Proton Cars UK Ltd (Proton UK) is banking on its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)-powered cars to help drive sales in Britain, according to its managing director Brian Collier.
He spoke of an emerging niche market for the Proton Gen-2 1.6 litre ecoLogic which runs on either LPG or petrol in the wake of rising fuel prices.
Collier said there had been an increasing demand for the dual-fuel model which costs the same as the petrol version but requires half the price to run and is kinder to the environment.
“Next year is going to be all about LPG cars and repeat customers,” he told Malaysian journalists at a briefing at the Park Farm Country Hotel & Leisure in Hethersett, Norwich, on Wednesday.
He said these vehicles were sought after by corporate clients including companies with small fleets and taxi operators that now accounted for about half their total sales.
“Britons are very cost-conscious, especially during the economic downturn,” he said, citing petrol price of around £1.10 a litre against 50 to 55 pence for a litre of LPG.
Proton UK, he added, was the only manufacturer in Britain which did not charge extra for the LPG conversion, which usually costs about £2,000.
Proton sales are 10% up on target whilst British vehicle sales had plunged from 2.4 million units two years ago to about 1.7 million this year
Source: Malaysia Star. |
