The Perodua Ativa was officially unveiled via a digital premiere that began at 8pm today, by Perodua chairman Asmat Kamaludin.
It was launched at prices lower than estimated, ranging from RM61,500 to RM72,000 on-the-road before insurance in Peninsular Malaysia, and will begin delivery tomorrow morning.
The new selling prices, which supersede the estimated amount of RM62,500 to RM73,400 announced earlier and shared with news media, are valid until the government’s sales tax exemption expires on June 30.
“The Perodua Ativa’s competitive pricing was made possible by its 95% localisation rate, which is the highest initial local content rate for any Perodua model. Even the engine and transmission are locally manufactured,” said Perodua president and chief executive officer Zainal Abidin Ahmad during the virtual launch.
“We have so far received some 5,000 bookings for the Perodua Ativa since we began collecting orders on Feb 19. We thank the public very much for their support. Deliveries will begin tomorrow, and we aim to deliver an average of 3,000 units a month,” said Zainal.
Zainal added that the Perodua Ativa is the result of the first truly smart partnership between Perodua and its technical and technology partner Daihatsu.
“The Perodua Ativa was developed on a global platform as Perodua and Daihatsu pooled resources to offer the most competitive model we can produce,” he said.
According to him, the Perodua Ativa’s introduction is significant as it brings Perodua’s collaboration with Daihatsu to a new level and allows Perodua and its suppliers to commonise components and processes for maximum cost efficiency.
This, he explained, was all done without sacrificing unique Malaysian designs, features and taste.
“Our involvement with the Ativa began from the drawing board where 54 of our designers and engineers worked with Daihatsu on this model since 2018.
“This close collaboration allowed us to include the Malaysian automotive ecosystem in the development of this model, and the suppliers rose to the challenge and were able to reduce their costs,” Zainal said.
Elaborating on the new model, Zainal said, “Ativa is Portuguese for ‘active’, and we believe that a test drive is all one needs to be convinced that the Perodua Ativa is the perfect companion for the urban, active lifestyle most of us live today.”
The Ativa is Perodua’s first turbocharged vehicle, its first vehicle to use a continuously variable transmission (CVT) and its first to satisfy Autonomous Driving Level 2 standards, all the while being the most affordable vehicle in Malaysia to do so.
These technologies contribute to the class-leading rated fuel efficiency of 18.9 km/l, making it Perodua’s fifth energy-efficient vehicle.
Debuting on the Perodua Ativa is Advanced Safety Assist (ASA) 3.0, which is standard across the range for the first time. ASA 3.0 works at higher speeds (up to 120 km/h for vehicles, up to 60 km/h for pedestrians) versus the current ASA 2.0, and can now detect two-wheeled vehicles as well as function at night.
Also on all variants are six airbags, automatic LED headlamps with auto high beam, plus lane departure warning and prevention.
H and AV variants get adaptive driving beam, a seven-inch TFT multi-info display and a nine-inch touch-screen infotainment system with voice recognition, while the top AV exclusively gets lane keep control, blind spot monitor, rear cross traffic alert and adaptive cruise control.
With the Ativa now part of the Perodua family, the carmaker expects to buy a total of RM6.5 billion worth of components from Malaysian suppliers this year.
“We invite all Malaysians to our sales outlets nationwide, where strict Covid-19 guidelines are in place for the health and safety of all, to see, feel and test drive the Perodua Ativa ahead of the government’s sales tax exemption expiry in end-June,” said Zainal.
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