since 1976
since 1976
PROTON marked the end of the first half of 2018 by posting strong sales numbers for the month of June. Sales grew by 50% over the previous month as 6,173 Proton cars were sold to Malaysians eager to take advantage of zero rating for GST and the Duit Raya promotion offered by the Company.
Approximately 10% market share with Saga and Persona leading sales
In line with the increase in sales, total market share also increased with PROTON garnering approximately a 10% share of Total Industry Volume (TIV) for the month compared to 9.5% previously.
As with previous months, the Saga and Persona continue to lead sales, with the former registering nearly 3,000 units sold. Buyers were attracted to the strengths of PROTON’s compact family sedan with its class leading affordability, spaciousness and handling as well as the ‘Best Saga deal in 10-years’ promotion offered in June where a brand new Saga could be bought for less than RM30,000. Improved product quality for all Proton cars was also a contributing factor as the implementation of the Global Customer Product Audit (GCPA) system has seen a big reduction in production line demerit points for all cars.
Improving quality scores
After obtaining a J.D. Power Customer Service Index (CSI) score of 755 points in 2017, PROTON embarked on a quality improvement initiative to perform better in 2018. The CSI score is measured by examining dealership performance in five areas (in order of importance): service quality (32%); service initiation (22%); vehicle pick-up (18%); service advisor (15%); and service facility (13%) and to improve its score, PROTON has initiated activities to boost scores in each area.
Initial scores using PROTON’s own stringent internal audit system are already showing an improvement in CSI scores. Via the GCPA system implementation, the quality of the Proton cars has improved 3 times in the past 8 months, measured by the VOLVO quality standards. Combined, both activities the CSI initiatives and the product audit exercise, these will see an improvement in the overall experience customers have with the brand.
Supporting Tabung Harapan Malaysia
As announced previously, PROTON is contributing RM10 for each car sold from 1 June to 31 December 2018. Therefore, following the first month of the programme, a sum of RM61,730 has been appropriated for Tabung Harapan Malaysia. With sales on an upswing and the launch of their first SUV due to happen before the end of the year the Company is optimistic about the amount of funds growing much larger.
“PROTON is proud that we have managed to earmark over RM61,000 for Tabung Harapan Malaysia in just the first month of our contribution initiative. It is our intention to sell even more cars for the rest of the year so as to contribute as much as possible to the fund that will eventually benefit all Malaysians,” explained Rashid.
New SUV receives boost from Tun Dr Mahathir
While the launch of PROTON’s first SUV is still some months away, the pre-publicity build up for the first product jointly developed with Geely recently received a boost. The 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, recently met with the Chairman of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, Li Shufu, and following their discussions the premier got behind the wheel of the first right hand drive (RHD) pre-production unit of the SUV.
An avid driver, Tun spent the ensuing weekend putting the test car through its paces and told the media the following week that it was very good and he was impressed by its quality. He also commented that the SUV would be a good product for the Malaysian automotive market and added that he wanted more Malaysian companies involved in the supply of automotive components.
Having gained the stamp of approval from the Prime Minister, PROTON is intensifying its publicity efforts for the SUV in the lead up to its launch later in the year.
“We are happy that the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, approves of our efforts with Geely. This confirms that PROTON are on the right track and now that pre-production of the SUV has commenced we will soon begin our media and customer previews to build momentum ahead of the actual launch,” said Rashid.
