Proton to build ‘Islamic Cars’ for the global market

Proton to build 'Islamic Cars' for the global market

Proton, Malaysia’s state-owned national automaker, plans ‘Islamic Cars’ in collaboration with Iranian and Turkish automakers (yes they do have them!). Features include a compass to determine the direction of Mecca for prayer, and storage for Quran and headscarves. 

The idea behind the development of this car originated in Iran and the plan is for the car to be produced in Malaysia, Iran & Turkey.

Proton is working to find new niche markets since as of the end of second quarter calendar year 2007, the company has lost approximately $182 Million in the last 5 quarters as Malaysia reduces economic protectionism in line with trade agreements reducing Proton’s domestic market share from 60% five years ago to 23% today.

With so many cars on the global market and all the different regional requirements, it’s easy to forget that there are needs in some countries that not even a consideration in others. But with international sales a big need to survive in the auto industry, manufacturers are becoming very attuned to these nuances. 

 

 Source: The Detroit News

[tags]Cars, Car, Auto, Automobile, Vehicles, Technology, Auto News, News, Automotive, Proton[/tags]

Chris Chin

Chris Chin is the Editor-In-Chief of egmCarTech and is a regular contributor to Automobile Magazine.

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