Proton Plans to enter India

Malaysian car maker Proton is planning to enter the Indian car market to expand its overseas operations amid global demand slump. Proton has been trying to enter the Indian auto market since a few years and the company was reportedly in talks with home-grown auto major Mahindra & Mahindra as well as contract manufacturer Argentum Motors. The company had marked India as one of the major target markets, Proton’s recent review states that it is studying the 12-lakh units strong Indian passenger car market.

Proton wrote:“On this note, we will be launching new programmes regionally, specifically in ASEAN, China, India and the Middle East. Proton will leave no stone unturned in our vision to strengthen our brand equity within the local and regional arena,” Proton Holdings Berhad Managing Director H S Z A B Syed Mohamed Tahir said.

Source: Motorbeam.com

yeah this was in news sometime back but then no updates and collabration didnt worked for them, good to see them back in news and also good for indian auto market.

Yes vijay.
The proton's indian entry is in news from quite a long time now.
When proton's makes it to India, It would be intresting to see what response they get here.
Don't know how many will trust this Malasiyan carmaker, Proton need to be very competitive once they step into India.


VT

but they can price their cars very cheap!
i have seen that wherever Proton enters, they price their cars very competitively indeed!!
okay they dont sell on auto-pilot but yes they do sell a lot!

To be frank, this is the first time I heard about Proton ! Good to know ! See. as archit pointed out, we have already set our exception, that Proton should be cheap. What happens if they launch some thing in the same class of i10, Ritz etc... and price it more or less the same! It will be interesting to see!

shynishm wrote:To be frank, this is the first time I heard about Proton ! Good to know ! See. as archit pointed out, we have already set our exception, that Proton should be cheap. What happens if they launch some thing in the same class of i10, Ritz etc... and price it more or less the same! It will be interesting to see!

to enter into indian market their first strategy would be affordable cars at first, then only once they feel established they can push for more better products with good pricing within competetive range.

archit wrote:but they can price their cars very cheap!
i have seen that wherever Proton enters, they price their cars very competitively indeed!!
okay they dont sell on auto-pilot but yes they do sell a lot!

What is the positioning of Proton cars against its competition? Hope you can share something about it.

Crazy cat wrote:

archit wrote:but they can price their cars very cheap!
i have seen that wherever Proton enters, they price their cars very competitively indeed!!
okay they dont sell on auto-pilot but yes they do sell a lot!

What is the positioning of Proton cars against its competition? Hope you can share something about it.

well yes i can share. Proton just entered the Thai auto industry. And well of course at first they werent so noticed by the buyers. But after some advertisements, people started to buy their cars. In fact, some auto journos also rated the Proton Persona (which is a sedan in ANHC segment) better than ANHC and Vios, when ANHC and Vios are market leaders of which ANHC is better. But yes with time, Proton has won the hearts of many car buyers with launching sporty hatches at very cheap prices. And that is the story of Proton...

Thanks archit. Better than ANHC?

How about quality, ride and handling, mileage, power, etc..?

well Proton cars have superb handling and efficiency
ride not the best in class but good and power is decent

Hey Archit,
What all Proton Cars you have got there?
Could you post some of their specs and features?


VT

Vibhor wrote:Hey Archit,
What all Proton Cars you have got there?
Could you post some of their specs and features?


VT

+ some pictures of cool hatches too.

shynishm wrote:To be frank, this is the first time I heard about Proton ! Good to know ! See. as archit pointed out, we have already set our exception, that Proton should be cheap. What happens if they launch some thing in the same class of i10, Ritz etc... and price it more or less the same! It will be interesting to see!

Theres another carmaker from Malasiya only called Perodua, Their cars (Kelisa & one more)were spotted testing in West bengal around a year or two back, but after that spotting no body knows what happened to carmaker and whether they have any plans to bring it here or not.

An image of Kelisa................




RoadRocket

I think the Kelisa and Kenari were to enter via Toyota, which is a direct shareholder. As far as Proton is concerned, it is pretty famous in its home markets, but handling likes of Maruti here will be a very tough job and Proton needs to work very hard indeed. Lets hope for the best.

That is absolutely correct dcargod, Proton needs to work hard to capture the Indian Automotive Market.
Proton cars looks good but lacks some style and what to say about Perodua, Its totally dull!

An Image of Proton Saga..........


VT

here are the cars Proton sells in Thailand!

This is the Neo



the Gen-2!


the Savvy!


these are all

Neo and Gen-2 looks good.