VW PASSAT AS PERDANA REPLACEMENT & PROTON CAR DELIVERY DELAY IS TEMPORARY

Proton, according to a latest report confirmed that the new Perdana replacement will be based on the Volkswagen Passat which will be rebadged in Malaysia. News below said that the delay in car delivery in early 2010 due to technical glitch of computer system. It is to standardize the delivery of car and now it will be better after outsourcing the delivery management to Konsortium Logistik Bhd. Read further news below.

 

Analyst says delay in car deliveries only temporary, situation is manageable

 

Analysts say the technical glitch that is delaying the deliveries of Proton cars is unlikely to impact Proton Holding Bhd’s sales.

 

OSK Research auto analyst Ahmad Maghfur Usman said the situation was manageable and any impact would be temporary at most.

 

“Any backlog caused (by the glitch) should be resolved in the next three months. I don’t see any negative impact on a full-year basis,” he told StarBiz.

 

He said OSK Research was maintaining its full-year sales forecast of 167,000 units by Proton for its current financial year ending March 31, 2011.

 

The national carmaker’s distribution and marketing arm, Proton Edar Sdn Bhd, had since April 1 outsourced the task of managing its deliveries to Konsortium Logistik Bhd in an effort to improve its supply chain.

 

 
Armin Baniaz Pahamin says the technical glitch has not resulted in any booking cancellations
 
All cars from Proton’s Shah Alam manufacturing plant were sent to the Sijangkang yard, near Klang, for a pre-delivery inspection and storage before being delivered to dealers nationwide. However, a computer glitch caused the delivery process to grind to a near halt in April.

 

Ahmad Maghfur said the delay was unlikely to cause potential buyers to cancel their bookings.

 

“Proton’s cars cater to the mass market. The likelihood of buyers shifting to another marque is unlikely,” he said.

 

Proton Edar Dealers Association Malaysia president Armin Baniaz Pahamin said many customers were irate over the delay, with some even turning aggresive.

 

“We actually had a customer going to a showroom with a parang and demanding the immediate delivery of his car. He thought the delay was intentional.

 

“The glitch is being worked on and we hope to have everything rectified as soon as possible,” he said.

 

An analyst from a local bank-backed brokerage said cars that were not delivered in April were likely to be delivered this month.

 

Armin said the reason for the new central logistics hub was because Proton wanted to “standardise and benchmark the delivery of all its vehicles.”

 

“Previously, the quality of delivery varied with each dealer. Proton wanted to standardise this,” he said.

 

He also said the technical glitch had not resulted in any booking cancellations.

 

“Bookings are unaffected. Only the delivery process has stalled,” he said.

 

Proton was among the top gainers yesterday. Its shares rose 19 sen to close at RM4.99.

 

OSK’s Ahmad attributed the share-price rise to a news report yesterday about a possible collaboration between Proton and German auto giant Volkswagen AG (VW).

 

The report said Proton may introduce a rebadged VW Passat as a replacement model for the Perdana.

 

The Passat currently costs in excess of RM220,000 but the price could be almost halved with more local content.

 

“With a model like the Passat, Proton could bring it in and apply for national-car-status and get exemptions on import and excess duties. This would help reduce the price of the vehicle,” Ahmad said.