How long did we wait for our Perodua Ativa? And how much did we pay for it?
Arif · Mar 25, 2021 08:30 AM
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If you’ve been following our website or YouTube channel, you would know that we have just bought a Perodua Ativa. We’re not the first customer to receive the car but we’ve got it early enough to still be able to turn heads at the traffic light.
The head-turning effect will wear out eventually, so we’re enjoying its as much as we can for the time being.
In our earlier post and YouTube video, there’s one thing we forgot to mention as pointed out by one of our readers – the chronology of booking, paying, and receiving the Ativa.
Hence, here’s a recap of the events that took place.
December 2020 – Learning about the project
We already knew Perodua was going to have an SUV based on the Toyota Raize/Daihatsu Rocky
We had been anticipating the Ativa for a long time – way back when it was only known as the Perodua D55L. The Ativa was supposed to launch last year, but the uncertainty of the pandemic pushed the launch date to March 2021.
By December 2020, this was the only sighting of Perodua's new SUV in Malaysia.
Personally, I only came to know of our decision to purchase it in December 2020. The team was informed on the plan for the long-term review not long after that and we were really excited about it.
We’re used to having press cars for reviews, but a buying a car for a long-term review (and tearing it down) was new to everybody in the team.
19 February – Booking the car
Up to the day the Ativa (still known as the D55L) was open for booking, we had been flooding our website with Perodua D55L content. We didn’t stop looking for new information on the car too.
Theophilus had made a render of the D55l (named the “Kembara”), and it has been pretty much used in just every automotive media outlet out there.
Theo's early render of the D55L, named the Kembara.
So, the day finally came and we immediately made our booking with a fee of RM300 through the Perodua Taman Maluri Dealership (Suasa Suria). That was it, were in line for Perodua’s first turbocharged car.
24 February – A first glimpse of the Ativa
Not ours, but it's the same colour with the two-tone paint job.
Prior to the virtual launch of the Ativa, Perodua had invited one of us for a preview of the Ativa at the Rawang HQ. We sent Eric and his blue Swift to have a look. His feedback? The best Perodua ever made.
At this point, we already knew what the colours looked like. The Pearl Delima Red looked darker in the brochure, and the Cobalt Blue was reminiscent of the Toyota RAV4 we had tried earlier. And Theo’s render was really accurate, stretching the front grille to the headlights, giving the Ativa a distinctive look from the Raize and Rocky.
Cobalt Blue (Photo taken at a much later date)
3 March – Launch of the Ativa
As per most post-COVID-19 car launches, the launch of the Perodua Ativa was virtual and brief, hosted by Sean Lee. With the car launched, we were really hopeful of getting the car very, very soon.
The thing we miss the most about physical launch events is the food.
11 March – Making Payment
About a week after the launch, we were informed by Perodua Taman Maluri (Suasa Suria) that our car was ready and payment had to be made. We paid cash for the car so there’s no detail on a loan application that we could share.
Since we opted for the AV variant with the two-tone paint job, the Ativa costs us more than RM70k.
Details on our purchase?
Here:
Perodua Ativa AV payment details (RM)
Govt. approved net selling price
70,025
Number plates
40
Standard Accessories Package
1,875
Road tax
20
Registration Fee
500
Insurance Premium
2,536.85
Total Sales
74,996.85
By the next day (12 March), our car was already registered with JPJ, and all that was left to do was to collect the car.
We'd like to imagine our own Ativa was covered in sheets too during delivery. Photo: Perodua Ativa Community Club
If you’re wondering about our insurance, the type of vehicle is registered as a “private car for business use” and insurance is provided for all drivers with special perils and windscreen insurance included.
17 March - Car is ready for collection
On 17 March, we were told that our Ativa was ready for collection. Having booked the for a month, and having anticipated this moment since 2020, we were excited to finally drive our own car off the showroom floor the very next day.
We’ve named it “Cik Tiva”, and so far, every member of the team is impressed by this tiny SUV. Cik Tiva also has a tiktok account that you can follow.
Cik Tiva is reaching 1000 km on the odometer soon and we’ve already booked an appointment for the “1,000 km inspection” for this Friday.
Our Perodua Ativa is the focus of our “long-term” review for this year. At the end of the review is a tear down session where we will take the car apart (as much as we can) and share with you the ins and outs of the Perodua Ativa.
We will be constantly sharing our ownership experience with you, and if you have any questions to ask, just shoot them in the comments.
Previously an engineer in an automotive manufacturing company and a highway concessionaire. A part-time research student on biofuels and diesel engines. Obsessed with vehicle electrification and the future of transportation.
