Toyota will make its Total Human Model for Safety (THUMS) software freely available from January 2021 as part of its efforts toward a safe mobility society. It is a virtual human body model software program for computer analysis of human body injuries caused in vehicle collisions. THUMS was the world's first virtual human body model software when it launched in 2000. It enabled simulation and analysis of injuries caused in vehicle collisions. Since then, it has continually evolved to add a range
Jun 16, 2020
During Perodua’s annual business review, Perodua President & CEO, Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad hinted that they will be launching a brand-new Perodua SUV in 2020. Although the company did not confirm (nor deny) the exact model, all signs point towards the Perodua D55L SUV. Perodua anticipates that SUV market share will continue to grow from the current estimation 20% of TIV (total industry volume) to 26% by 2025 and the second national carmaker is placing great importance on SUV models. Currently,
Jan 21, 2020
Market research agency J.D. Power will be shutting down three of its international offices – Singapore, Bangkok and Sydney – as part of its reorganization under its new owner Thoma Bravo LLC, a US-based investment company. Operations in these three offices will be wound down in stages and by the middle of 2020, J.D. Power will only maintain three offices for the Asian region – Beijing, Shanghai and Tokyo. As J.D. Power’s businesses in Malaysia are managed out of its Singapore office, the reorgan
Nov 19, 2019
Proton has announced that its sales continued its positive growth for the fifth month in a row with 11,392 units sold for the month of October. The number comprises of both domestic and export sales. The highly anticipated Proton X50 itself shows no sign of slowing down with 27,400 bookings made and 447 units delivered as of the end of October. Talk about hotcakes. Total sales for 2020 so far now stand at 84,999 units which gives Proton an estimated 21.3% market share. However, not all is great
Nov 2, 2020
We recently established a Malaysia Car Fans (WapCar) Facebook group where members can discuss, share and help one another on all things automotive. One particular poll by Facebook user Envy Issak who sought opinion on D-segment sedans caught our attention. Issak listed the Toyota Camry 2.5V, Honda Accord 1.5 TC-P while other group members added Volkswagen Passat Elegance, reconditioned Mercedes-Benz E-Class and a Mazda 6 wagon. To our surprise, the majority of the respondents picked the Camry 2.
Apr 3, 2020
Proton is an abbreviation or Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional. It’s a national car. That was the intention and it is something we should be proud of. Germany has Volkswagen, Japan has Toyota, and Korea has Hyundai. Other famous brands have been left out in favour of those that cater to the masses with “people’s cars”. Proton is 35 years old (We’ll take the Saga launch as its birthday). Toyota and Volkswagen are 83 years old while Hyundai is 53 years old. Proton is young in comparison to these compan
Aug 2, 2020
Proton was one of the few carmakers to emerge from the 80s (coincidentally, Geely was also part of that small batch). The first car to bear the Proton name was the Proton Saga. Based on the Mitsubishi Lancer Fiore, the Saga was a big deal for Malaysia when it first came to fruition in 1985. Thirty five years later, the Saga remains highly relevant. The compact saloon is affordable and perfect for young families. It is a worthy successor to the “Saga” name. Having evolved over 35 years, the Saga
Oct 26, 2020
Waiting for the announcement of the new National Automotive Policy (NAP) is a bit like waiting for the next installment of the Fast and Furious. You know it’s going to be bad but you still want to watch it. Although the automotive industry already knows what to expect – more of the same old, a lot of lofty goals but lacking in details. However professional managers are obligated to make decisions based on data and official sources of information, so car companies will still need to wait for an o
Feb 21, 2020
Four months after the first batch of completely knocked down (CKD) kits for 30 units of Proton Saga cars were shipped to Kenya, the country’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has officiated production of the Proton Saga at the Associated Vehicle Assemblers (AVA) plant in Miritini, Mombasa. Also present at the ceremony was Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho. The finished cars will be distributed and sold by Simba Corporation. Kenya has a population of 51 million and Proton sees Kenya as gateway to 1.3 bill
Dec 11, 2020
Proton Cars have just delivered 50 units of the Proton X70 CBU to the Ministry of Health (MOH) for the fight against Covid-19. The fleet of X70s will be used by MOH primarily to transport our medical heroes during this Covid-19 pandemic. These X70s are the older fully imported (CBU) units, not the newly launched locally-assembled (CKD) versions. This is because new vehicle registrations have come to a halt since the Movement Control Order (MCO) was enforced on 18 March 2020. With MCO effect Prot
Mar 28, 2020
Market intelligence forms the basis of any company’s ability to make reliable forecasts and volume planning. Without it, the company is merely shooting in the dark. What is the projected sales mix between the S, E, and V variants of the Honda City? What’s the monthly sales volume? What’s the colour demand trend? All these questions need to be answered at least 6 months in advance because that’s how the manufacturing industry works. Most of the world’s manufacturing plants operate using the so-ca
Feb 16, 2021
The 7-seater C-segment Geely Jiaji is billed as a more upscale model to replace the ageing Proton Exora (on the market since 2009). Our recent posts on the yet to be confirmed Proton V70 (Geely Jiaji) have spurred a lot of conversations. In fact, interest in the Geely Jiaji have taken a life of its own, as netizens have took it upon themselves to unofficially name the car on behalf of Proton, making ‘Proton V70’ a trending keyword on Google searches. While Proton have trademarked the V70 name, t
Dec 15, 2020
Proton is aiming to sell 4,000 units of its B-segment Proton X50 for 2020. The vehicle is yet to be launched and but bookings are now opened. The target set is rather conservative. Assuming that the model is launched in October, that gives Proton about 3 months to meet its 4,000 units target, which translates into an average monthly sales of around 1,330 units. For comparison, sales of the Proton X70 (locally-assembled CKD model) averaged around 1,800 units/month, with 12,732 units delivered as
Sep 16, 2020
Before you cry out to Proton for yet another sad state of historic concepts and rally legends, let me just say that the Proton Putra WRC is under capable hands. So, please put down your keyboard gently and stop preparing a rant to Geely in the comments section. Let me tell you a tale of the wild Malaysian rally car that could’ve fought with the likes of Colin McRae and Tommi Makinen in their Imprezas and Lancer Evos. We’ve written an article featuring Proton’s PERT cars a while back and just to
Aug 8, 2020
Back in 2015, Proton showcased an all-electric car – the Proton Iriz EV. Today, we were lucky enough to get a glimpse of some rather bizarre Proton cars being auctioned away. There were more than 10 Proton electric vehicles at the lot, but the best condition electric car would be the Proton Iriz EV. Five years ago, the Proton Preve and Proton Suprima were still in production, the Proton Persona was still based on the Gen2, Proton was 30 years old, and the thought of Proton making an SUV was absu
Jul 23, 2020
Proton handed over 8 units of the Proton X70 to the Ministry of Health (MOH) for use in Sabah. The vehicles will be used to assist in the Ministry’s logistics and surveillance efforts in the ongoing efforts to curb the Covid-19 pandemic. The handover was done at Fook Loi Corporation’s Proton 4S outlet in Kota Kinabalu. Throughout the year, Proton has been actively supporting MOH in various ways to help in the fight against Covid-19. The loan of the 8 cars to MOH Sabah is in addition to the 50 un
Dec 4, 2020
It costs RM 3,095.22 to maintain the Myvi over 5 years/100,000 km Price does not include optional items Proton Iriz is marginally cheaper to maintain The Perodua Myvi is one of Malaysia’s best-selling models right now, as it offers great value for money, encompassing an extensive list of passive and active safety equipment at an affordable price point. Priced from RM 54,090, the Perodua Myvi 1.5 AV is feature-packed to the brim, as the model includes a range of segment-first features, such as th
Aug 30, 2019
The Proton X70 was first launched in December 2018, as a fully imported (CBU) model from China. Slightly more than one year later, the locally-assembled (CKD) model was launched in February 2020, with a new transmission but hardly any change in price. The range topping Premium X model is priced at RM 122,800. Barely two years on the market, it’s still too early to gauge the resale value of a Proton X70. Yes there are quite a number of units listed on used car classifieds, but it’s still too smal
Aug 7, 2020
The B-segment sedan market is a hotly contested segment, ever since the introduction of Toyota Vios back in 2002. It was created specifically to be sold in the ASEAN region, and with a starting price of RM 73,600, it was the cheapest non-national car to be sold in Malaysia, up until the launch of Toyota Avanza in 2004, with a price tag of RM 55,967. Toyota Vios With the booming popularity of the Vios, it was a matter of time before their closest rival Honda to come up with a worthy opponent, and
Mar 26, 2020
Bookings for the new Proton Saga, which was launched on 6-August, has surpassed the 10,000 bookings milestone. Of these, over 1,000 bookings came from Proton’s online booking platform, which allowed customers to book a unit for just RM 9.99. Proton further added that it is extending the closing date for online bookings to 17 September, on the back of strong demand. “Judging from the bookings received, the 2019 Saga is extremely popular with our customers who are attracted to the revised styling,
Sep 4, 2019
It's an appealing driver's car Significantly improved compared to the previous version But how does it compare to the Myvi? No one expected that when Perodua introduced the Perodua Myvi, it would be the default choice for young and old buyers alike. Since its introduction in 2005, more than 1 million units of the Perodua Myvi rolled off the production floors. Proton is extremely late to the five-door hatchback game – I highlight five-door specifically because the national carmaker had a three-do
Sep 13, 2019
Ahead of its official debut tomorrow, photos depicting the 2020 Proton Saga Anniversary Edition have surfaced. Just like earlier leaked photos, we can now see that Proton has given the Saga Anniversary Edition a dose of yellow highlights, both on the exterior and interior of the car. Starting from the exterior, the Saga Anniversary Edition is finished in black (no other Proton models are currently available in black) and gets yellow highlights on the lower half of the front grille and side mirro
Jul 8, 2020
Been waiting with bated breath, Proton X50 fans? Well, the wait is over as Proton has finally released official photos of the much-awaited B-segment SUV this morning. We're sure it's very welcomed, especially since news of the car's media preview is due to take place next Tuesday. Proton released a set of three pictures, and as we can see, it keeps some details as seen in the Merdeka day teaser - especially the red detailing on the grille. It doesn't look much too different than the Geely Binyue
Sep 12, 2020
Proton took the right approach when they launched the 2020 Proton Saga facelift. Offering improved features and drivability at a lower price point for consumers. Their strategy of giving better value for money to the consumers is being rewarded in their sales numbers, with a monthly average of 3,500 cars delivered. The Saga facelift was crucial in helping Proton achieve their 2020 sales target of 100,000 units. Even as archrival, Perodua launched their updated Saga competitor, the price tag is j
Feb 28, 2020
Production of Malaysia's hottest B-segment SUV, the 2020 Proton X50 has been badly affected by the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO), with a large majority of customers still waiting to take delivery of the car since it was first open for bookings on 16-September, 2020. Proton Holdings Bhd's Chief Executive Officer, Roslan Abdullah, told The Malaysian Reserve that the delays were inevitable as its manufacturing side relies on the availability of parts supplied by vendors, who themselves
Dec 30, 2020
Malaysia is home to the Sepang international Circuit, Pasir Gudang circuit, and Dato’ Sagor circuit. We even used to have a racing circuit in Batu Tiga that was once used to film the Jackie Chan film, “Thunderbolt”. We love motorsports and have gone to great lengths to make it more accessible. While track racing may be a little more popular, one motorsport that we absolutely love is rallying. We may not have winter stages and tall pine trees, but that hasn’t stopped us from enjoying the sport. T
Nov 2, 2020
It’s been drilled into our heads since before we were able to drive to always give way to emergency vehicles like ambulances and fire trucks. But there are still some people who ignore these rules like the driver of this Proton Wira in the video. The video was uploaded by firefighter Mohd Ridzwan Shah on TikTok last Sunday. He accompanied the video with a message asking road users to give their cooperation when they hear emergency sirens. In the incident that was believed to have happened at an
Mar 31, 2021
Looks like Proton’s sales are well and truly back on track because they have managed the amazing feat of exceeding last year's sales performance. As of August 2020, Proton has sold 61,672 units, which is 46 units more than in 2019. We know what you’re thinking: it’s just 46 units more! But bear in mind that our country came to a complete standstill for close to 2 months in an effort to curb the coronavirus pandemic, so this is a huge feat! August 2020 is Proton’s second-best month of the year mo
Sep 3, 2020
After the video of a Proton Wira obstructing a fire truck went viral across social media, the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) has decided to look into the incident and discovered that it happened 2 years ago. Nonetheless, PDRM has arrested the Proton Wira driver for his actions. Also read: Video of Proton Wira blocking Bomba heroes in traffic sparks outrage South Johor Bahru district police chief, ACP Mohd Padzli Mohd Zain told Harian Metro the suspect was arrested by the Traffic Investigation and
Apr 1, 2021
While the facelifted 2021 Proton Persona and Iriz are pretty much open secrets, Proton's revival of the R3 brand pretty much came out of nowhere, led by this week's launches of the 2021 Proton Saga and Iriz R3 Limited Edition. Also read: 2021 Proton Iriz & Saga R3 Limited Edition, Persona & Exora Black Edition launched in Malaysia But is it really the R3 we've been waiting for? With so much visual similarity to 2020's Saga 35th Anniversary Edition, what else could be new? What's the fuss about R
Feb 20, 2021
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