KIA Finds A New Brand Guardian In Malaysia
The rumors that the KIA brand will move from Naza Kia to Berjaya Auto (Bermaz) just like what happened to the Peugeot brand moving from Nasim to Berjaya Auto Alliance a few months ago has been circulating for some months now and it seems to be confirmed as AmInvestment Bank on the 11th of March 2021 (just yesterday) issued a report saying congratulations to Bermaz Auto on their “potential win of the KIA manufacturing, assembly and distribution rights, possibly by April 2021.
We spoke to Kia Malaysia, brand office as they have been present in Malaysia for some years now and they assured us that all current running vehicle warranties were all still very much intact and the KIA brand is still very much in operations Malaysia.
Yes, Naza KIA was to retire as the brand guardian of KIA in Malaysia and KIA Malaysia was in ‘talks’ with a new brand guardian, Berjaya (B Auto) who were ready to look at reviving the brand with new and exciting vehicles and also better after sales.
Meanwhile, the current global popular KIA Seltos Crossover was launched by Naza KIA in January 2021 after 6 months of teasing the vehicle. Since then, only 1 (ONE) unit of the Seltos has been sold and delivered, which was last week. The Kia Seltos selling price is RM115,888 for the EX version and RM133,888 for the high specification GT-Line version
Meanwhile, there has been no confirmation on the Naza KIA used car buy back program which was launched in November 2016, this might be an issue for KIA owners who valued the program.
Naza KIA introduced the KIA Value 5 program, which allowed eligible customers to trade in their vehicles after five years of ownership for a guaranteed future buy back value. For example, we know a 2017 KIA Cerato 2.0 owner (RM124,888) who now is worried about his RM44,000 buy back guarantee when we wants to sell his Cerato in two year’s time. This is a Naza KIA initiative for its customers and it is not a KIA Motors backed program. We are waiting for response from the KIA team to confirm if this program will be taken up by the new KIA brand guardian or not.
So, what exciting new KIA models could see arriving in Malaysia under the new brand guardian. For sure, the all new 4thgeneration Kia Carnival MPV, the K5 sedan which has been winning awards around the globe and possibly the all new Sorento luxury SUV that is also an award winner.
Be patient and wait for the official announcement next month.
