Cars That Failed Miserably in the Pakistani Market

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In the past, Pakistan received many good cars, but unfortunately, due to multiple reasons, they failed in the market. No official support, company crises, and expensive spares were some of the main issues that caused them to fail miserably in the market. 

In this blog, we’re going to give you nostalgia and go back in time with a listing of good cars that once launched in Pakistan but failed miserably.

Suzuki Liana

Suzuki Liana RXi Price in Pakistan, Specification & Features | PakWheels

Liana was one of the best cars of its time. At first, it was a CBU import from Thailand; later, Suzuki started its local manufacturing in Pakistan. The built quality, cabin space, and car performance were best-in-class, better than that of the Honda City and Toyota Corolla. 

The only reason it failed was that it was just too advanced for the Pakistani market. Yes, it was one of the first cars to use an EFI engine, ECU, and electronic power steering.  The mechanics couldn’t understand this car in the local market, and diagnosing it became too difficult.

Eventually, mechanics gave it the name “Liana MtLayna.” 

Suzuki Ciaz

Suzuki Ciaz Price in Pakistan, Images, Reviews & Specs | PakWheels

Ciaz’s problem was its rear headspace. Suzuki also increased its pricing while knowing its sales were not good, which is another reason it failed. 

Suzuki introduced the Ciaz in 2014 and started producing CKD units after some time. The problem with CKD was that Suzuki downgraded many features in the Ciaz. They removed the LED headlights and digital climate control and removed the noise insulation from the body. 

Sales weren’t good until 2017 when Suzuki increased the price of Ciaz. After that, this car never made its way to the market again and failed miserably.

FAW V2

FAW V2 Price in Pakistan, Images, Reviews & Specs | PakWheels

The FAW V2 was the cheapest car in its category. A 1.3 L hatchback, it was an attractive option for those on a budget. However, it failed to gain popularity due to its Chinese origin. In 2017, Chinese brands did not have a good reputation in Pakistan, unlike today in 2024.

Another factor contributing to its failure was its unattractive design. The FAW V2 looked cheap, and the interior was made of low-quality plastic, which detracted consumers’ attention from this car.

We guess if FAW had spent some money on the design of this car, it would have worked in the market.

Chevrolet Optra

Chevrolet Optra Price in Pakistan, Images, Reviews & Specs | PakWheels

Launched in 2002, the Chevrolet Optra was an American-origin car made by GM under the Chevrolet name. It was imported into Pakistan by Nexus Automotive Private Limited. The car was good; the problem was its spare parts.

They were all CBU, and due to its American import, the prices of spare parts were super expensive. However, the car was great. Drive quality, cabin space, drive quality, and suspensions were just up to the mark, and overall built quality was as per American standards.

United Bravo and Prince Pearl

Prince Pearl 2019 Vs United Bravo 2019 (Best Comparison) | by Abdul Moiz | Medium

Both of these were Chinese brands and were in the same league. Both cars have the same story, and they failed due to the same issues. United and Prince decided to introduce the cheapest 800 and 1000cc hatchbacks in the market with impressive features. 

But their plan didn’t work. To include features like power steering, power windows, air conditioning, and an attractive design, they had to cut costs on the build quality to keep the car budget-friendly. Unfortunately, the build quality was too low for commercial production.

The build was too low, uneven gaps were visible all over the car, and multiple parts of the vehicle were improperly fitted. Even the taillight color used to fade out only after 4-5 months of use. 

As a result, its resale got null, and it failed miserably in the market.

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14 Comments
  1. Dr Danial Khalid says

    Please also add:
    1. Prince Glory 580 Pro
    2. Hyundai Tucson
    3. Kia Grand Carnival
    4. Honda BRV

  2. Nasir Shabir says

    Worst Immediate declared fail was Suzuki Vitara. The vehicle was first mid size SUV in Pakistan. The vehicle was failed due to over pricing. At the time of Launch in Pakistan it was prices Rs. 3.6m and 3.9M, where at same time the converted PKR price in India was PKR 2.1M and in Australia Rs. 1.98M.

    Poor strategy opted instead decreasing price for Mass success, they were offering discount to selected customer only . As per my knowledge one customer got 9 Lac discount by paying full money and getting pay order of Rs. 9Lac from Suzuki.

    Actually Suzuki has a model of Government Supplies with Kick Backs and charging higher price. Example 30,000 Bolan booked by Government for Scheme instead offering new entrant to setup up plant and get first 30,000 vehicle order.

  3. Haseeb Tariq says

    Suzuki Ciaz failed because it was discontinued in other countries and was only being manufactured in India And Pakistan cannot import its products from India otherwise it would have been performing in the market.

  4. Anonymous says

    Also mention KIA classic

  5. Mehboob ul Hasnain says

    It was acmprehensive view, but bad luck for liana and Chevrolet for not taking jus because one being ahead of time and other due to market capacity to afford it. Keep it up.

  6. Noman says

    Kia Spectra

  7. Ejaz Sheharyar says

    Am a user of Suzuki Liana since 2021 and in these 3 years I have seen that it’s the best economic car in the market with luxury style, I would love to buy it again and again and again, the best car among the costly ones .

  8. Faisal says

    In Midsize sedan series (city,Yaris,xli corolla) Suzuki Ciaz is the best performing car in the following aspects :
    Fuel Economy
    Road Grip
    Leg Space
    Largest Trunk space
    Acceleration
    I owned this car for 2 years and it exceeded my expectations.

  9. Awais says

    Unfortunately suzuki Alto quality is also too low in this price . But we have No other options in pak.

  10. Abdul Jabbar says

    As always pakwheel is a very informative platform for me.
    Thank you.

  11. Abdullah Doula says

    Where is proton saga and dfsk glory 580 pro?

  12. SSA says

    Suzuki kizashi, Kia classic and spectra are missing

  13. Nadir says

    Ciaz was an exceptional car, Suzuki couldn’t carry it

  14. Imran says

    Nadir and Faisal I totally agree with you , I still drive ciaz with every comfort to offer.

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