S centers first. And improve your service – top to bottom. Then talk.
Yeah… I can’t agreed more…. Naza after sales services is not what I can say is bad………its TERRIBLE…
No chance…keep dreaming. Thailand will snatch the deals before Naza can do anything about it.
35000 to 40000 !! ?? …..I don’t like to pour cold water over this.
But think again .. till now, which Naza model is selling over 15,000 unit?
I also can talk kok lah!
Please go improve your quality of services on your service center 1st lah!!
I think Naza need to improve their after sales service before thinking of getting more brands into their portfolio.
Look at Peugeot. Their cars are fantastic, and Naza CKD-ed them for a great price. But how many service centers are they in Malaysia?
Esp for Pug 308. A quick look at their website will reveal only limited number of 3S centers are capable or servicing 308. This will definitely turn buyers down, and obviously make their resale value very low.
One reason Toyota/Honda is still the preferred choice is because their ease of servicing. (no intention to be a die hard fan toyata/honda brand). But their after sales service is still the best among cars of their price range. And their spareparts are also easier and cheaper to buy compared to others.
Of course they are many many cars which are better than Toyota/Honda on paper and on road, but after sales service is just as important an aspect as the car performance itself. Wont wannt fork out a huge amount of money and end up with much trouble of servicing it eh?
To achieve that volume is possible, just price their cars at P1 or P2 price range and at the same time offer more accessories and safety devices. Chevy Cruze at new Waja’s price? Aveo at Myvi’s price? I wonder if Naza is willing (or brave enough) to tackle the 2 giants?
I think GM just gave Naza a carrot if Naza wants to locally assemble their car, just that Naza got to fulfill the sales numbers 1st.
To me Naza is better at getting Bumblebee into Malaysia rather than normal cars.
To be regional hub for an American car brand might not be the wise choice for now. BUT I believe that in long run when alternative fuels are taking over, this might prove to be a good investment. After all no one can tell what’ s going to happen in 5-10 years down the road just by judging what’s going on right now.
camaro come in??
Naza seems to concentrate more on Chevy and Peugeot nowdays…
Wat happen to KIA? As if they are not concentrating on them anymore…….
If this continues, Naza Kia will be history…….
too many brands under naza,dificult to operate efficiently,too optimistic on sales figures
i think they should have one focus in mind, just be Peugeots main manufacturing and assembling partner. I prefer european cars anyday.
Peugeots are also selling better in malaysia, why bother to take chevy in the first place. its a loosing brand, with not much future.
Why not tie up with Kia instead, they have a much better product range with much more money to blow than chevy, rememer they are the 4th richest car company in the world
You should check the total sales of chevy worldwide before making this statement.
Do u want me to include figures for the american market??? In that case Proton and Perodua is one of the best selling cars because they sell like hot cakes in Malaysia. think before talk, Kia is still much bigger and has a larger potential than Chevy.
gm unlikely to move from thailand to malaysia – great social, economical and political implications.
dream on.
when you get a pretty girlfriend ( a model ) you will start to think nonsense and destroy the company in future although its a family business
That probably refer to his younger brother. SM Faisal is married.Wrong guy, bro.
get the regional hub come to Malaysia, Naza…at least there are people who try.
ambitious!! but Naza need to see, what happens to the brand Kia under their wings? even though the latest models are better than older Kias (with timing chain, CVVT etc) and attractively priced, people are in fear of buying them.
I agree somewhat to a few of the comments above, in the sense that the after sales service from the NAZA group is still not quite there yet. Make no mistake, they do a decent job, but selective parts’ availability and speed is what they need to look at.
You can see that Honda and Toyota aren’t perfect either, but it’s quite visible, the effort that’s being put in to improve on a regular basis. They can’t make ALL their customers happy but from my observation, the percentage is higher than in NAZA centres.
As for the product, Chevy does seem to have a huge range of product that can be offered to the Asian mkt, while Kia and Hyundai’s synergy seemed to have taken the world by storm. Personally, i’d prefer Hyundai or Kia over the GM’s offerings. The Cruze probably has less Daewoo DNA than other models.
However, I’d still go for a Jap. Sorry.
Yes instead of blindly targetting numbers Naza should improve their after sales service first. They should station some of their key managers in Toyota service centres for a few months and learn the true meaning of after sales service. If they can improve their service to be on par with the Japs im sure they can hit their sale targets easier.
Chevrolet have some good model in World wide and US. But the reputation in Malaysia seem not very popular campare japs maker. Naza ambition will be a risk in reality.
Kia Motors boss resigns over mass recall
7 September 2010
SEOUL (AFP) – The head of South Korea’s second-largest automaker Kia Motors has resigned to take responsibility for mass vehicle recalls caused by defective electrical wiring, the company said Tuesday.Chung Sung-Eun stepped down after Kia had to issue a global recall of 85,900 vehicles, spokesman Michael Choo told AFP.
The four models involved are the Soul, Sorento and Borrego sport utility vehicles, and the Cadenza sedan. In China a Kia Motors joint venture, Dongfeng Yueda Kia Motor Co, on Monday separately recalled 18,147 Sorento, Borrego and Soul models.
Sometimes I wonder if NAZA takes on more than they can chew. Looking at their sales for every brand they carries, the results aren’t all that great. Just a little bit of everything. Anyway, wish them success!
sigh…another good car brand that goes down the drain
Chevy is more popular than other brand that NAZA sell… I believe they will give more focus on chevy… I also believe NAZA can do their job… Come on…. this is the time to flood the road with chevy….