LAUNCHING OF PROTON IRIZ

After a good gotong-royong at Proton Edar Putrajaya, the showroom was ready to received the new Proton Iriz. The Iriz was delivered late on the eve of the launching. We received 4 units of vehicles; two units for showroom display and another 2 for test drive. The car that was equipped with Proton latest engine, the VVT must be test driven to experience the smooth ride and handling in a luxurious interior. All the latest gadget and technology was installed in the compact car as a standard features which give the buyer the best value for money in all aspect as compared to those in the similar segment such as Perodua Myvi, Honda Jazz, Kia Rio, Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Polo, Mitsubishi Mirage, Suzuki Swift and Peugeot 208. For more information, read Paul Tan's detail write up at HERE.

The Iriz that came in 7 colors was also awarded with a 5 star NCAP crash test rating which make it the safest car compare to all other models in the same category. The Myvi was only awarded with a 3 star. For a more detail comparison to the Myvi, read Carlist review at HERE.

I attended the Iriz grand launching at PROTON TANJUNG MALIM. The Iriz was also launched at all Proton Edar Showroom nationwide simultaneously. The Iriz launching and the unveiling was impressive but what was even more heartfelt was the opening speech by YABhg Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, our former Prime Minister and currently the Chairman of PROTON. Speaking without any text, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad touches if not hypnotized the audience with his every words. It shows how pro-active he is with whatever he does. I am always inspired whenever I hear his speech. Malaysia has come a long way from only importing cars, to assembly and localization and now, being able to produce from drawing board to manufacturing the entire car in Malaysia, by Malaysians, for Malaysians with a global quality and safety standard. I am proud to be part of Proton eco system.

I was abit disappointed that our YAB Prime Minister and other cabinet ministers (except for the Mnister of Transport and Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry) did not attend such a historic launching. All the whose who in the automotive media, Proton eco-system, automotive stakeholders were present.

With this new Iriz, there is only two issues that can be the stumbling block for PROTON. The most important issue is the approval rate by Banks for PROTON car buyer hire-purchase loan application and secondly, the production volume by PROTON. The production volume has significantly improved since DRB-Hicom took over and adopted the pull-production as opposed to the previous push-allocation and we believe the production volume will be healthy. Bank's approval rate is still a big huge question mark!! At the moment, it is still not encouraging.

Below are some snapshots taken at the launching of PROTON IRIZ in Tanjung Malim.