Malaysian EV brands try to give China's BYD a run for its money

Proton and Perodua seek inroads into market dominated by foreign automakers

The Proton e.MAS 7 has beaten models from market leader BYD in new electric vehicle registrations since January. (Photo by Norman Goh)

FUMIKA SATO

March 13, 2025 02:27 JST

SINGAPORE -- Malaysian electric vehicles are gaining ground in their home market as local carmakers Proton Holdings and Perodua challenge top-seller BYD and Tesla with more affordable models.

Proton said last week that sales of the e.MAS 7 SUV, its first EV, had exceeded 1,000 units since being released in December. Since January, it has topped EV registrations by vehicle type, beating out BYD.