Perodua Developing First In-House Model
Malaysia’s national car company now builds rebadged Daihatsu models with few changes, but will design the upper body and interior of its own version.
Malaysian automotive market-leader Perodua is working toward launching its first in-house model in the next few years.
The national car company now builds rebadged Daihatsu models with minimal customizations.
The Edge Financial Daily quotes an unnamed official in Perodua’s research-and-development department as saying the planned model will retain the platform and engine sourced from Daihatsu. But it will look and feel different with Perodua designing the upper body and interior for its target market.
“By utilizing the existing vehicle platform, say of the Myvi, we can have various body designs, even a sedan,” the Perodua official says.
Managing Director Aminar Rashid Salleh says the auto maker is upgrading its R&D operation to do this. “Designing the upper body is no mean feat, because it involves testing the crash safety of the vehicle,” he tells the newspaper.
Aminar pegs the cost of developing its own model at between RM300 million ($99.6 million) and RM400 million ($132.8 million), a price he says is manageable.
If Perodua had to develop its own platform and engine, the bill would jump to between RM800 million ($265.6 million) and RM900 million ($299 million). Aminar says that with annual sales projected at about 200,000, such an investment is not feasible.
“We are lucky to have Daihatsu as a partner, whose platform and engine we can share,” he says.
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