Quick look:
- With Singapore-based Volt Auto involved in Dongfeng’s passenger car business in Malaysia, the brand will now move forward with more definite marketing strategies.
- Local assembly of selected models is planned to start later this year, most likely at an existing plant.
With Singapore-based Volt Auto now involved in the Dongfeng business in Malaysia, the Chinese brand appears to now be proceeding forward with a proper marketing strategy. And as foreign automakers have long known, to grow the business in Malaysia requires local assembly, no two ways about it. This too is something that Dongfeng, one of the ‘legacy’ brands in China (its history goes back to 1969), is already planning for.
Local assembly is expected to start this year so it is likely that Dongfeng is talking to one of the existing assembly plants to do contract assembly. That would allow for starting with a small volume and then scaling up as demand grows. Like some other automakers, there has been an expression of making Malaysia a regional hub, which is the sort of thing MITI likes to hear.
In Malaysian market since 2009
Though Dongfeng has become more noticeable in recent years, the brand has actually been in the market since 2009. However, it’s only those in the commercial vehicle sector who would be aware of its existence which began with the Bison and Kiland prime movers that have been assembled at Inokom in Kedah.
It only introduced passenger cars in 2024, starting with the Box, and expanding the range two include the Vigo and 007, all fully electric models.
Although Dongfeng is of a different generation of Chinese automakers from the younger ones that have focussed on EVs from their start-up, it has nevertheless also developed advanced New Energy Vehicle technologies in line with the Chinese government’s directive to do so in 2012. It was clear that since the auto industry had started very late, it might as well not waste time on combustion engines and put all its money into developing New Energy Vehicles – which would also be good for the environment.
First EV in 2017
Dongfeng launched its first fully electric vehicle, the e30, in China in 2017 and has quickly added more models with new technologies. It has also created segment-specific brands such as VOYAH, M HERO, Epicland and Nammi, which offer products at different price levels.
As new Malaysian policies will require imported EVs to be priced not less than RM200,000, companies like Dongfeng now have to look at high-end models to import while picking a few low-end models to assemble locally and get ‘behind the barrier’.
New Energy Vehicles
To provide a glimpse of what could come in future, the brand is now displaying three New Energy Vehicle models from its premium sub-brands – the VOYAH Dream MPV, M HERO II SUV, and 008 SUV – at the KL International Mobility Show 2026 (June 12 – 21).
Though details are limited, the models do what the Chinese brands have been good at doing – impress at first look. They offer premium quality and features as well as intelligent and advanced technologies with ranges of up to 1,500 kms (Dream PHEV).
“KLIMS 2026 provides the perfect platform for us to showcase the breadth of Dongfeng’s innovation and explore new possibilities in premium and intelligent mobility. These three models represent different lifestyles and aspirations, yet all share the same commitment to technology, quality and electrification,” said a spokesperson from Dongfeng Malaysia.
Whether these models will eventually be in showrooms is not known yet; as PHEVs, they would come in under the price barrier which seems to only be for fully electric vehicles.
