Malaysia’s 2021 new car sales dragged down by Myvi, sustained by Hilux and Triton

Troubled by sporadic disruptions in businesses due to FMCO as well semiconductor parts supply shortage, total new car sales (total industry volume, TIV) in Malaysia dropped to a new low of 508,911 units, the lowest in 14 years.

New car sales were down 4 percent from year 2020’s TIV of 529,514. The next lowest point in Malaysia’s TIV history was 487,176 units in year 2007.

A bulk of the drop came from passenger car sales, which contracted 5.9 percent. Persistent shortage of semiconductor parts and disruptions to its supply chain due to FMCO greatly affected deliveries of the Perodua Myvi, Malaysia’s No.1 selling car.

With the deliveries of the ‘King’ put on hold for more than 6 months, the impact to Malaysia’s overall TIV, especially for passenger cars segment, which sold 446,431 units last year (down 5.9 percent) was very apparent.

Perodua sold 190,291 cars in 2021, down 13.6 percent from the year before. Sales of the Myvi dropped 28.6 percent to 47,525 units, versus 66,630 units in year 2020.

In the rough and tumble world of commercial vehicles however, the picture is a bit different, because sales of commercial vehicles grew by a very impressive 15.9 percent, to 35,220 units.

Datuk Aishah Ahmad, President of Malaysia Automotive Association said: “The improvement in sales of commercial vehicles was due to increasing demand as companies begun to invest in anticipation of an economic rebound after one year of slowdown.”

“Certain economic sectors such e-commerce, healthcare and logistics which were deemed as essential activities, were not restricted from operating and had enjoyed growth in their businesses in 2021.”

72 percent of commercial vehicles sold come from pick-up trucks and in the pick-up truck world, the Toyota Hilux is King of the Hill. So it’s not a stretch to say that the Toyota Hilux shouldered most of the burden of arresting the decline in Malaysia’s TIV from dropping any further.

UMW Toyota Motor didn’t reveal the total units of Toyota Hilux sold but MAA’s data shows 19,796 pick-up trucks were assembled locally (CKD) last year, and the Toyota Hilux is the only CKD pick-up truck in Malaysia for most of 2021.

The JMC Vigus Pro is also locally-assembled, at Tan Chong’s plant in Segambut but it was only launched in October last year and its volume is too little to matter here, so we will estimate the Hilux’s sales to be at around 19,000 units.

By the same estimate, it also means that sales of the Hilux had grown by around 25 percent when the entire industry contracted by 4 percent!

We also know that the Mitsubishi Triton is the No.2 selling pick-up truck in Malaysia for 2021, with 9,268 units sold, up by an even higher 34 percent from last year.

Grouped together, the Toyota Hilux and Mitsubishi Triton contributed 50 percent of all commercial vehicles sold in Malaysia.

Even the ageing Nissan Navara recorded very positive response, which goes to show that pick-up truck buyers are a practical lot that don't really care about having the latest toy, so long as it looks good and is reasonably priced.

Other pick-up trucks like the Isuzu D-Max and Ford Ranger also recorded strong demand but dealers were hampered by supply issues.

MAA also added that the contraction in TIV would’ve been a lot worse if not for stimulus packages announced by the government.

“MAA would like to express our heartfelt and sincere thanks to the government for extending the sales tax exemption incentive, not only once but three times; the latest extension being until 30 June 2022 as was announced during Budget 2022. We are very grateful for all the support rendered to the industry to ensure the sustainability of the industry”, said Datuk Aishah Ahmad.

Sales of passenger cars is expected to bounce back this year, supported by launch of several high volume, key new models.

Historically, every time an important new model from Perodua, Proton, Toyota, or Honda is launched, there will be a noticeable improvement in TIV.

Also read: All-new 2022 Honda HR-V, Haval H6, new Proton X70, and 8 more 2022 SUVs to launch in Malaysia

2022 will also the first full-year sales of the Toyota Corolla Cross, which is already a winner since the first day it went on sale. Archrival Honda will also be launching the 2022 Honda HR-V.

SUVs now account for 30 percent of new passenger cars sold in Malaysia, and is the fastest growing vehicle body type, with sales growing by 43 percent last year! A lot of this had to do with the Perodua Ativa.

The ageing Proton X70 (it was already on sale in China years before it was introduced in Malaysia) will also be updated with the Proton X50’s 1.5-litre TGDi turbocharged direct injection engine.

Also read: 4 new MPVs/7 seaters launching in Malaysia in 2022, from all new Perodua Alza to Proton X90

Perodua will be replacing the ageing Perodua Alza with an all-new model, which will also form the basis for the Toyota Avanza, which will also be manufactured under contract by Perodua for UMW Toyota Motor, similar to the current arrangement for the Perodua Aruz and Toyota Rush.

Also read: Next-gen Perodua Alza confirmed for launch in 2022, CVT, DNGA & ADAS

Mitsubishi will also be updating its Mitsubishi Xpander with a new, more fuel efficient, CVT-type automatic transmission, replacing the current model’s archaic 4-speed automatic.

As for high volume sedans, expect a new 2022 Proton Saga. It’s not a new generation model but mid-lifecycle update to keep it fresh. There will also be a new 2022 Toyota Camry with Dynamic Force engine, but due to its high price, this model won’t contribute much in terms of sales volume.

Also read: All-new 2022 Honda Civic, Toyota Camry, new Proton Saga, and 2 more 2022 sedans to launch in Malaysia