Shah Alam, 17 March 2009 - Proton Holdings Berhad will extend to its customers in Sabah and Sarawak, the offer under the XChange programme, where the customers could get a discount valued at RM5,000 when they exchange their old cars to buy new Proton cars.

The offer will be effective immediately and will be available at all their authorized sales outlets and dealers operated by Proton’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Proton Edar Sdn Bhd as well as Edaran Otomobil Nasional Bhd (EON).

Proton Edar Sdn Bhd Chief Executive Officer Mohamad Shukor bin Ibrahim said the scheme will now benefit everyone and will not be confined to only customers in the Peninsular Malaysia. “We have received an overwhelming support from our customers in the two states since the Government’s announcement last week and we believe that this offer could help customers in the two states in their decision to buy Proton cars,” he said.

Proton introduced the XChange programme in late 2007. The scheme is similar to the scrapping scheme announced by the Government last week which allows car owners to exchange their at least 10-year old registered cars in return for a discount of RM5,000 to buy any Proton car.

The programme is an important tool in the automotive “ecosystem” where it could help the industry to dispose old cars more efficiently and responsibly whilst protecting the environment from dangerous and hazardous waste. Among the terms and conditions to qualify for this scheme are that the car has to be registered with the Road Transport Department and that it must be operational and functional. Once surrendered the car cannot be returned.

Proton has so far issued nearly 2,700 vouchers under the programme.