XPeng G6 ROI Opening In 7 Days? BAuto Poised On Building Brand Equity

Bermaz Auto Bhd (BAuto) is poised to launch XPeng in Malaysia. With a range of the electric vehicle (EV) on hand, the firm looks set to start with the XPeng G6 - similar as how XPeng started out in neighbouring Thailand.

Confirming this is BAuto’s efforts establishing the XPeng Malaysia website and social media channels. Additionally, a quick check shows a countdown timer suggesting a register of interest (ROI) is set to open in less than 7-days.

We at CariCarz.com suspect the offering in Malaysia would be similar to Thailand where the brand entry would start with the G6 in two variants - Standard Range and Long Range. Both share the same rear-mounted e-motor rated at 218 kW (292 HP) and 440 NM.

However, in a recent interview with The Edge Malaysia, Bermaz Group CEO Datuk Francis Lee stated that the group is cautious about bringing in large volumes. The exec also acknowledged the Malaysian EV ecosystem is still not matured to handle volume, especially the charging network side of things.

We couldn’t agree more as we’ve voiced similar concerns regarding the local EV charging network’s growth. Despite the government's call for 10,000 public EV charging points by 2025, which is still on the low side, and the speed of deployment has somewhat tapered off this year due to the additional costs imposed by Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and local councils (PBT).

Lee also added that despite some Chinese brands aggressively entering the Malaysian market with EVs, spurred by the exemption of import and excise duties, as well as sales tax on fully imported EVs until 2025 and locally assembled EVs until 2027, BAuto will not follow the trend blindly.

BAuto believes in taking care of its buyers and the trust placed in their products, and will not resort to offering discounts if the uptake is low - a booming trend amongst EV brands in the market. Instead, BAuto will focus on building the equity value of the brands it represents, not on discounts offered.

However, Datuk Francis also acknowledged the necessity for BAuto to actively participate in the EV space, irrespective of the ecosystem's current readiness. He noted that the partnership with XPeng was mutually beneficial, as XPeng, like BAuto, aspires to establish brand recognition and demand, rather than simply peddling large volumes.

To date, BAuto lacks a competitive mass-market EV model like the BYD Atto 3 or Tesla Model Y. This effectively makes the XPeng G6 a perfect fit for the firm to properly compete in this segment.