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Malaysia's best-selling compact hatch is here - can it be equally popular among Singaporeans?
Story & pictures by Jeremy Chua, of oneshift.com
What does it take for a carmaker to be No.1? Perodua, Malaysia's second automaker, recently knocked the dominant Proton off its perch to claim the top spot at home. Those of you who aren't too familiar with how this happened might be thinking - "Wow! That must've cost billions for them to be able to accomplish that."
Only it didn't. We're not saying it didn't cost them a pretty penny either. Instead of spending loads of cash on design, engineering, research & development, Perodua's tactic was simply to badge engineer their cars.
What this means is that Perodua's cars aren't of their own making. In a nutshell, badge engineering means one carmaker takes models from another manufacturer they've signed a contract with, slightly alter the interiors, slap their own badges onto the body and presto - you get the same product (perhaps with differing equipment levels) under a different brand name.
So Perodua took the Daihatsu Sirion, slightly changed the interior and rebadged it as the Myvi. The Myvi then went on to sell so well, that it made Perodua the top-selling brand in the Malaysian market.
Exterior
To begin with, the Myvi is a rather squarish looking four-door hatchback. This is by no means a bad thing, since the squarish shape does indicate that in practical terms, there is bound to be lots of interior space. At 3,750mm long, the Myvi happens to be a good 175mm longer than its Viva sibling. And with a width of 1,665mm, parking the Myvi should also be a breeze.
The Myvi's flared wheel arches dwarf the dainty (but cute looking) 14-inch wheels and tyres - the car could easily accommodate a set of wider and grippier tyres, which would give it a more planted stance. The wide front and rear bumpers with lower lips give the car a more substantial look, but without making the Myvi seem aggressive. No roof spoiler here though - that's only standard on the range-topping variants.
The inside story
Before sliding into the driver's seat, the first thing you'll notice is the all-grey theme. Potential owners should definitely start thinking of ways to liven up the interior - but then again with the car's popularity across the Causeway, personalisation shouldn't be a problem.
The optitron instrument cluster was a good call, but on a more personal note, the only other option, blue (which comes standard in the higher-end variants), would've been a more pleasant affair. The dashboard's centre is occupied by a factory-fitted sound system with big, easy to read buttons - so unless you have an eyesight problem, you shouldn't have any problem operating it.
What would a hatchback be if it weren't practical? If the Viva's rear seats could be folded down to create more room, well, so can the Myvi's. The biggest difference here though, is that the seat's bottom has to be extended first, before the backrests can be unlatched to allow it to fall forward. The advantage here is that the seats, when collapsed, are a lot flatter than what we previously saw in the Viva.
Driving it
The Myvi's DOHC 4-cylinder, 1.3 liter KJ-VE engine is capable of 86bhp at 6,000rpm and 116Nm at 3,200 rpm. Owing to its additional cylinder and displacement over the 1 liter powerplant, it also sounds more refined.
The extra 26bhp mustered by the Myvi over the Viva is very welcoming, although this performance is somewhat blunted by the extra 145kg of mass carried around by the Myvi. While this might sound like a disadvantage at first, the extra weight does give the car a more planted feel, especially on expressways. While the Viva was prone to being tossed around by crosswinds, this isn't a problem here.
With Macpherson struts up front and a torsion beam at the rear, one might conclude that the Myvi is very comfort biased. A quick run through not-as-smoothly-paved roads should set the record straight though. The suspension here is a tad on the stiff side, so there's a tendency for undulations to enter the cabin.
Conclusion
Our biggest gripe so far has to be the fact that ABS/EBD and the dual SRS airbags are only standard in the two range topping models. After all, in today?s world, safety features such as these should be standard throughout the model range.
Despite these grouses, it's still not difficult to see why this car turned out to be so popular. The Myvi's interior has a higher quality feel, and thanks to the car's slightly larger dimensions, is also roomier without it being more difficult to park. Its 1.3-litre engine packs additional power, and has the advantage of more torque at lower revs - without compromising on fuel economy.
Is all of that worth the extra premium that the Myvi commands? Well, looking at it from a long-term perspective, we certainly think so.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION
Engine: 1,298cc 4-cylinder, 16-valves
Power: 86bhp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Transmission: 4-speed automatic
Length / Width / Height / Wheelbase (mm): 3,750 / 1,665 / 1,550 / 2,440
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