KUALA LUMPUR:Proton Holdings Bhd (Proton) has launched its used car website, Proton Certified Pre-Owned (PCPO) to allow customers to browse through current stocks available at 36 dealers nationwide, and also trade-in their cars to obtain great deals on a brand new Proton model.

In a statement today, Proton said as its sales grew in 2019, it became apparent that processing customers’ trade-ins efficiently was key to maintaining the growth rate.

Proton Edar chief executive officer Roslan Abdullah said to facilitate this, Proton has established a Used Car Management (UCM) division to grow a network of dealers to sell used cars alongside new ones.

"All of them need to meet several criteria to qualify and agree to undertake the necessary steps to prepare their trade-in stock for sale.

"Other requirements for PCPO cars include being less than seven years old with less than 130,000 kilometres covered at the time of trade-in, and they must also not have any flood or major accident damage that may affect their structural integrity," he said.

According to Roslan, Proton’s PCPO was the next step for the company to build a holistic ecosystem.

"As we continue to offer new and improved products, we also want to attract those interested in purchasing used cars and offer a quick and easy way for customers to trade-in their current vehicle," he said.

He added that all PCPO cars will get an extended one-year warranty for the engine and transmission as well as a free service, redeemable up to six-months after the date of registration.

Roslan said the website will also offer cars from other brands that have been traded-in via the PCPO, but noted that the vehicles will not receive an extended warranty from the company.

However, the vehicles will still be thoroughly inspected and repaired if necessary prior to being put up for sale.

“Aside from helping to drive new car sales, Proton’s UCM division aims to help stabilise and gradually build the residual value of Proton vehicles.

"By offering high quality used cars, we hope to see a general lifting of prices for all our models, making it easier for customers to obtain competitive financing rates and raise trade-in values when they want to buy a new car,” added Roslan.

More information is available at https://used-cars.proton.com.

-- BERNAMA