New Peugeot 308 Turbo Panoramic to debut soon
Friday, 19 June 2009 03:20
The award winning Peugeot 308 that was launched into the Malaysian automotive market by Nasim Sdn Bhd (NSB), the official franchise holder of Peugeot automobiles in Malaysia in January 2009 is set to be upgraded soon.The 308 which was the winner of the prestigious "Golden Lenkrad 2007" award in Germany for the best compact car based on its design, comfort, safety and environmental friendliness. It was also the AMI New Zealand Autocar Car of the Year 2008 in its category. The 308 offers Malaysian car buyers a European alternative to the current offerings available in the market.Â
The 308 Turbo is already established as being the most performance oriented car in its class and has the distinction of being the only turbocharged offering among its direct competitors. The 308 Turbo with its twin scroll turbocharger will be further upgraded to include a full length panoramic glass roof. This new feature is set to move the value benchmark set by the 308 Turbo further ahead and cement it as a thoroughly premium offering in its category. The 308 Turbo Panoramic which will be retailed at RM113,888 (OTR, including insurance and r/tax) and available from end July onwards, will be the only car in its class with such a premium feature. The 308 Turbo Panoramic comes with 240Nm of torque from just 1,400rpm and 140hp at 6,000rpm.
The large panoramic roof allows for an unobstructed 1.26m2 (or 2/3 of the roof) view of the sky and is most spectacular during the night. In the day, the full length electric sun-blind with ‘one-touch’ operation provides privacy to occupants. The athermic glass used for the panoramic roof together with the dual zone digital air conditioner and additional rear air condition vents ensures a cool environment for occupants while providing for the airy open feel of a convertible but without the dust, heat and pollution.
En SM Nasarudin, Executive Chairman and CEO of the Naza Group of Companies said that the new model is in keeping with Peugeot’s objective of moving up the premium ladder. The features that come standard with the new 308 are not left wanting in any way. On the waiting period for the 308, he agrees that there had been a strong demand for the 308 Turbo which led to the 4-month waiting period. This strong, positive response to the 308 was not anticipated and NSB had already reverted to Automobiles Peugeot to send more units to Malaysia. He adds that the next batch of 308 Turbo will be arriving in end July with the panoramic roof. From that batch onwards, only the 308 Turbo Panoramic will be offered together with the 308 VTi (which will remain with the metal roof). The 308 Turbo with metal roof will no longer be available locally from July onwards.
NSB is constantly upgrading its service delivery and training is given to all frontline staff to improve customer satisfaction. It will however take some time to cover all areas but En SM Nasa assures that the company is doing all it can to improve in as many areas as fast as possible. In addition, He adds that NSB will soon be opening its own 3S branch in Juru, Penang this year. The next NSB branch to be opened after Juru will most probably be in East Malaysia.Â
The Peugeot 308 VTi and Peugeot 308 Turbo Panoramic models are NSB’s representatives in the hotly contested C-segment and NSB is confident of achieving strong sales performance while carving out its own niche. This was due to the individualistic Peugeot styling and the well known Peugeot ride, handling and reliability. Today the maintenance costs of the 308 are made more affordable and are near par with their Eastern competitors. En SM Nasa adds that NSB will continue to introduce new and exciting Peugeot models into the Malaysian market at very competitive prices as part of NSB’s strategy for Peugeot in Malaysia.
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