Proton and Perodua in 2026 – national makes take 62.6% of the market, the most since 2003
by Harvinder Sidhu · Paul Tan's Automotive NewsMalaysia’s two national carmakers have tightened their grip on the market this year. According to the road transport department (JPJ) registration data, Proton and Perodua together accounted for 62.6% of the 715,879 new vehicles registered from January to October 2026, their highest combined share since 2003 (66.6%), and up from 59.6% in the same period last year.
The two are heading in opposite directions, though. Perodua is still by far the biggest brand with 276,042 registrations, or 38.6% of the market, but that is 4.6% fewer than a year ago, when its share was 41.6%. Proton has registered 172,322 vehicles, up 37.7% from 125,120, for a 24.1% share, its highest since 2011 (26.2%) and up from 18.0%.
That total is already more than Proton registered in any full year since 2002 (218,821), and past the 171,110 it managed in the whole of 2005, with two months of the year still to go.
In October alone, Perodua registered 28,645 vehicles (38.2% of the market) to Proton’s 19,004 (25.3%), or 1.51 Peroduas for every Proton. Proton’s October share was its third-best of the year, after January (29.0%) and August (26.1%).
Most of Proton’s growth has come from three cars. The Proton e.MAS 5, launched at the end of October 2025, has added 22,589 registrations on its own. The Proton Saga is up 18,271 (32%) to 75,350 since the MC3 facelift went on sale in November, and the Proton S70 is up 11,809 (83%), helped by the cheaper S70 NA, launched in September, which had its first full month on sale in October. The Proton e.MAS 7 PHEV, launched in February, has added another 6,957.
The biggest losses are from models on their way out. The Proton Persona, which is being replaced by the S70 NA, is down 7,817, and the Proton Iriz, whose production ended in September 2025, is down 2,158. The Proton X70 and the all-electric Proton e.MAS 7 are also down on last year.
On the Perodua side, the new Perodua Traz, launched in December 2025, has added 16,926 registrations and the Perodua QV-E another 511. But the Perodua Myvi (down 10,857), Perodua Ativa (down 6,652), Perodua Alza (down 5,935), Perodua Aruz (down 4,492), Perodua Axia (down 1,657) and Perodua Bezza (down 1,012) have all fallen, more than cancelling out the newcomers. The Bezza was still ahead of last year at the end of September, but has now slipped behind too.
The race for the best-selling model has become a three-way contest. The Axia topped the chart in October with 8,035 units, its first monthly win since January 2025, ahead of the Bezza (7,714) and the Saga (7,312), with just 723 units separating the three. The Bezza has won six months this year and the Saga three. Year to date, the Bezza leads with 81,190, ahead of the Saga (75,350) and the Axia (67,858).
Want to dig deeper? Our car sales data tool lets you explore and analyse Malaysian new-vehicle registrations in detail, from monthly and yearly trends for every make and model to rankings by brand, body type and fuel, plus dedicated views for the EV market and the national carmakers, all built on the same JPJ data behind this story and updated every month.
Add paultan.org as a preferred source on Google SearchAdd Follow paultan.org on Google NewsFollow