PETALING JAYA: The recall by Proton of three of its models due to a hose problem was greeted with relief by car owners, with some even saying that this would help build trust in the brand.
Amalin Syahirah Che Samsudin, 23, who owns a Proton Preve, was shocked by the news but said she had faith in the company’s service centres.
“Based on my previous experiences, I think the service will be smooth. I believe they will fix the problem,” said the Kelantanese.
Another Proton Preve owner, Rusli Rashikin, 68, said he hoped Proton would use higher quality parts in producing the local car.
However, Arif Abd Rahman, 26, from Sarawak, was worried about major delays when many people send their cars to the service centres at the same time.
A Proton Exora owner, Christina Chan, 46, said: “I’m unhappy that there are issues but glad Proton is doing something about it.”
On social media, netizens largely have welcomed the decision.
Responding to the news on Facebook, Khairul Afandey thanked Proton for listening to the concerns raised by customers who had experienced such problems.
“Better late than never,” said another reader who goes by the moniker Fast Straw.
Muhammad Dzuhrin Zaine said the recall would build trust between Proton and its customers.
“Surprising move,” said BK Lau adding that “perhaps parts of Malaysia are growing up”.
Vehicle recalls are a fairly common occurrence these days.
In early 2013, Perodua recalled 74,000 Myvi variants produced between March 2011 and March 2012 to replace the electronic power steering column.
Last October, more than 60,000 Toyota cars in Malaysia were part of a global Toyota recall to check for a defective power window master switch.
Last September, Honda Malaysia also recalled 12,232 units of the 2014 City and 97 units of the 2015 Jazz for a software defect concerning the continuously variable transmission.
“Automakers don’t like to use the word ‘recall’ as it has negative connotations. They will use terms like service fix and preventive measure campaigns,” said an industry observer.
On Proton’s recall campaign, involving 94,577 vehicles with Campro CFE turbocharged engines, a Proton spokesman said this was not the first time Proton has done a service fix campaign.
“Similar campaigns were conducted for the Exora Bold CFE radiator connector issue in 2014, and Inspira drive belt pulley last year. We have been very transparent about such campaigns,” he said.
However, this is the largest number of Proton vehicles involved in such a campaign.
“The number of vehicles involved is big because three Proton models are affected, unlike previous campaigns when only one was affected.
“Proton owners can call the 1800-888-398 hotline. The repairs will be done at 3S and 4S (sales, service, spare parts and systems) centres,” the spokesman said.
