I can’t remember the last time (maybe 16-18 years ago) when Proton was selling as well as Honda in Malaysia. When Proton was in partnership with Mitsubishi, theie cars were reliable, easy to run, cheap to maintain and held their used values 5-8 years on. At the time Honda was under Kah Motors (not Honda Malaysia) and they had a good share of the car market with their City, Civic and Accord.
Sales for both companies was good, but Proton had a good lead over them and years later Honda overtook Proton and took a dominant market share….until this May 2019 (last month).
Yes, the sales figures for May 2019 have yet to be released, but it looks like Honda Malaysia is neck to neck with Proton and this is a situation many in the automotive industry never thought could ever happen.
Thanks to Geely’s buy into Proton with the infusion of a good selling SUV, the X70 and the facelifts of the Iriz and Persona with Geely fun bits, Honda Malaysia (and many other car brands as well in Malaysia) has seen a slight drop in sales.
This situation could slide further once the Proton X50 crossover arrives which is targeted to be priced between RM80,000 to RM90,000.
