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Perodua QV-E – 205 bookings so far, production delayed as China vendors not meeting quality stds

Perodua QV-E – 205 bookings so far, production delayed as China vendors not meeting quality stds

Perodua president and CEO Datuk Seri Zainal Abidin Ahmad has told Careta in a video interview that the QV-E has collected 205 bookings since the launch of the national carmaker’s first EV on December 1, and that some 40 units, mostly showroom and test drive cars (test drives at eight outlets only), have been registered to date.

“Internally, we are facing some production problems with regard to the QV-E. We have been accustomed to very high quality standards, learnt from Japan. With the QV-E, we have found that some of our new suppliers, including from China, do not meet our quality standards,” Zainal said, adding that there are now 30 Perodua personnel in China monitoring the supplier(s) to ensure adherence to standard operating procedures.

Exactly which and how many of the QV-E’s numerous components are sourced from China is not public knowledge except for the 52.5 kWh LFP battery, which comes from CATL – the world’s biggest EV battery manufacturer. The Proton eMas 5 also uses CATL batteries.

So what about the 500-unit monthly target? “To be fair, at launch time (December), we weren’t going to achieve production of 500 units a month; we’d planned to start full production in January. It’s achievable based on our initial plan, but we decided to limit test drive cars to eight outlets as this is our first EV and also our first vehicle with many critical items from China, so our confidence to push for sales here is relatively low, despite there being market demand,” said Zainal.

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Jonathan James Tan

While most dream of the future, Jonathan Tan dreams of the past, although he's never been there. Fantasises much too often about cruising down Treacher Road (Jalan Sultan Ismail) in a Triumph Stag that actually works, and hopes this stint here will snap him back to present reality.

 

Comments

  • Jom Global on Feb 03, 2026 at 11:24 am

    there are variety China Vendors from cheap to expensive. from bad to good who are competing aggressively for new demands, setting new standards other vendors can’t match.

    Looks like Perodua has chosen it’s path and leading a selected Vendors. the world is moving to a new Great Standards.

    Thumb up 19 Thumb down 9
    • newme on Feb 03, 2026 at 2:15 pm

      What expensive in China?
      Maduro’s radar not expensive? How did it end up?

      Thumb up 4 Thumb down 12
      • nobrain newme on Feb 03, 2026 at 5:36 pm

        maduro should have relied on local bodyguards instead of foreign cuban contingent, same like how proton and perodua relies on local engineers and vendors.

        Thumb up 1 Thumb down 3
  • So, what about all of the bragging about “100% Malaysian EV”?

    Thumb up 47 Thumb down 1
    • Bel Jin on Feb 03, 2026 at 5:05 pm

      Developed and built in Malaysia. Phase 1 some cricital components would be supplied from external vendors.

      Phase 2, all local parts.

      Thumb up 5 Thumb down 23
      • So still not 100% is it? Till this day they struggle to find vendors from outside, which at the very beginning, it wasn’t 100% by Malaysian. But yet all the teaser and ads boasting proudly 100% Malaysian.

        Thumb up 13 Thumb down 0
    • podua should have asked their usual japaneese suppliers and vendors for help

      Thumb up 10 Thumb down 1
    • Celup King on Feb 03, 2026 at 5:39 pm

      Talk about supporting Msian local vendors but here using China parts, perhaps from the same supplier as Geely pulak. Just waiting for when Dr Li buys out P2 and end its charade of being a fake national carmaker.

      Thumb up 26 Thumb down 1
    • Dong gor on Feb 03, 2026 at 8:43 pm

      Sounds like too low a volume to meet the MOQ from the vendors to maintain price. Now blame outside pula…it’s ok to admit it’s not working. We can understand that. If the japanese can’t even compete in the ev field, how could Perodua? No technology no Volume. Going in probably because had a gun on the head only

      Thumb up 32 Thumb down 1
  • alibaba on Feb 03, 2026 at 11:57 am

    2026 1st ever joke in bolehland

    Thumb up 41 Thumb down 2
  • Ouch, that’s gotta hurt.

    Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
  • Notqve on Feb 03, 2026 at 12:07 pm

    Market demand mana tu Tuan Zainal….205 hardly a demand

    Thumb up 31 Thumb down 1
    • Masakroti on Feb 03, 2026 at 5:39 pm

      no other car company in the world dare to do ah long business under the guise of batery rental service

      Thumb up 22 Thumb down 0
      • Kesha on Feb 04, 2026 at 12:33 pm

        Still not too late to forgo battery rental idea. Or refund 205 customer and scrap the ev altogether.

        Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
  • LoneOpinion on Feb 03, 2026 at 12:31 pm

    Please conduct an interview with the 205 people who placed the bookings.. And ask them what were they thinking.. Or some logical explanation

    Thumb up 45 Thumb down 0
  • Perodua QV-E= Perodua Nautical V2

    Thumb up 11 Thumb down 2
  • Kuda kuda on Feb 03, 2026 at 1:29 pm

    Sugar-coated statement. “…including from China” means local vendors as well. Not just China vendors

    Thumb up 10 Thumb down 3
  • Frankc on Feb 03, 2026 at 1:52 pm

    The strength of an automotive company is the combined strength of it’s supply chain. Any weak link will break the company!!! Perodua hv a lot of lessons to learn about developing own models..

    Thumb up 9 Thumb down 0
  • Volvos are manufactured in China. Don’t blame China for your own internal issues la. Typical rent seeking attitude.

    Thumb up 29 Thumb down 3
    • sue brain on Feb 03, 2026 at 5:38 pm

      proton already sold thousands of emas EVs , didnt face any problem with china vendors also .

      Thumb up 25 Thumb down 2
  • Biasalah tu! Semua salah org lain salah, sendiri tak bersalah! Semua salah DAP!

    Thumb up 24 Thumb down 2
  • Sound like they have gotten an exit plan…. which is blaming vendors.

    Thumb up 24 Thumb down 0
  • DonkeyKong on Feb 03, 2026 at 2:23 pm

    205 units booked by staff and government departments. How many units booked by regular folks? Zero.

    Since QVE launch until now, Proton and BYD EVs racked up thousands of units booked. If the demand is really high, it would at least look comparable to eMas 7 bookings but it’s not. Chances are more BYD Seals have been sold during that same time frame.

    P.S. Perhaps the only China-made part that met their standards are those Purosangue-copy rims. They look pretty fine.

    Thumb up 24 Thumb down 3
    • Just point fingers and BLAME LAA.
      Typical attitude after failure, it’s always others at fault

      Thumb up 11 Thumb down 1
  • Waderhel on Feb 03, 2026 at 7:42 pm

    I thought Malaysian made. Now China parts pulak? Pity…..

    Thumb up 14 Thumb down 1
  • anonymous on Feb 03, 2026 at 9:07 pm

    “We have been accustomed to very high quality standards”…is this a joke ??

    Thumb up 43 Thumb down 1
  • 4GR-FSE on Feb 03, 2026 at 9:31 pm

    Don’t blame China for your under-delivery

    Thumb up 12 Thumb down 2
  • Haji Karim on Feb 04, 2026 at 8:00 am

    would be painful to be supplier of Perodua. because as shown here, when things do wrong, suppliers get the blames.

    Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
    • Strafbacht on Feb 04, 2026 at 9:49 pm

      Heh. Been a prospective vendor to P2. At least the PIC/team we had to deal with came off as a bit on the arrogant side. Every proof of concept has to be done for FOC and the scope is as close as on-live as possible, plan projects for 3-5 years in advance so have to think of solutions far beyond what is currently available (but most jap company does this). Get lectured for technicalities like “ohh your machine cant do that? But this other supplier tok kok sing song say can do??” or other things like “oh why you guys call this thing X?? We thought you don’t know these things?!” for terminologies like cobot vs robot (they’re all the same bloody thing!)

      Would be glad to see them humbled for once. And then P1 will get the arrogant title.

      Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • Bro Kereta on Feb 04, 2026 at 8:48 am

    Common Perodua u not accepting ur EV car not moving due to wrong sale n marketing strategies. Do not give non sense reason. .

    Thumb up 11 Thumb down 0
  • It sounds like an excuse by P2. Targets not achieved, find a scapegoat.

    Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
  • Ichigo on Feb 05, 2026 at 6:38 pm

    Menipu je kerja orang2 besar ni yea…
    100% Malaysia build…
    Quality problem from China…

    Package Perodua yang hampeh kata org lain punya quality problem…from China…
    205/500 unit..aku salah taip ke…

    Thumb up 2 Thumb down 1
  • Cleric on Mar 11, 2026 at 4:20 pm

    I think to be exact, the demand for the car is so low/ none to a point they have to come out with an excuse of supplies problem just to justify the low sales. This way, the blame shifted to supplier & they save their own face.

    Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
 

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