Porsche to set up CKD operations in Malaysia – report

Porsche to set up CKD operations in Malaysia – report

This one no one saw coming. Porsche is said to be setting up assembly operations in Malaysia, the first outside of Germany. According to The Edge, the facility would be in Kulim, Kedah, and the local partner is Inokom, a subsidiary of Sime Darby. Sime Darby has been Porsche’s local distributor since 2010.

“There have been quite a number of big investments coming into Malaysia in the automotive sector, but the government has yet to declare them. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the movement control order (MCO), many of the principals could not come to Malaysia,” a source told the business publication.

“The announcement has to be made jointly. They are big names; the government cannot just hold a press conference and announce the investments,” the source added.

Another source says that incentives for the investment has been approved by the finance ministry, and Inokom will build a new factory specifically for Porsche at Kulim. Inokom’s Kulim facility rolls out CKD products from BMW and Hyundai, among other marques.

When pressed for a comment by The Edge, Porsche’s deputy director of corporate communications and spokesperson for production and logistics, Christian Weiss said that “ASEAN is a promising region with great potential, and we continuously examine options for further growth in this market”.

Sime Darby Motors says that it welcomes any partnership that will add value to its strategic business plans and as such, regularly engages existing and potential partners to explore opportunities to expand their business.

The comments from Sime Darby and Porsche are not confirmations, but aren’t denials either – typical business PR answers. Guess we’ll have to wait and see. Now everyone can Porsche? It won’t be so, but dreams are free!

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Danny Tan

Danny Tan loves driving as much as he loves a certain herbal meat soup, and sweet engine music as much as drum beats. He has been in the auto industry since 2006, previously filling the pages of two motoring magazines before joining this website. Enjoys detailing the experience more than the technical details.

 

Comments

  • Vader on Feb 06, 2021 at 1:16 pm

    incoming Porsche Panamera CKD priced 200k,

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 29 Thumb down 9
    • Avenger on Feb 06, 2021 at 4:03 pm

      Congrats! Tun now can get new Cayenne at cheaper prices.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 1
      • Mario on Feb 06, 2021 at 6:19 pm

        Tun preferred his more superior Proton X70 Premium.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 5
        • Civic Turbo 2018 on Feb 07, 2021 at 11:47 am

          Malaysia to export Porsche for ASEAN?

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 2
        • Vader on Feb 07, 2021 at 2:25 pm

          Porsche will be the next national car, too bad one that you cannot afford just like Vinfast. Orz

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 3
          • kassim chan on Feb 07, 2021 at 10:42 pm

            Polis abang see Porsche merz bmw madza 5, crv ask to jalan. See my x70 ask a lot of questions. Class tak sama

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
        • mahakutty on Feb 08, 2021 at 1:05 pm

          nah, that’s for wayang only so that gullible rakyat will say wahhh, so humble la tunn. or is it nowadays they hate him already? lolz

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
    • Goldilocks on Jun 07, 2021 at 11:54 pm

      Haha… be realistic. If you cannot afford the options, you can’t afford a Porsche.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Suren on Feb 06, 2021 at 1:39 pm

    Now, everyone can drive a Porsche!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 31 Thumb down 0
    • Suresh on Feb 06, 2021 at 3:33 pm

      Since they are under VW Group, better to assemble Porsche in Pekan DRB plant making VW cars … sharing common parts and components.. Audi and Skoda will be next,

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 22 Thumb down 5
      • Quite different actually. Even in China, Porsche & VW doesn’t share any production facilities. So having separate CKD production arrangements in the same country isn’t so uncommon.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 0
        • China on Feb 06, 2021 at 9:44 pm

          Dude Porsche doesn’t produce anything outside of Germany, so they don’t share anything with vw in China

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 2
          • JOACHIM on Feb 07, 2021 at 2:30 pm

            Ehemm, you were saying?
            paultan.org/2020/04/30/porsche-restarts-production-in-zuffenhausen-leipzig/

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 3
  • azrai on Feb 06, 2021 at 1:55 pm

    Leaving Hyundai to neighbour, and bring in Porsche?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 22 Thumb down 1
    • azrai on Feb 07, 2021 at 7:10 am

      The said model will be SKDed and it is Cayenne. Remember the SUV craze.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • seancorr (Member) on Feb 06, 2021 at 2:03 pm

    Haha dreams are free indeed. They will need to have a parts warehouse assembly in order to qualify for cheaper parts in SEA too

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 1
  • Not Mechanically Inclined on Feb 06, 2021 at 2:29 pm

    A ckd tax free taycan? Hmm, one can dream.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 18 Thumb down 0
    • Hellhole on Feb 06, 2021 at 8:28 pm

      Haha dream on. Right now Taycans are taxed at 10 percent which is lower than the ckd tax. The base Taycan is already 585k with options maybe 650k. Why dont you place an order

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
      • Porsche on Feb 06, 2021 at 9:37 pm

        Ckd taycan will prolly be about 400 k. Quite good price. Macans will start at 250k-300k. For sure gonna see a lot of sexy curvaceous Porsches on the road instead of the usual mehhh BMW and Mercedes.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 0
        • Hello on Feb 08, 2021 at 10:51 am

          Agreed, also Porsche’s are quite reliable so even if you want to buy a used one down the line it won’t completely break the bank.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
        • Goldilocks on Jun 07, 2021 at 11:56 pm

          400K dream on. Even in the UK it is 450K without options. Porsche dont sell cars to you without options

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Nobody on Feb 06, 2021 at 4:01 pm

    My uncle work in sime darby auto n confirm they set up the factory here. Now they on setup the line for Porsche

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 22 Thumb down 2
    • Bodo tak baca on Feb 07, 2021 at 10:34 pm

      Do you read? They will utilize Inokom Sime Darby assembly plant in Kulim which also assembly BMW, Mazda and Hyundai.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 3
      • Bodo tk faham statement on Feb 08, 2021 at 12:16 pm

        Bodo tak baca. He didnt mention factory what so ever. He said the line for assembly has start. Bodo tk baca the statement

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
  • casual rider on Feb 06, 2021 at 4:03 pm

    i always believe in automotive industries. the other one is IT. both are capable of offering jobs and businesses. that is what our ex -PM tried to tell us last time though i don’t really agree with everything he said. anyways please make it happen Sime Darby!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 0
  • peminat neelofa on Feb 06, 2021 at 4:27 pm

    everyone’s hoping for cheaper ckd porsches should realise that porsche is not investing here to cater for our market alone, if at all. they’re doing it for the whole region SEA market. hence making malaysia as a regional hub. which is a very good news nonetheless, since there’s still abundance of economic benefits to reap from it.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 19 Thumb down 0
    • Setup plant fast fast today so by end of the month we can get CKD Porsches at 100% SST free during tax free period. Thank you so much!

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 0
    • koboi on Feb 06, 2021 at 9:42 pm

      Agreed. A Porsche will still have a Porsche price.. Unreachable for the average Joe… The average Joe should look at working with Porsche rather than buying one..

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 2
      • Next time call Grab, Porsche will come :)

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
      • Afeeq on Feb 08, 2021 at 10:55 am

        Nevertheless it will still be more attainable. Whether you looking to go up the corporate ladder or just waiting to buy one used in a few years – it still benefits the average Joe.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
      • suomynona on Feb 08, 2021 at 11:19 am

        Well for the average Joe who would be more successful in the future, seems like a great upgrade from maybe a Mazda?

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Bangun on Feb 06, 2021 at 4:29 pm

    Hope that gov really takes initiative to make our country competitive and look at long term

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 15 Thumb down 0
  • Macan and taycan cod for the win

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Tan sri banana on Feb 06, 2021 at 6:24 pm

    I feel like at MOST we will see a 100k? difference in prices rn

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Bieight on Feb 06, 2021 at 6:43 pm

    Too early for April fools joke… Lol

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 2
  • Aero (Member) on Feb 06, 2021 at 6:44 pm

    If Porsche is going to locally assemble any model, it’s probably going to be one of their SUVs (Macan or Cayenne)… But if they’re planning for CKD sports cars, this would be huge news no doubt !

    However, having said that, this wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen CKD Euro sports cars here. Because as far back as the late 90s, Proton had assembled a small batch of Lotus Elise models in their Shah Alam plant. This was around the time Proton bought Lotus. Some of the CKD Elise were exported to regional markets too. I’m guessing a few CKD Elise are still around today… Lotus cars tend to hold their value very well, unlike most sports cars. Maybe cause they have Toyota engines ? haha

    Around the same time, TVR also assembled the Chimaera at a small warehouse in Klang. I believe there is a photo of Tun M driving one of these CKD TVR somewhere on the internet. Supposedly, the Malaysian models were also more reliable than the original UK ones, and many were also exported.

    Unfortunately, the 1998 financial crisis put an early end to both Lotus and TVR CKD ops here. Still, Proton did learn a ton from Lotus, and R3 was established shortly after and are still around today.

    Anyways, let’s see which Porsche model (if any) will be assembled here. In any case, it’s welcome news for our local auto industry.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 1
    • Voluptuous monster on Feb 06, 2021 at 9:41 pm

      The thing is… this is VERY big news in that Porsche is a very methodical brand and they don’t do thing on a whim. This will be Porsche’s first plant outside of Germany which is quite a big deal to get the honor off. It’s not a brand like lotus where it’s all very meh meh

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
    • karam singh on Feb 06, 2021 at 11:24 pm

      And luxury carmaker Bufori, the small-volume luxury car maker with its operations and factory based in Kepong, Kuala Lumpur. That Bufori Geneva, using the 6.1-litre version of the Hemi V8 reserved for Chrysler Group’s top end SRT-8 cars. Proud state of the art carmaking nation we had. Before the ominous downhill slide of our country from 2009 onwards..

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 2
      • the driver on Feb 07, 2021 at 2:43 pm

        Bufori, a car nobody wanted, too ugly. Wrong car for the wrong time. Like the TVR, end stage terminal

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • now more people can consider buying a porsche rather then buying a bmw merc or audi

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 1
  • John Doe on Feb 06, 2021 at 9:16 pm

    This is buttery beautiful news. Imagine the days where we have ckd porsches. Albeit the factory might supply for the Southeast Asian market and more, the fact that it’s in Malaysia makes us people have cheaper porsches running around. And Porsche is one of the most reliable brands among the other German Marques. Impeccable engineering.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 1
  • Porsche realized that soon all cars will go electric and have the same power and torque of a sports car. So Porsche needs cars that will go into the mass market as well and compete on a level playing field. Power and torque is no longer a defining factor.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • newme on Feb 07, 2021 at 10:38 am

    Sime Darby approach Porsche only. Wait until Porsche study the feasibility first, then they will dig all the worms from the ground.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 3
  • Honey bee on Feb 07, 2021 at 1:25 pm

    This also means that there will be more kosong spec porsches driving around instead of pre-specced cars by sime darby which were imported from germany

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • fadhli on Feb 07, 2021 at 7:39 pm

    i just wanted to point out that the writer’s has a good style of writing and i love it. good job bro

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
  • C.P. MOHAN on Feb 07, 2021 at 8:38 pm

    Europe and countries in Asia are going EV big-time so do not be overexerted.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • hazri on Feb 08, 2021 at 7:50 pm

    macan 400k above. cayenne 500k above. ingat lepas ckd harga jadi macam x70 ke..haha mimpila weh. paling jauh pun murah 100k je.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • wow…porsche with inokom badge…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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