KUALA LUMPUR: Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua), the country's largest national carmaker, has launched its first seven-seater sports utility vehicle (SUV), the Aruz with a starting price of RM72,900.
"With the Perodua Aruz, more Malaysians can now enjoy the benefits of an SUV, plus advanced features typically found only in pricier vehicles. This makes it among the best-value SUVs on sale today, with space, safety and efficiency elevated," said Perodua president and chief executive officer Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad at the launch today.
The Aruz was launched by the Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Darell Leiking and witnessed by Japanese ambassador to Malaysia, Dr Makio Miyagawa.
There are two Aruz variants on offer namely the 1.5 X and 1.5 Advance, which are priced at RM72,900 and RM77,900 (excluding insurance and in Peninsular Malaysia only), respectively. It comes with a five-year or 150,000 km whichever comes first warranty.
"Perodua Aruz heralds a new direction for us - upwards. Our entry into the SUV segment elevates us into new territory where we will be taking our customer satisfaction efforts to the next level, to satisfy the needs and wants of a more discerning customer base," Zainal said.
Perodua aims to sell more than 30,000 units by end of this year.
"The Perodua Aruz is expected to complement our existing product line-up and based on our value proposition, we expect sales of this new model to average 2,500 units monthly or 31,200 units by end-2019," said Zainal.
With 95 per cent of its components locally-sourced, the Aruz is Perodua's fourth energy-efficient vehicle (EEV). It is powered by a 1.5-litre engine with dual VVT-i, mated to a four-speed automatic gearbox. It has a fuel economy rating of 15.6 km/l.
Both variants is equipped with LED headlamps with follow-me-home function, 17-inch alloy wheels, rear air-conditioning vents, multi-function steering wheel, smart entry and push to start button, built-in toll reader, charging ports for all rows and reverse camera. The X variant seats are finished with fabric.
Meanwhile, the range topping Advance variant has the additional auto light function for its headlamps, leather seats and steering, sporty roof rail, front fog lamps, integrated driving video recorder and HDMI port.
As for the safety features, both variants is fitted with six airbags, vehicle stability control, and hill start assist control.
The Advance variant comes with the advanced safety assist 2.0, that features the pedestrian detection (up to 50kph), pre-collision warning to 100kph and pre-collision braking to 80kph. It also has the front departure alert and pedal misoperation control.
The Perodua Aruz has also been awarded a five-star ASEAN NCAP safety rating by the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS).
There are five exterior colours available – Ivory White, Glittering Silver, Electric Blue, Granite Grey and a new Amazon Green.