Proton re-enters South Africa with X50 and X70 crossover SUVs

National carmaker Proton has been ramping up its overseas export efforts of late, and the latest of which sees it mark a return into the famed ‘Rainbow Nation’ that is South Africa.

Proton’s relaunch into the South African markets is spearheaded by newly appointed distributors Combined Motor Holdings (CMH). Said firm is also in the midst of growing its Proton brand network across South Africa where it plans to open 25 dealerships over the next six months.

Crucially, Proton and CMH successfully launched both the Proton X70 and X50 crossover SUV models in South Africa last week too. Both are offered as fully imported (CBU) offerings, and will be joined later this year with the Proton brand’s venerable Saga compact sedan model.

Speaking during the launch, CMH’s CEO Jebb McIntosh said, “When the Proton brand became available, CMH jumped at the opportunity for several reasons, but mostly because we saw a gap in the market for a quality SUV within an affordable price bracket. There are many luxury brands selling SUVs in South Africa, but most are simply unaffordable to the average car buyer here.”

McIntosh further noted that, of the 25 dealerships it plans to open, the first 17 of which have already undergone sales and technical training. The exec also adds that a full range of replacement parts are also already in stock in CMH’s distribution centre, which he believed will further boost customer confidence in the Proton brand.

“PROTON is aggressively pursuing export sales as we believe it is one of the pillars to growing our overall volumes,” said Proton’s Deputy CEO Roslan Abdullah. He continued by stating his confidence of achieving Proton’s export sales target for this year of 6,000 units. As of the end of August 2022, Proton’s total exports stand at 4,040 units, marking an increase of 33.9% over the same period last year.

“There is a lot of potential for growth in our international markets, not just for the Proton brand but for the local automotive industry too, so we want to establish a firm foothold while these markets are still accessible,” concluded Roslan.