In the midst of writing our stories about Perodua yesterday, we realised that the company had revealed a more realistic WLTP range figure for its first EV, the QV-E. The car is said to be capable of travelling up to 370 km on a single charge; when it was launched in December, it had an NEDC range figure of 445 km. You are, of course, more likely to get closer to the WLTP number than NEDC, and even then only in ideal conditions and with conservative driving. The Perodua actually compares well to its closest rivals such as the Proton eMas 5 Premium (325 km WLTP) and the BYD Atto 2 (345 km WLTP), by virtue of having the largest battery – a 52.5 kWh CATL LFP pack, versus 40.16 kWh for the Proton and 51.13 kWh for the BYD. To recap, the QV-E is Malaysia’s first homegrown EV, and Perodua’s first model to be designed and developed completely in-house. It’s priced at RM80,000 on-the-road without insurance, but this does not include the battery, as the car is the first EV in the country to be offered on a battery-as-a-service (BaaS) model. The subscription costs RM275 per month (now an all-in price inclusive of SST, Perodua confirmed), and buyers will be contracted for a period of nine years. Built on a new modular platform co-developed with Austria’s Magna Steyr, the sleek, low-slung “sportback” SUV is powered by a single front motor producing 204 PS (150 kW) and 285 Nm of torque. This gets it from zero to 100 km/h in 7.5 seconds on its way to a top speed of 165 km/h. Those are impressive numbers for a Perodua, but what’s not so great is the charging time – with support for only 60 kW of DC fast charging, topping up the battery from 30 to 80% takes 30 minutes, trailing the eMas 5 (20 minutes) and the Atto 2 (28 minutes). A 6.6 kW AC charger fully charges the car in eight hours. The QV-E hasn’t exactly been the home run that Perodua has become used to. The national carmaker targeted sales of 500 units a month, but bookings currently sit at just 205, and full-scale production has yet to start as its new suppliers – including those from China – are struggling to meet its quality standards, said president and CEO Zainal Abidin Ahmad recently. But the QV-E is just the start of Perodua’s electrification journey – the platform is set to spawn “two to three” new models, including an already-confirmed entry-level A-segment EV. Perodua has some interesting plans for those future cars, including battery-swapping tech; hybrids and range extenders are also on the cards. Compare prices between different insurer providers to save the most on your car insurance renewal compared to other competing services. Many payment method supported and you can pay with instalment using Atome, Grab PayLater or Shopee SPayLater.