Perodua Ativa D55L – cheaper in Malaysia compared to the Daihatsu Rocky and Toyota Raize in Japan

Believe it or not, the Perodua Ativa D55L is priced cheaper here in Malaysia compared to its Japanese counterparts in their home market. Made official yesterday, Perodua’s new compact SUV has an estimated price range of between RM62,500 and RM73,400. In Japan, the Daihatsu Rocky goes for the equivalent of RM65k to RM82k, while the Toyota Raize is surprisingly slightly cheaper at RM64k to RM80k.

This is definitely a unique situation, as it’s not something that we can say often, with Malaysian car prices and taxation being the way it is. Usually, we report the opposite: model X launched in country Y at (a ridiculously low) RMxxk. Unless of course, we are talking about car launches in Singapore and more recently, Thailand as well (though that has more to do with the weakening ringgit than anything else).

The Ativa’s price announcement has been met with surprisingly polarising reception. While those in the industry (us included) are generally impressed by Perodua’s high specs-affordable price game, plenty more complained on the Internet that they expected the new SUV to be cheaper still. Malaysians, we are a hard bunch to please, aren’t we?

Looking at the prices in detail, the case gets even stronger for Perodua. The Rocky starts from 1,705,000 yen (RM65,300) in Japan for the base L variant, and that’s a kosong model with steel wheels and plastic caps, and no radio even! The Rocky X at 1,848,000 yen (RM70,800) appears closer to our base Perodua Ativa X (RM62,500).

The top Rocky Premium that goes for 2,145,000 yen (RM82,200) is the closest model that comes to matching the RM73,400 Ativa AV’s specs, being equipped with Lane Keep Control, Blind Spot Monitor, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Adaptive Cruise Control. And even then, you’d still have to add another 99,000 yen (RM3,800) for the 9.0-inch head unit (standard on Ativa H and AV).

Speaking of add ons, we can again consider ourselves lucky when it comes to the premium colour options. On the Ativa AV, opting for the two-tone special metallic (black roof) will cost you an extra RM800 over the standard metallic colours. For the Rocky, it’s a 77,000 yen (RM2,950) option!

It’s pretty much the same deal with the Toyota Raize in Japan. The entry price is slightly lower compared to the Rocky only because the base Raize X (1,679,000 yen, RM64,300) is not equipped with the Smart Assist pack, which includes Pre-collision Warning, Pre-collision Braking (AEB), Front Departure Alert and Pedal Misoperation Control. The Raize X”S” adds that back on, priced at 1,745,000 yen (RM66,800). As we now know, all that is standard across the Ativa range.

Mind you, the Rocky and Raize ceiling prices mentioned earlier (RM80k-RM82k) are for the top 2WD variants to maintain parity with the FWD Ativa. As is the norm in Japan, both models have 4WD options (for snowy areas), pushing their prices up to 2,367,200 yen (RM90,700) for the Rocky Premium 4WD and 2,282,200 yen (RM87,400) for the Raize Z 4WD.

Do note that the Ativa’s prices here also include the current SST exemptions and of course, ever-changing (and currently favourable) foreign exchange rates are at play here, but at the time of writing, all figures are accurate.So, still think the Perodua Ativa D55L SUV is overpriced?