Audi has always been at the fringes of the Malaysian market, traditionally lacking the pricing advantage of the locally-assembled BMW and Mercedes-Benz models. That’s all set to change, however, as Ingolstadt is planning to kick off its CKD operations within the next two years.
Speaking to paultan.org at the launch of the new Audi A4 today, Audi Malaysia marketing director Rudi Venter said, “You can imagine that it is a big discussion to have because it requires investment. So the timeline is obviously not defined, but certainly within the next two years or so we have to have a local operation.”
While dodging the question of whether the A4 would be locally assembled, Venter added, “We’re currently looking at four different cars to be produced locally, and if it makes sense given the volume, then the A4 is a must have pretty much in terms of CKD.”
Seeing as Volkswagen Group Malaysia (VGM) currently oversees Audi’s operations in Malaysia, local assembly will likely take place at DRB-Hicom’s plant in Pekan, Pahang, where Volkswagens are also being assembled. So, what do you think – could locally-assembled Audis really break the hegemony of BMW and Mercedes-Benz here?
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
The ONLY reason why people buy Audi in Malaysia as opposed to Mercedes or BMW is because it is CBU.
Once you take the CBU away, who on earth will buy this VW in disguise? The fact that VW oversees Audi operations in Malaysia itself will tell you, Audis are actually VW’s in disguise.
Betul tu Kunta ! Buyers pls beware !
U never know when Audi will dump price.
Macam VW Polo drop 13K!
VW Jetta drop 11K!
VGM regret assembling VW here. Mass production tapi ‘tak laku’. Warehouse clearance still people hesitating
Still as boring as before. All fake story
Isn’t that a good thing? Nobody want overprice car..
Whaaat? All this while I thought Audi is Bugatti in disguise. I’ve been punk’d. I will jump off cliff now…
Mighty VW= Audi+porsche+bugatti+lamborghini+ducati+bentley put together.
Audi shares chassis and engine with VW, so it is actually VW in disguise.
Audi never shares chassis and engine with Bugatti, so they are different.
So you are right, you should jump off cliff now…
Seriously Kunta, U should read what VW as a Group is about. VW Group sells/owns passenger cars under the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lambo, Porsche, SEAT, Škoda and VW marques. VW also sell/own motorcycles under the Ducati brand; and commercial vehicles under the marques MAN, Scania, Neoplan and VW Commercial Vehicles. Enuff said.
Since when was it a prerogative for bashers to read?
John, since U ask, there is no harm reading it up. It’s good for U Too.
I onli read basher comments for the lulz
bro, save your breath. you’d better off talking to your dog than a body with no brain
Why do pipu booing n bash Bolehland auto industry when car company not open factory in Bolehland but open in Thai? Does not make sense..
whats wrong with local assembly? toyota cars are built in thailand, and imported to malaysia. i dun see anything better than local-assembly honda though..
would love to see CKD A3, Q2, Q3, Q5, A4 assembled here in the future
“You can imagine that it is a big discussion to have because it requires investment. So the timeline is obviously not defined, but certainly within the next two years or so we have to have a local operation.”
as good as making empty promises! Audi doesn’t have a concrete plan for Malaysia!
can utilise excess capacity at Proton Tanjung Malim plant.
Good idea Wi. The question is is Proton TM plant equipped with the latest equipment/skill/know-how to cope with the stringent requirement !?
habis…. when vgm oversees audi operation, u will experience paying a hefty sum for monkey after sales service.
Volkswagen group Malaysia gave up with VW brand and now they want to jahanamkan the Audi brand. Good luck
330e Better
Their A3 and A4 prices are actually very competitive considering it’s a CBU model. Imagine CKD with EEV on the new A4 2.0 TFSI for 220k or lesser from the original price of 249k. It will undercut both the 320i and C200…provided Audi isn’t greedy.
LOL. CKD A4 with EEV!?? Matt Damon come home from Mars.
Many had regretted getting BMW 316 @ RM210K.
So called entry level premium ride + #NOreversecamera
Good point. Look at Lexus Malaysia pricing. Lexus cars are also fully imported. The Base IS200t is priced way higher than even the mid spec A4 here.
CBU Infiniti 2.0T RWD @ RM235K^^
Lexus priced their cars out of range thus their market penetration is smaller than the Merc and BMW.
Only now you see big greed?
You meant all this while you have been sleeping?
Competitive when you take out so many features and put it as option?
I don’t need a 200K+ cars without reverse camera.
It all depends on pricing and after sales service.
If Audi can get both of this right, there should be a market for it in Malaysia.
r u malaysian?
here ppl care about reliability and resale value, u definitely need to be showed with the Hilux.
hi jonathan, the blue paint shown on your pics, is that scuba blue? Cos it looks really nice.
imported already so unreliable….if ckd lagi worse
As if you know
Car price may reduce significantly but not the spare parts I guess. :(
great. must get ready to prepare my workshop with the tools.
Yes, we did it guys ! We’ve been asking Audi to CKD their cars for years and years but they never did, and look where they are now. They’re missing out big time in Malaysia, we are the largest luxury car market in ASEAN and MBM proves that our market still has room to grow.
The problem for Audi, I’m guessing, is that they don’t want to have two or three ASEAN production sites at once, and likely, they would prefer a single plant to serve (export) to all the big ASEAN markets. Audi already has a plant in Indonesia, and this plant goes back many decades. But sales are slow there and local content is too low, so they cannot export the Indonesian-assembled Audis to Malaysia and Thailand tax-free.
Audi has three options; continue to invest in their Indonesian plant and raise local content… which will be challenging, as in general, it’s harder to raise local content in luxury cars compared to pedestrian models.
The other option would be that they assemble select models under contract at HAMM Pekan… but that would mean sharing resources with arch nemesis Mercedes-Benz ! All our current CKD Benzes are assembled at DRB-HICOM’s Pekan establishment. Somehow, I don’t see this happening.
The third option is that they just build a bespoke plant in Kedah or Negeri Sembilan exclusively for Audi assembly. However, the costs would be insane and it might take decades for Audi to make back their losses/ ROI.
Whatever it is, time is running out and Audi needs to do something soon if they want to be relevant in ASEAN in the coming decades.
VW Group shud just buyout their portion of Hicom Assembly, like what Mazda did with Inokom. Then they can assemble more variants/brand. If they CKD it in and price it right, Skoda/SEAT (as cheaper alternative to VW) can conquer ASEAN market.
To me, any Merc/BMW/Audi is of the same standard. M’sian are quit savvy & demanding when it comes to premium brands bcos we pay a heavy tax for the car.
That is why service center, after sales & spare parts(3S) are important. Being a late comer, Audi will have to work harder than the establishment(BMW/Merc). All the best to U.
gorgeous car and the repair bill.
Malaysia hot weather
speaking from experience or just hearsay from yesteryear stories?