The New Proton

Went out to check out the new Proton Gen2 just now in the afternoon.

Pretty impressive. I heard lots & lots of people bitch & whine about this car, about how much it sucks and how crappy the workmanship is etc. But it didn't look to shabby actually.

But first, I do want to tell about what I do worry about this car. It's a Proton after all, and as with all Proton cars, the quality control might not be very tight. Buy a Proton, you either get a gem of a car which will faithfully travel thousands of kilometers without so much as a squeek or you could get a buggy dud which would require more remedial attention than a 90-year-old Alzheimer's patient (in other words it would be plagued with bizarre, annoying problems and break-down a lot). I'm especially worried about the car's electronics. Just now at the show-room I heard this guy whine about his spanking brand new Perdana having problems with the electronics that control the car's automatic gearbox. And my cousin drives a Waja that sometimes would lose the lights of one of the instruments in the dashboard. Very annoying.

Having said that, the car is quick sweet looking. I particular like the lights (especially the rear lights, radical !!), the 15" wheels (suuweeet !) and the new-agey instrument panel. The car was a bit cramped on the inside, especially the back seat, so if you have kids or fat relatives/friends you might have some trouble stuffing them in. The front was fine. The seats were comfy and very adjustable. The dash is smartly arrange with a very nicely designed instrument panel. The built-in CD-player (Blaupunkt) is very nice too. On the whole the inside of the car has a nice rounded feel to it. If only it were bigger in the back...

The outside of the car appeared to be quite solid. None of that Milo tin material Proton used with the Saga & Iswara. The doors could use with a little extra damping. When you slam it, it doesn't have the satisfying dull 'thump' sound that I like. The suspension look alright. If this car has the same quality shocks that the Waja have, then its handling would be very very nice. The engine looks very complex. At 110hp, it should be powerful enough for most people.

On the whole, pretty decent, although I reserve final judgment until I put this car through it's paces by driving it. The odds of me buying this car is now 75%. I just hope it's reliable and troublefree.

Check it out here.

*update : -

I'm browsing the Proton UK website right now and that reminds me of something that I'm quite unhappy about Proton. Anybody who bothers to do research would know that the UK Protons and the local ones are streets apart. Just check out the user testimonials.

Okay to be fair Proton doesn't make crappy cars. I'm just unhappy that the local models and the export ones are so different qualitywise. Proton should stop ripping off Malaysians. The only way for Proton to compete after AFTA kicks in next year is to sell the same model locally and outside (namely UK & Australia). The export models are so far superior quality. You'd say the same thing if you saw a UK edition 1.6 Proton Persona (Wira Aeroback) up close. I want the export models dammit !!! And how come the Gen2 manual version doesn't come with airbags !!!???