KUALA LUMPUR: Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM) recorded strong growth for 2020, placing itself as the 3rd non-national car brand in the country.
According to MMM chief executive officer Tomoyuki Shinnishi, the company sold more than 10,000 units from 2020 and achieved more than 35 per cent growth as of Feb this year, compared to 2019.
Both local growth and third placement is said to be a first for MMM.
"2020 was a tough year for everyone so we are very fortunate for our positive growth thanks to the support of Malaysians and the govt," said Shinnishi during the Triton Tuners Club Malaysia CSR briefing event.
The event was held at Palm Garden Hotel IOI Resort City in Putrajaya today.
Shinnishi attributed MMM's success also to its quick adaption to online customer care and the government's sales tax examption which lasts until July this year.
A bulk of the sales were due to the company's Triton pickup series and the well received XPANDER launched in November.
The Triton according to Shinnishi takes up 20 per cent of the local pick-up market, while the Xpander has received at least 2,000 orders as of Feb since launch, surpassing the targeted monthly 500 units sales.
Shinnishi says the company aims to increase production of the XPANDER at its plant managed by DRB-Hicom to 700 units per-month to meet rising demand.
He adds that the company is confident and is generally unaffected by the increased pressure from competing companies and their new launches.
"I cannot say much of our rivals as everyone is affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, but it is possibe we're doing fine because of our offering of pickup and crossover which doesn't coincide as much with others."
Shinnishi says the XPANDER's appeal is from its design looks, crossover space and performance, and its appealing price point of RM91,369.
He is optimistic that MMM can double its sales to 20,000 units this year with the potential arrival of new models such as the XPANDER Cross and a new Triton.