Perodua developing Daihatsu models in Japan, independent model development aimed

Perodua is now entering the third phase of its transformation plan aimed at raising the company’s competitiveness beyond Malaysia as well as aiming for a sustainable future, one that is integrated into Daihatsu’s global supply chain.

Yesterday, Perodua President and Chief Executive Officer Dato’ Zainal Abidin said that Perodua is also working with all its partners to see where existing expertise can be utilised beyond Malaysia.

He gave the example of how Perodua staff are now working to design Daihatsu models in Japan as part of Perodua’s effort to export local expertise abroad.   

He said this at yesterday’s announcement of the company’s first sustainable blueprint – the Perodua Smart Build – that includes nearly the entire Malaysian automotive supplier and dealer ecosystem.

For obvious reasons, Dato’ Zainal didn’t specify the exact model that Perodua’s team in Japan is currently working on, but WapCar.my understands among the models under development by Perodua is the D92A – a sub-compact sedan for South East Asia. 

All signs point to this being the next generation Toyota Vios but as explained above, don't assume that Perodua will be selling this model, just as Perodua won't sell some of the Daihatsu models that it is developing in Japan.

Late last year, Perodua revealed that its Rawang headquarters will become Daihatsu’s regional R&D hub.

Separately, we also know for a fact that Toyota and Daihatsu has since 2016, formed a new internal company called Emerging-market Compact Car Company (EMCC), which is tasked to develop compact cars for the South East Asian region. Hence the D92A project.

Perodua Smart Build is part of Perodua’s ‘Transformation 3.0,’ itself a follow up to Transformation 2.0, which focused on customer satisfaction, organisational development and the fostering of unity within the entire Perodua Group of Companies.

Transformation 1.0 began in 2011, mostly to support the Perodua Axia and construction of Perodua’s new Perodua Global Manufacturing Sdn. Bhd. (PGMSB) plant, also located in Rawang, next to the company’s original plant.

Transformation 1.0 was about building Energy-Efficient Vehicle ecosystem, stop defect outflow, setup the PGMSB plant, and change Perodua’s mindset to be quality conscious. The culmination of this was the Perodua Axia and Perodua Bezza.

“Perodua Smart Build will be accomplished with the help of our shareholder, technology and technical partner Daihatsu Motor Company of Japan; and the Malaysian government who had the foresight to create this ecosystem for the benefit of the country,” he said.

Chief among the components of Perodua Smart Build are full product development by Perodua and its suppliers, the establishment of a first-class working culture and first-class thinking that will be able to contribute to the nation.

The keyword here is ‘full product development’ meaning that Perodua will soon undertake development work Daihatsu/Perodua models, some which will also be sold as Toyota, with minimal assistance from Japan.

But as usual, Perodua wants to keep its head low.

“Perodua Smart Build’s launch does not mean that we have reached the full potential of these components; rather, it marks the start of Perodua and its partners’ journey towards a higher level of competitiveness.

“We are grateful to Daihatsu for this opportunity and for their continuous support of Perodua since the very beginning. It is now time for us to fully extend this cooperation to our Malaysian business partners,” Dato’ Zainal said.

“We are also focusing more on developing our dealers, including strengthening their operations and guiding them towards the adoption of global best practices to further improve customer satisfaction,” he further added.

As usual, Perodua is a tight-lipped organization and it doesn’t like to talk too much about its future product plans.

However, Dato’ Zainal said, “Where products are concerned, our future offerings will better reflect contemporary trends without compromising our fundamentals – space, practicality, quality, dependability, fuel efficiency and unparalleled value.”

The attributes listed are the core appeals of Perodua products and whatever models they have planned for the future, you can be assured that it won’t deviate away from these attributes.

The ‘contemporary trends’ referred to by Dato’ Zainal will most likely refer to advance driving assistance systems (ADAS), engine downsizing (D55L will use 1.0-litre turbocharged, 3-cylinder engine) and digitization – infotainment and mobile apps support for example.

All these features are expected to be available in the upcoming Perodua D55L, which is rumoured to feature ASA 3.0, now with adaptive cruise control.