Okay, here we go again – don’t give up on the idea of a fourth-gen Suzuki Jimny through official channels just yet. That’s because another report of Suzuki making a return to the Malaysian market has come about. This time around, the potential partner is said to be the Naza Group.
An industry source told The Malaysian Reserve that negotiations between the two parties are expected to be completed soon, with the brand possibly making its return as early as this year.
“Both parties would go through certain assessments over the deal. They are already at the final stage of concluding the partnership agreement,” the source familiar with the matter told the publication. Elsewhere, the grapevine suggests that there are no plans for CKD local assembly, so the potential model line up could be very focused.
Last July, it was reported that that Berjaya had plans to reintroduce the Suzuki brand in the country, with sources saying that an agreement would be inked with the Japanese automaker in August. This suggestion was quickly denied by Berjaya, with the company saying it was not aware of such an arrangement.
Suzuki left the Malaysian market in 2016. In June 2015, Suzuki signed a memorandum of understanding and licence agreement with Proton and DRB-Hicom for the production of motor vehicles. Under a rationalisation plan, the sales and assembly of Suzuki models in Malaysia were halted, and in January 2016 it was announced that all 29 Suzuki dealerships in the country would be converted to Proton Edar outlets, ending the brand’s official sales presence in the country.
The collaboration was to have allowed Proton access to Suzuki’s models, platforms, powertrain and automotive technology, with the Japanese carmaker providing specific technical assistance for the selected products and scope, but the union resulted only in the Proton Ertiga being introduced for the Malaysian market. The MPV, which is based on the Suzuki Ertiga, was last seen in Ertiga Xtra form.
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