Proton posts another record breaking month
KUCHING: Proton has continued its excellent start to 2019 as registrations for February 2019 totalled 5,283 units.
The numbers represent an estimated market share of 12.7 per cent, an increase of over three per cent compared to the same month in 2018.
With February being a short month and traditional low period for car sales in Malaysia, due to Chinese New Year holidays, the majority of automotive brands projected a slower month. Proton however bucked the trend as sales showed a healthy increase of 37 per cent year on year.
Therefore for the first two months of 2019, sales have grown by a cumulative figure of 42 per cent over 2018.
As a result, Proton leads all its rivals for sales growth for a second consecutive month, comfortably reinforcing its position as the third best-selling automotive brand in Malaysia and eyeing a possible return to second place by the end of the year.
Registrations for the Proton X70 continue to increase in volume with each passing month. There were 2,823 units registered in February, a number that includes 1,000 units delivered on the same day to customers throughout the country prior to Chinese New Year.
As at the end of February, over 20,000 bookings have been placed for Proton’s first SUV, exceeding initial expectations and firmly establishing the Company as a segment leader despite being new to the market.
“The Proton X70 is building its fan base and attracting strong support from Malaysian SUV buyers. We are very thankful for the bookings we have received and are working very hard to get as many units registered and delivered to our customers as quickly as possible,” Proton chief executive officer Dr Li Chunrong said.
Having registered 6,927 units of the Proton X70 since it was launched on December 12, 2018, Proton has set a new record for SUV registrations in the first three months after its launch. The number far exceeds the previous record and confirms the popularity of the intelligent SUV amongst Malaysians.
“Proton is proud to have set a new record for SUV registrations in the first three months after its launch. The figure is remarkable as it was achieved despite two long festive holiday periods (Christmas and Chinese New Year), and encompasses only 78 days in total.
“Our next target will be to set new six-month and full-year registration numbers and we are confident of achieving them,” Li added.
On the final day of February, the 2019 Proton Iriz was previewed to Malaysian media as the company sought to build prelaunch publicity for the updated variant of its award and race winning B-segment hatchback.
A flash promotion was launched the following day where a booking could be placed for only RM9.99 while the first of a series of customer previews was kicked off on the first weekend of March at the Proton Edar branch in Chan Sow Lin.
“The 2019 Iriz is the first Proton model to receive major updates since the collaboration with Geely was announced. Together with the 2019 Persona, these two models will introduce our intelligent infotainment head units to a much wider audience, therefore bringing in-car Internet connectivity to a much wider audience,” Li said.