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LIVE from Rally Sweden: Comfy win for PG at home

Danny Tan — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 21:36:26 +0000

It’s back to the hotel after an entertaining podium ceremony at Rally Sweden. Held at the main square of Karlstad, the ceremony attracted a large crowd, and as usual, everyone joined in the fun, from white haired seniors to blonde teenage girls – the few near me nudged each other in excitement when good looking Thierry Neuville drove up the ramp!

If you missed our previous live reports, after 24 stages over four days, Proton’s PG Andersson has won the S-WRC category ahead of Irishman Craig Breen with a 3:35.8 cushion.

Breen, in a Ford Fiesta S2000, was the man who inherited the class win at Monte Carlo, where PG’s Neo caught fire on the final day. Pontus Tidemand and his Skoda Fabia S2000 was a further 1:13.8 behind.

“It’s a fantastic feeling to finally do it with Proton. We had no real problems from start to finish, although we made a few set-up changes to get the best out of the car. Today we just looked after our advantage and concentrated on bringing our car safely to the finish,” he said.

In the WRC, it was a battle between the Finns and ex-Ford teammates Mikko Hirvonen and Jari Matti Latvala all weekend, and it was the current Ford man who came out tops despite a late puncture. It is the 50th WRC win for Ford and M-Sport since they joined forces in 1997.

Also, Finns have been dominating this “Scandinavian Rally” since Marcus Gronholm won in 2006. Hirvonen, who is Seb Loeb’s teammate at Citroen this year, won the past two editions, so he missed out on a rare hattrick.

“I think I need to get to hospital to check my heart rate. It’s incredible how exciting this sport can get. We had a good lead on Saturday night, but then it changed like a thunderstorm and we only had an eight-second lead at the end. I knew Mikko would push and we really had to go hard, but then we managed to take another four seconds on the penultimate stage, so we could breathe a little bit!” Latvala said.

“To win here for the second time felt very special; the feeling now is just a big relief,” he added. From what we saw earlier at SS22 Lesjofors, I fully believe the relief.

The easy going but hard driving Latvala also joked that after Monte Carlo, where he retired, the great Ari Vatanen told him that he is “like a young Ari Vatanen” but now he needed to stay on the road. Looks like the advice was well taken!

Here are my pics of the rally royalty from the podium ceremony; from Loeb to Solberg, they’re all there. Credit for the first pic of this post goes to Mr. G from Proton Motorsports.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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LIVE from Rally Sweden: PG wins S-WRC category, 12th overall – Ford’s Latvala wins rally despite bust tyre

Danny Tan — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 14:22:24 +0000

Hej! We just got back from watching SS22 Lesjofors live, and there’s good news greeting us at the hotel. Proton’s PG Andersson has won the S-WRC category, and ended Rally Sweden 12th overall. That’s the highest position the Swede has been in the whole rally, so it was a great last day for PG.

The overall win has been claimed by Ford’s Jari Matti Latvala, ahead of ex teammate Mikko Hirvonen, now with Citroen, who he was dueling with all weekend. This comes as a surprise because we saw Latvala limping to the end of SS22 with a bust tyre. Apparently, his lead was good enough to hold the lead. Norwegian Mads Ostberg finished third in his Fiesta RS WRC.

Petter Solberg, the other works Ford driver, was originally third, but suffered a puncture that cost him the podium spot. As you will see in our gallery, his puncture was on the front right tyre, the same side as teammate Latvala! Russian Evgeny Novikov was fifth, ahead of world champ Seb Loeb, who had a really rough weekend.

More updates later. In the meantime, enjoy the pics I took from this morning’s SS22.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton & YES 4G to unveil special edition Proton Inspira?

Paul Tan — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 08:12:10 +0000

We’re back with interior shots of the Proton and YES 4G teaser peek-a-boo box parked in front of Lot 10. It appears to be some kind of Proton Inspira with 2 iPads installed on the front seat backrests for the rest passengers, as well as another iPad installed above the center dash area where the audio and air cond controls are located.

You can also spot a YES 4G Huddle MiFi router device mounted on the dashboard to the left of the hazard light button.

Exterior-wise, there are decorative decals with the YES 4G logo featured, as well as a black two-tone 18 inch alloy wheel design. Check out the image gallery below for detailed shots snapped through the peek-holes.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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LIVE from Rally Sweden: Ex teammates Hirvonen and Latvala duel at the top, PG Andersson still leading S-WRC

Danny Tan — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 18:53:50 +0000

Hej! We just returned from our daily dose of Rally Sweden, and are happy to report that PG Andersson is still leading the S-WRC category that Proton Motorsports is contesting in. After 16 stages, the Swede leads Craig Breen in his Ford Fiesta S2000 by 2:14.4, while Pontus Tidemand in his Skoda Fabia S2000 is a further 1:58.2 behind. PG is 14th overall, behind the WRC boys.

His Proton teammate Alister McRae, who is of course the 2011 FIA APRC champ, is seventh in the S-WRC category. As detailed in our previous report, the Scotsman, who last drove in this ice and snow rally in 2004, went wide in SS3 and hit soft snow, landing his car in the ditch. That incident put him out of contention but the Super Rally format allows him to continue running, and potentially collect points for the team.

Our day started very early here in Karlstad, the rally base. It was still dark when we set out to catch some live action, and two hours later we arrived at Sagen to watch SS12, the first of today’s two stages on this 14.23 km stretch.

The hike up the hill to watch the cars zoom past was tough, not so much because of the cold (temperature is still stubbornly stuck below zero C), but because of the thick layer of soft powdery snow. It’s climbing on shifting ground, and everytime a foot is buried in snow, some ice gets in the shoe – wet feet is not good!

But we found a rather good vantage point, allowing us to see the cars come in the frame sideways for an S, before powering out past the cheering crowd. You get a better view on TV, but the atmosphere at the stages is amazing and can’t be replicated.

It feels like the whole of Scandinavia is here for Rally Sweden, and the fans are loud and jolly, some helped by the potent drinks they bring to keep warm. Bonfires, singing and red cheeked small children complete the camp party like scene.

From Sagen, we headed to Hagfors Airport, which serves as a major Service Park for the rally. It’s here where the team trucks and tents are at, and many fans packed the place to catch a glimpse of the drivers and cars. At the Proton tent, PG Andersson came in for service after the Hagfors Sprint stage in the city.

In between his pasta and coffee, he told us that the car was sliding too much, and although spectators love it, too much sideways isn’t the fastest way.

PG felt it immediately since he started the day. “The studs disappeared already on the first stage. Something makes it spin on the top and breaks the studs and makes it very slippery. Now we have to save on the tyres, but except that, everything is OK,” he said. The reason behind the trouble was ice build up in the dampers, making them sticky.

A set of new Reiger dampers fitted, and off he went, after some food in the stomach of course. Alister McRae came in for service too, but it was so much more relaxed on his side of the garage. It’s important to keep going though, as there’s always a chance someone might drop out.

At the front of the pack, ex Ford teammates Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala are having a friendly duel of their own. Hirvonen, now Seb Loeb’s teammate at Citroen, came into Hagfors service 18.6 seconds behind Ford’s Latvala. Another popular figure and branding master (he has his own merchandise and booth) Petter Solberg is in third.

World champ and living legend Loeb is down in sixth after SS16. The Citroen DS3 WRC driving Frenchman is not having a great rally that’s for sure. “It’s not so fun to drive in this situation, but it’s like that. We have to try and score some points. You cannot win every time,” the man said.

Below are the pics I took from SS12 Sagen and Hagfors service park. It’s not just car shots – I’m hoping you can have a “feel” of the rally while enjoying the Malaysian weather (yes, I do miss the heat). More updates tomorrow.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton and YES 4G has something to launch on 22/2?

Paul Tan — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:25:08 +0000

Looks like Proton and YTL Communications are up to something together – there’s a teaser black box in front of Lot 10 where passer-bys are able to peek in to check out what’s being teased. This is in line with what Proton has been doing with the last few models they launched – they’ve always let the public do a “peek-a-boo preview” of the car through a box like this with holes cut into it.

But what has YTL Communications’ YES 4G service got to do with it? My guess is that it could be something to do with the bundling of a YES 4G device with the upcoming Proton P3-21A sedan, or perhaps certain models of the P3-21A will have a YES 4G hotspot built into it? The former is more likely than the latter. A MiFi-like device would suit such an application the best. But let’s not get too excited, this could be something to do with an existing Proton model like the Inspira or the Persona as well.

A hotspot for the road in your car is certainly both cool and useful, I often create a “mobile hotspot” in my F10 by plugging any variant of MiFi-like device into the F10 glovebox’s USB port. I use the glovebox’s USB port because I prefer to reserve the one in the armrest storage for my iPhone to keep it charged and to play music. I’ve worked in the car on my laptop or tablet device many times (not while I’m driving of course) on long journeys such as up to Penang – it helps reclaim otherwise wasted travel time.

Anyway, another possibility is that if Proton and YTL Communications felt that such a partnership was a match, it could mean that the P3-21A has at least 2 USB ports for us to hook up our gadgets to the car and charge them at the same time. The more the merrier – USB ports are certainly a very useful thing to have in a car these days.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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LIVE from Rally Sweden: PG Andersson leading S-WRC category, Alister McRae’s winter dreams dashed

Danny Tan — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:12:43 +0000

Greetings from snow covered Norway! But aren’t we covering Rally Sweden, you ask. Well, the Swedish rally has a few stages running in neighbouring Norway and we’re now at Kongsvinger, where the cars are having their first remote service after five special stages.

The rally officially started yesterday night – SS1 was a super special stage in the rally’s base city of Karlstad, Sweden. A horse racing ring in the small town of 60k turned into a rally showcase for the locals, who came out in droves despite the temperature dropping to below -10C.

It wasn’t a walk in the park for yours truly – my luggage containing heavy winter wear got lost in transit – but it warmed the heart being with the enthusiastic crowd, ranging from grandmothers to young dating couples and tiny babies. Their passion for rallying is so strong, you’ll need to see to believe.

The rally isn’t won and lost in that short 1.9 km showcase (MINI’s Dani Sordo came out tops) so the real start is today, where the cars slip and slide in a white landscape. Leading the overall standings is Citroen’s Mikko Hirvonen, with a small lead (just 2.9 seconds) over ex Ford teammate Jari-Matti Latvala, who was tops in qualifying.

By the way, qualifying replaces shakedown, where the fastest cars get to choose their start order, usually in the middle. Going first and setting a trail is always trickier. I learnt that those who go first must contend with soft snow covering the surface. Not so much grip for the studded tyres, which “bite” harder into hard ice once the soft snow is cleared.

Mads Ostberg’s Adapta Ford Fiesta is third, while Hirvonen’s superstar teammate Sebastian Loeb is in fourth leaving Kongsvinger. Behind Loeb’s DS3 is another famous rally name, Petter Solberg, driving for the works Ford team. This duo was hit by unwanted delays – Loeb collected a 10sec penalty while the Norwegian (the only guy with his own merchandise and booths) spun on home soil in SS4.

In the S-WRC category (S for Super 2000) which Proton is contesting in, homeboy Per Gunnar Andersson came into Kongsvinger in the lead, with a slim 7.4 second advantage over unheralded Pontus Tidemand in a Skoda Fabia S2000. Ireland’s Craig Breen, who won the category in Monte Carlo after PG retired on the last stage, is in third with his Ford Fiesta S2000.

Alister McRae, Proton’s APRC champion, had his winter rally dreams dashed – the Scotsman put a wheel into the soft snow and lost control on SS3. His Neo was stuck, and co-driver Bill Hayes had to walk 2 km to find helpful spectators to push the car out of the ditch. No serious damage, and McRae will start tomorrow under Super Rally rules. He’s won’t be winning the S-WRC category, that’s for sure, but can still collect points for Proton.

We caught up with PG at the service park and he appears very confident in bringing home Proton’s first points of the season and winning his class. The popular Swede said he lost a bit of time in SS3, a tight and technical stage where he couldn’t get a good rhythm. But things went well after that, so let’s hope all goes smoothly from now. Overall, PG is 15th.

Stay tuned for updates.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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SPYSHOT: A clearer view of the P3-21A interior revealed!

Paul Tan — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 07:02:38 +0000

Here’s a new shot of the Proton P3-21A interior – the clearest shot we’ve ever seen, uploaded onto funtasticko earlier today. According to funtasticko, this shot was snapped at Equatorial Cameron Highlands.

There are some differences with this particular car’s interior compared to the one we previously saw, which I’ve included right below the latest image for your easy comparison. The first interior that we saw featured what appeared to be nice glossy strip of wood on the dashboard section in front of the front passenger.

This one doesn’t have that glossy wood, which could indicate a lower spec model. Tun Dr Mahathir also mentioned a GPS navigation system in the top of the range model, while this car has a normal radio system.

Liking what you see so far? The way the center dash area curves down to the gear selector area actually reminds me of the Proton Waja design.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Rally Sweden LIVE: Proton’s PG Andersson and Alister McRae are ready for the ultimate snow challenge!

Danny Tan — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:06:54 +0000

Rally Sweden, the second round of the 2012 FIA World Rally Championship, will start slightly over a day from now. Yours truly would have been just two hours away from Stockholm now, but due to a technical problem on our B777, I’m now in sunny Putrajaya (32C) instead of freezing Karlstad (-6C). Anyway, the long journey to winter wonderland starts tonight, God willing, and we’ll bring you some live reports from Sweden.

Those of you who follow world news would know that Europe is suffering from a cold snap now, with severe snow and record low temperatures. Many have died, and I’m hoping that my winter wear will hold up. This job can be hazardous you know

Thankfully, Proton Motorsports, which is competing in the S-WRC category (S for Super 2000) in WRC, had a better run up to the event than us. The men driving the yellow Satria Neo S2000s in Sweden are homeboy Per Gunnar Andersson and Alister McRae. PG drove superbly in the season opening Monte Carlo Rally, but an unfortunate technical problem meant that he had to retire from the S-WRC lead (9th overall) on the last day with just 20+ kilometres to go.

Click to enlarge list

Putting the disappointment behind him, the Swede prepared for Sweden in style, with a Super 2000 victory in the KNA Rally Finnskog in Norway days ago. Of the 42 entries, he finished ahead of fellow S2000 Ford and Skoda teams and fourth overall in a warm up event that included the Citroen and Ford WRC teams. Let’s hope the good form continues.

“We’ve put the disappointment in Monte Carlo behind us. It’s quite obvious that the Satria Neo S2000 has the pace and performance, and we’re back in Sweden to prove this point. Rally Sweden is an incredibly exciting event which will see competitors battling it out on ice and snow for what is a proper winter rally. We have a competitive package, and alongside experience as well as local knowledge, we’re confident the Satria Neo S2000 will live up to challenge,” PG said.

After KNA Rally Finnskog, the team spent a trouble-free day testing the Neos. “The rally in Norway went very, very well for us. The odd very cold day in Britain aside, this was the first time the Satria Neo had ever run in anything like these conditions and it worked perfectly straight away. We fitted a stronger heater to make sure the screen was clear and put some warm jackets in the back for the guys, but apart from that, this was the same car which won in Malaysia at 40 degrees. On Saturday it was winning S2000 in temperatures 70 degrees colder!” team boss Chris Mellors exclaimed.

Some might be surprised with the inclusion of Proton’s APRC champ Alister McRae. The reason he was drafted in for Sweden is because PG’s regular teammate Italian Giandomenico Basso is more of a tarmac specialist. The Scotsman has competed in Rally Sweden seven times before, finishing as high as fifth overall. He last drove here in 2004. “It’s fantastic to be back. Rally Sweden will also give us a chance to test the 2012 Satria Neo S2000 ahead of the start of this year’s APRC,” said McRae.

Rally Sweden has attracted a total of 85 entries and will be contested over 24 special stages covering a competitive distance of 360km. The rally begins with a 1.9km super special stage in Karlstad tomorrow (looks like we’ll be missing that one) and continues on Friday with nine special stages which will see competitors driving through classic Norwegian stages in the town of Kongsvinger.

Heading to KLIA now, stay tuned for updates!

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Tun Dr M reveals a first look at Proton P3-21A specs list – production Tuah/Espire to be launched in May 2012?

Paul Tan — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:22:42 +0000

It’s one of the things that makes Malaysia unique – a popular ex-premiere who as the adviser to the national car company, can scoop all of the motoring publications in Malaysia when it comes to test driving and revealing the first details of the upcoming P3-21A!

Our ex-Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir has test driven the new Proton P3-21A at their Shah Alam test track, and he’s revealed the first details of Proton’s new car on his Che Det blog. The following is a list of what we can gather from his post:

Proton’s new 1.6 liter turbo engine will be used, which allows the P3-21A to produce the power of a 2.0 liter engine with a smaller displacement.

Hot press steel as opposed to cold press steel

Vehicle Seek Lamp

Wiper Auto Speed

Automatic folding wing mirror

Push-button Start/Stop function

Automatic Wiper Sensors

Automatic Headlamp Sensors

GPS navigation system

Impact sensing door lock

Central Locking

Alarm with Immobiliser

CVT gearbox with 7 virtual speed manual mode

Tiptronic selection on shift lever

Steering-mounted paddle shifters

ABS with Brake Assist

We’ve already been made aware of some of these features in the past, for example when we got our first look at the P3-21A’s interior (click to have a refreshed look in case you’ve forgot), we could see the paddle shifters and the push-start button.

Tun Dr Mahathir noted that these features are for the top of the line model, with some low-end and mid-level equipment levels to have less than the above features. He also mentioned that the car would be launched in 3 months time, which would mean sometime in May 2012? Until then, stay tuned for more updates!

In the meanwhile, what’s your wishlist for the new P3-21A? Share in the comments! For me, I would like to see 2 airbags standard on all models, as well as the option for side airbags to be included in the more expensive versions. I also wish ESP stability control would be an option.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton sponsors Le Tour de Langkawi for the 17th year

Danny Tan — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 01:15:01 +0000

Proton has extended its support to the country’s most prominent cycling event, Le Tour de Langkawi. The national carmaker has been sponsor for 17 years now, since the race was first held in 1996. At a recent simple ceremony, Proton presented a mock key and the symbolic Blue Jersey to LTDL 2012 organisers. The Blue Jersey will be worn by the tour’s overall Sprint Champion.

This year’s sponsorship of the tour will include the supply of a fleet of vehicles, including technical support, maintenance, manpower and merchandise giveaways during the cavalcade. The Proton cavalcade is a procession of vehicles that will proceed ahead of the main racing peloton in promoting the tour. The Inspira, Saga, Exora, Persona, Perdana and Satria Neo will all be used.

“Le Tour de Langkawi provides Proton with a fantastic opportunity to showcase our range of vehicles not only to the local audience, but also the international riders, teams, officials and television viewers who will be following the race,” Proton’s Director of Group Marketing, Branding and Motorsports, John D. Chacko said.

LTDL 2012 has attracted a total of 120 cyclists representing 22 local and international professional teams. They will compete in a grueling 1414.8 km race stretched over 10 days. This year’s race will see the teams being flagged at the Proton Centre of Excellence in Shah Alam for Stage 6, which is a 108 km charge to the peak of Genting Highlands. As you can imagine, this will be the toughest stage of the tour, which starts on 24 February in Putrajaya.

Here are some pics of the Inspira with R3 kit and LTDL official car livery. Nice rims!

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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SPYSHOT: Proton P3-21A Persona R rear uncovered!

Paul Tan — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:38:56 +0000

Here’s another leaked shot of the soon to be launched Proton P3-21A, posted over at funtasticko. Don’t mind the slightly misaligned bootlid, it’s probably because the boot was not shut properly. The horizontal strip running across the bootlid is similiar to the one found on the Proton Exora – although it’s body coloured here, perhaps like the Exora it will be finished in chrome on high end models. What do you think of the design so far? It’s quite a departure from the Proton Tuah Concept eh?

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Ex Proton CEO Tengku Mahaleel to make shock return?

Danny Tan — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 01:39:36 +0000

Tengku Tan Sri Mahaleel Tengku Ariff, the outspoken former Proton chief, is set to make a shock return to the national carmaker, which is now under DRB-Hicom’s ownership. Business Times reports that the ex CEO will probably return as chairman of Proton, leading the company into another new phase.

“More or less, it’s almost a done deal,” a source close to DRB-Hicom told BT. If true, TM will replace Datuk Seri Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, who was one of the bidders for Khazanah Nasional Bhd’s 42.74% stake in Proton.

Tengku Mahaleel’s last stint in Proton ended on 30 September 2005, when his contract was not renewed by the board of directors led by Datuk Mohammed Azlan Hashim, then the chairman of Proton. TM joined Proton as Vice Chairman, Strategy & Operations in 1996 and was with the company for over nine years. The official statement then explained that Proton is a “national asset, an institution of sorts and not a private entity.”

Prior to his departure, he did a controversial interview with a Chinese daily, disagreeing with the way the national automotive industry was heading. “Automobile assembly means you just need screw drivers, you don’t need die and mould and engine factory. If the government only needs the automobile assemblers, we can then grab a Mitsubishi car, fix it with a Proton emblem and say: ‘Nah, this a Proton car’,” he was quoted as saying.

Not a man to mince words, that’s for sure!

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton P3-21A rear end uncovered for the first time?

Danny Tan — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 03:07:56 +0000

Remember the yellow Proton P3-21A that showed the upcoming sedan’s face uncovered? It looks like a partial rear shot of that car has been circulating online, showing us the tail lamps without any masking. Even as we analyse it, bear in mind that this may or may not be the final production design.

Shown at funtastickodesign, the lone image shows a rear lamp cluster that’s unlike the wraparound old Subaru Legacy style rear design of the Tuah concept, so perhaps Proton is looking at a more contemporary look. The edges look a bit sharp and abrupt, though.

We can see that there’s a chrome bar visually linking the two sides of the tail lamps, like how Jaguar does it for the XF.

What we see here is also consistent with what’s visible from the masked test mules running around – full red with a clear strip running in the middle, with part of the lamp extended into the boot lid.

Do you prefer this or the rear end look of the Tuah concept?

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Reports: Volkswagen AG directors visit DRB-Hicom, looking into technical collaboration with Proton

Danny Tan — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 01:15:30 +0000

Reports linking Volkswagen with Proton have emerged, with the national carmaker’s new owner playing host. According to Business Times, DRB-Hicom is understood to have hosted two Volkswagen AG group directors last Thursday. The duo met with key stakeholders of DRB-Hicom, including its top management.

“They also reviewed all Proton Holdings Bhd’s models,” the publication’s unnamed source revealed. BT says that the Volkswagen directors came down to evaluate the possibility of having a collaborative technical agreement on technology transfer with Proton.

“This is the first step and I think that there will be many more such meetings before a deal could be struck,” their source added.

As all of us know, this isn’t the first time Europe’s biggest carmaker Volkswagen is being linked with Proton; the previous marriage attempt broke down because of issues over majority stake. With a new owner in place (DRB-Hicom is VW’s local assembler), will this latest “on” in the “on-off” relationship stick, or will it fizzle out like it always does?

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton extends its lead in the S-WRC at Monte Carlo

Anthony Lim — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 12:11:27 +0000

P-G Andersson has stretched Proton’s lead in the Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) category in Monte Carlo. Combing the icy roads through snow, rain and fog on the third day of the rally, Andersson’s Satria Neo S2000 held on to 9th overall and extended his overnight lead from 23 seconds to 1 minute 40 seconds over the second-placed S-WRC car, Kevin Abbring’s Skoda Fabia S2000.

Abbring dropped two places to 12th overall, while Irishman Craig Breen remains third – and 15th overall – in the S-WRC class, a further five minutes behind in his Ford Fiesta S2000. Bryan Bouffier, in a Peugeot 207 S2000, continues to hold 4th place in the S-WRC class, but has moved up to 18th overall.

The third day saw three special stages being contested in the mountainous region of Southern France, which included tackling what is reputed to be one of the most difficult stages of the rally, the 24.13km Cimetiere de Vassieux – Col de Gaudissart route.

Reigning world champion Sebastien Loeb continued to dominate Monte Carlo, leading Dani Sordo’s MINI by more than two minutes. Sordo, in the meantime, has taken advantage of Petter Solberg’s misfortunes to build a gap of more than a minute – the third-placed Norwegian damaged the wheel of his Ford Fiesta and subsequently suffered a puncture.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton leads S-WRC category in Monte Carlo, 9th overall

Anthony Lim — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:30:41 +0000

Proton is currently in the lead in the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) category on the second day of the Monte Carlo Rally, with P-G Andersson running in ninth spot overall.

Only 59 cars of the 89-strong entries remain at the end of the second day of the event, which has already claimed some 30 retirements. Among them was the S-WRC front runner, Frenchman Sebastien Ogier, who was running sixth overall and leading the class in his Skoda Fabia S2000 when his car was involved in a high-speed crash five kilometres from the finish, ending his race.

Ogier’s retirement saw Andersson inherit the lead in the S-WRC class, with Germany’s Kevin Abbring in the Skoda Fabia S2000 in second place and 10th overall, some 23 seconds behind. In third place – and 15th overall -is the Ford Fiesta S2000 of Craig Breen, while fourth and 20th overall is Bryan Bouffier in the Peugeot 207 S2000.

“The Monte Carlo Rally is all about pacing yourself to the finish. There is a very fine line between driving at your limit and being careful enough not to be caught out by the tricky and changing conditions of the terrain. We’ve had a good run so far, and with two more days of rallying remaining we are going to be extra cautious, as the changing conditions on the special stages make it extremely difficult and tricky,” Andersson said.

“Our goal here is to get the Satria Neo S2000 to a strong overall finish and, if all goes well, a podium finish in the S-WRC category on our debut,” he added.

Current world champion Sebastien Loeb extended his overall lead in Monte Carlo, claiming victory in five of the day’s six special stages. The Frenchman overcame the icy conditions to currently hold a one minute 37 second lead ahead of Spaniard Dani Sordo in the Mini, while Ford’s Petter Solberg is in third, a further three seconds adrift.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton P3-21A Tuah spotted on carrier along the Guthrie

Anthony Lim — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:08:17 +0000

Reader Iwan spotted what looks to be a Proton P3-21A being transported along the Guthrie Corridor Expressway earlier today. Nothing much to reveal, since it’s under wraps, but the car cover is thin enough to offer an outline of the vehicle, which seems to be wearing less disguise and cladding save white masking points at the rear, door panels and headlamp area. In any case, expect the car to be spotted more in the coming future …

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Reports: DRB-Hicom to cut Proton’s costs, review Lotus

Danny Tan — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:10:02 +0000

Now that DRB-Hicom is in control of Proton, what’s in store for the national carmaker? A report by Business Times details the changes that will happen in terms of cost cutting and efficiency, trimming “excess fat” currently carried by Proton. The reporter quoted unnamed “sources close to the deal”.

For starters, no large scale staff retrenchment is expected, although some changes in the top management are predicted to happen. DRB-HICOM wants to turn Proton into a serious regional player within three years, before becoming a global player two years from that point. The conglomerate will also strengthen Proton’s vendor and dealer network, while improving staff skills by leveraging on its International College of Automotive (ICAM) in Pahang.

“There will be zero lay-off as the immediate focus is on the low-hanging fruits at Proton. The group will trim any excess fat in product planning, consultancy contracts and third-party service providers, among others,” their sources said.

An example is the storage of Proton cars at a third-party site in Sijangkang, Selangor. “The group does not think it is necessary to farm out this logistic service as Proton cars can be distributed to dealers and branches efficiently by using a good IT infrastructure. A lot of money can be saved from this,” they added.

When it comes to costs, Lotus is sure to crop up. Now that DRB-Hicom is in control, what is in store for Proton’s sports car subsidiary? The British brand is currently in a cost consuming revamp from niche specialist sports car maker to a Porsche challenging brand, led by CEO Dany Bahar, who is fresh from signing a four-year contract last month.

“If Lotus continues to ride on Proton, it will be cancerous, it will be like a parasite. Hence, it requires a review so that it can stand alone and be successful, perhaps like what Audi is to its parent Volkswagen AG,” BT’s sources said, adding that the review will focus on Lotus’ involvement in motorsports sponsorships, especially in F1.

If this report is accurate, there is sure to be plenty of boardroom battles in Proton, in the near future.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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DRB-Hicom picked to get Proton – what will happen next?

Paul Tan — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:17:27 +0000

The chart above shows the share price movement for Proton Holdings Berhad for the past 3 months up to yesterday. It settled down at RM5.18 yesterday, and previously hit a high of RM5.53 on the 13th January 2012. If only we all knew what was going to happen back in late November last year eh? It would have been a nice windfall just in time for the Chinese New Year this month.

Khazanah Nasional’s statement yesterday said DRB-Hicom had been identified as the appropriate party to acquire KNB’s stake in Proton as it’s proposal had demonstrated the company’s extensive involvement in the automotive sector, its network of strategic partnerships both local and international, and an effective platform to enhance Proton’s sustainability and meet its long-term growth needs. It’s RM5.50 per share offer price was also acceptable to Khazanah.

DRB-Hicom’s stake in Proton will rise from zero now to approximately 42.74% after the transaction is done – a total of RM1,291,040,812 in cash will change hands, with probably even more to be paid out later when DRB-Hicom makes a mandatory general offer for all remaining Proton shares after the acquisition is done.

This is not the first asset that DRB-Hicom owner Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary has acquired from Khazanah. He also paid RM623 million in cash for Khazanah’s stake in Pos Malaysia via DRB-Hicom, and the turnaround is already underway, with DRB-Hicom saying they have identified 17 new businesses that it could tap into via Pos Malaysia.

If you know Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary’s style, he will most likely install his own general to head Proton. When he took over Pos Malaysia, he made Datuk Khalid Abdol Rahman the group CEO. Datuk Khalid was previously DRB-Hicom group director of corporate planning. Who will be Proton’s new chief, or will DRB-Hicom choose to retain Datuk Seri Syed Zainal?

There are more questions of course. What are DRB-Hicom’s plans for Proton? These details are all in the proposal to Khazanah, not not available for public viewing. Will DRB-Hicom matchmake Proton and Volkswagen? If yes, how do they intend to do it? Who will they retain and who will go? What fresh blood will they bring in? An/d will DRB-Hicom continue to ask for special privileges from the government for Proton – if yes, for how long? And what will they do with Lotus?

The answers to these questions will be revealed in due course!

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Group N Proton Satria Neo rally car goes on sale in Japan

Danny Tan — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:15:39 +0000

Proton Motorsports and renowned Japanese automotive parts manufacturer Carrosser Co Ltd (CUSCO) announced at the Tokyo Auto Salon that the Satria Neo will officially go on sale in Japan for motorsports use. CUSCO is the authorised Proton reseller in Japan and is responsible for the importation and distribution of the Neo in Japan.

This is the fruit of Proton Motorsports and CUSCO’s joint-development to produce Group N 1600cc Proton Satria Neo rally cars, which was first put on display at the 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon.

The cars competed in last year’s Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and made a clean sweep of the 2WD categories, winning the APRC 2WD Manufacturer’s title, APRC 2WD driver’s title (Karamjit Singh) and APRC Junior driver’s title (Akira Bamba). Meanwhile, in the Japan Rally, Shuhei Muta also drove the Satria Neo to win the JN3 Class title.

Developed for the Japanese domestic market, the rally cars are sold by CUSCO to those competing in the Junior Rally Championships in Japan and Asia Pacific. Proton and Carosser have also jointly-developed Group N components for rally use on the Neo. A well known name in aftermarket performance parts, CUSCO is the only independent firm in Japan to compete in all categories of the All-Japan Championships: track racing, rallying, dirt trials and gymkhana.

“Besides the collaboration on vehicles, we are also looking to expand our business, not only in Malaysia, but globally in terms of jointly-developing performance parts and accessories together with Carroser,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, head of Proton Motorsports.

“The main objective of this joint-development is to further deepen the prosperous relationship with Proton Motorsports by presenting the Japanese market with a sporty automobile that has proven its capability as a solid motorsports base machine. Moreover, Carrosser will strive to dedicatedly support various teams and end users utilising Proton machines in any given genre of motorsports, especially the APRC,” said Carrosser President Tsutomu Nagase.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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2012 Monte Carlo Rally marks Proton’s return to the WRC

Danny Tan — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 02:20:02 +0000

Today will see drivers Giandomenico Basso and Per Gunnar Andersson lead Proton’s return to the World Rally Championship (WRC) when the Malaysian manufacturer competes at the Monte Carlo Rally for the opening round of the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC).

Proton’s participation in the S-WRC comes 10 years after it first won the FIA Production Car World Rally Championship in 2002. Last year was a successful year for the Proton team, which was crowned champion in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC), clean sweeping every title on offer.

This is Proton’s second visit to the historic rally after making its debut last year on the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC), which is run on a similar but shorter route. Yours truly was freezing himself with the team there last year, sharing the heartbreak of two retirements after so much promise. Better luck this time guys!

Anyway, the S-WRC is a companion series to the WRC and is driven on the same special stages. First introduced in 2010, it is limited to production-based cars homologated under the Super 2000 rules. The S-WRC also splits the Production World Rally Championship (P-WRC, previously open to both Super 2000 and Group N4 cars) into two separate competitions.

Proton will compete in five of the seven S-WRC rounds in 2012, and we hear that some privateers will also get behind the wheel of the Satria Neo S2000.

“We start the Monte Carlo Rally and the 2012 S-WRC season with what is a winning car, having clinched last year’s APRC title, and given the positive results we have achieved in testing throughout the winter break, we look forward to a strong and competitive season ahead,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, Head of Proton Motorsports.

The 2012 Monte Carlo Rally will be run over 18 special stages totaling 430 km of competitive distance in temperatures as low as five degrees. This year’s 80th edition marks the return of WRC to Monte Carlo after a three-year absence. Flag off is at the French city of Valence with two stages to be run twice before heading to the mountainous Ardeche, Haut Loire and Drôme regions, eventually finishing in glamorous Monaco.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Six more winners in Proton’s Amazing Holidays contest

Danny Tan — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 01:13:37 +0000

Proton has announced six new winners in the second round of its Amazing Holidays competition. They receive a 3D2N holiday stay each, at either The Hard Rock Hotel in Penang, Tanjung Jara Resort in Terengganu or Casa del Rio in Malacca.

The winners are Proton car owners Rizalman ShahBandra from Putrajaya, Noor Fizan Ahmad from Ipoh, Zamri Abdul Malik from Petaling Jaya and Masmira Ibrahim from Temerloh. Winners under the non-Proton owner segment are Chee Sook Fun from Klang and Chong Bing Shan from Kuala Terengganu.

Amazing Holidays is part of the “Very Important Proton” VIP programme, aimed at acknowledging and rewarding customers and supporters.

“Our VIP programme has been truly instrumental in our ‘committed to be better’ initiative as it is an active expression of our pledge towards the improvement of our products and services. We have been very happy with the response received. The positive reactions we have witnessed have been truly encouraging to us as this initiative is instrumental in helping us build stronger relationships with Proton supporters,” said Director of Group Marketing, Branding and Motorsports, John D. Chacko.

Proton’s VIP programme was initiated in the middle of 2011 and lasted throughout the year. Also under the initiative is “My Proton Makeover”, which sees the R3 boys refurbish old Protons. They’ve so far laid their hands on Fadly Hisham Roplay’s 1992 Saga and Sashideran Radha’s 17-year old Wira. Next up is a 1996 Iswara Aeroback owned by Norzamzarini Mohd Bajuri. Keep your eyes peeled for that one!

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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DRB-Hicom announces proposal to acquire Khazanah’s Proton stake – RM5.50 per share

Danny Tan — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 09:33:40 +0000

DRB-Hicom, the apparent winner of the tussle for Khazanah Nasional Bhd’s 42.74% stake in national carmaker Proton, has officially announced a proposal to acquire the stake to Bursa Malaysia, as any listed company is required to do.

They will pay the Government’s investment holding arm RM1,291,040,812, or RM5.50 per share in cash. DRB-Hicom also proposes to do conduct a mandatory general offer (MGO) to buy up the shares it doesn’t already own after the deal with Khazanah, as per listing rules.

Minority shareholders will be offered the same price – RM5.50 per share – as the conglomerate is offering Khazanah. Last Friday, before trading of Proton shares were suspended, the counter closed at RM5.18.

The deal is almost 100% done, but for two caveats: the approval of the shareholders of DRB-Hicom at an extraordinary general meeting to be convened AND the approval of or notification to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) on the change of shareholder of Proton.

In the proposal, DRB-Hicom also stated that it will not carry out any dealing with any Proton shares within two years from the transaction date, including the disposal of the assets of Proton, or any of its group companies. The company also says that during the period of one year from the completion date, it will not propose or vote in favour of any plans which may result in the dismissal, discharge, retrenchment or lay-off of the employees of Proton and/or its subsidiaries.

DRB-Hicom had issued an irrevocable standby letter of credit in the amount of RM38,731,224.35 representing 3% to the vendor, which is of course Khazanah. Mere formality now, before the official announcement.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Trading of Proton and DRB-Hicom shares suspended on Bursa, official announcement to come soon

Danny Tan — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 03:24:24 +0000

It looks like the battle for Khazanah Nasional Bhd 42.7% stake in Proton has had its winner. Trading of the national car maker’s shares, as well as those from DRB-Hicom Bhd, have been suspended from 9am to 5pm today pending an announcement. The companies did not give details in a filing to Bursa.

DRB-Hicom asked for a suspension in trading, saying the company will be proposing a corporate exercise involving a very substantial transaction.

Reports surfaced last week saying that Government investment arm Khazanah will announce today that DRB-Hicom has won the bid to acquire its stake in Proton, with the transaction said to be at RM6 a share or total of RM1.4 billion.

Other confirmed parties bidding for the Proton stake were the Naza Group and Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh. The press and/or analysts roped in UMW and even Tan Chong into the party, but both companies denied any invitation to bid and involvement in the sale.

Last Friday, Proton shares closed at RM5.18 and DRB-Hicom’s at RM2.17. Minority shareholders and speculators are waiting to profit from a general offer for their shares, expected to be coming soon.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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UMW says it has no plans to acquire stake in Proton

Anthony Lim — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 12:07:21 +0000

Of late, there has been no shortage of conjecture about the possibility of Khazanah Nasional letting go of its 42.7% stake in Proton, with a number of potential suitors having being mentioned. UMW Holdings Bhd was among those mentioned in some reports, but it turns out that UMW has no plans to acquire Khazanah’s stake, Bernama reported today.

According to UMW’s group chairman Tan Sri Asmat Kamaludin, UMW has a lot on its hands already, and its focus was on its present commitments, mainly the partnership with Toyota and Perodua.

“I think we’ve already cleared that UMW is not making any bids. We at UMW are committed to our partner Toyota in enhancing its business here in Malaysia and making Perodua self-reliant pre- and post-NAP (National Automotive Policy),” Asmat said.

He added that as far as UMW was concerned, the Proton issue had not been discussed at board level, and a bid has not even been considered. “We’ve never made any bids. The reports say that shareholders of UMW have made the bid. I don’t know about that. Maybe you have to ask them,” he told reporters after the launch of the new Toyota Avanza.

Asmat added that UMW had plans to ensure Perodua post survive implementation of the new NAP, where the government has already indicated that it will liberalise the automotive sector by 2016, the Bernama report added. “We have a plan to develop Perodua and make it self-reliant before that,” he stated.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton-GM talks confirmed, at preliminary stages now

Danny Tan — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 08:22:53 +0000

National carmaker Proton has confirmed news reports that it is in talks with Detroit-based General Motors (GM). Replying to a query from Bursa Malaysia, Proton said that talks are only at a preliminary stage and there’s nothing to announce for now.

“The Board of Directors of Proton Holdings Berhad wishes to inform that talks with GM are only at a preliminary stage and as such warrants no announcement at this point in time. Should there be further developments that warrant an announcement, the Company hereby undertakes to make necessary disclosure in accordance with the relevant requirements,” Proton told the stock exchange.

People started talking about it last week, when The Edge reported that Proton was in talks to sell 40% to 50% stake in its underused Tanjung Malim plant to GM for between RM700 million to RM800 million. Sources quoted by the report said that if the deal goes through, GM could potentially invest RM300 million worth of equipment in the facility.

Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, when confirming his bid for Khazanah’s shares in Proton, added fuel: “There is some truth in the report. However, GM has all along been interested in Proton even when I was the head during the 1990s,” he said.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton chairman Mohd Nadzmi confirms bid for Khazanah stake, reveals plans for the company should he succeed

Danny Tan — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 07:03:27 +0000

Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh has confirmed that he is one of the bidders for Khazanah Nasional’s 42.7% stake in the national carmaker. Apart from this “management buyout” bid, other parties linked to the deal are DRB-Hicom and the Naza Group.

He revealed that Proton’s management took the matter to him few months ago after rumours of interest in Proton from various parties surfaced. They then asked him to make a bid for it because of his experience in setting up Proton and leading the group in the past.

Nadzmi believes that privatisation is the way to go for Proton, which would enable him to restructure the whole group to turn it around. “I know the business well, and Proton is close to my heart. There is a potential in Proton and that is why I dare to make a bid, and the offer runs into billions,” he told StarBiz.

He however did not reveal the offer that he had submitted, saying that an offer for the net tangible asset price of Proton will be too high as Proton is not an easy project. The man added that he is already in talks with some foreign banks regarding financing.

He has firm plans to recoup back his investment, should he succeed. “It is all about how you juggle your assets. This could be done by increasing the utilisation rate of Proton’s assets, cost reduction and also increasing Proton’s exports. These steps could easily add a further RM500mil to RM600mil to Proton’s bottom line.

“Besides the increased utilisation of the Tanjung Malim plant, Proton needs to transform itself to be a global player, and I believe the upcoming model codenamed P3-21A will be the global car that will transform Proton’s DNA. The car will be a completely different car with better material and design coupled with modern features. One thing is for sure, Proton’s DNA will shift to a higher gear with the plans in place,” he said.

Speaking of Tanjung Malim, which is utilised at an average of 52% now, “Proton can raise its utilisation rate by having tie-ups with other brands to assemble or manufacture their products,” Nadzmi opines, while confirming reports that General Motors (GM) is interested in the plant.

Tie-ups with foreign parties is key, citing examples like Proton’s recent deals with long time partner Mitsubishi and Chinese company Hawtai, but Nadzmi does not believe that Proton needs a global OEM to turn the company around. “I hope to do a lot more tie-ups with other brands, as Malaysia today has a lot of capacity, with more collaborations and on a multi-franchise business model, it would be easier to control the local automotive industry.

“Contrary to what some might say, that Proton needs a global OEM to turn the company around, Proton is essentially a brand with Asian roots. How would it fit into the portfolio of a global OEM with its collaborations with MMC and other joint ventures? It would clash with the interest of Proton whereby OEMs like MMC would not be willing to collaborate further as they would run the risk of exposing trade secrets to third parties in the form of another global OEM in the picture,” he explained.

How about the cash hungry subsidiary Group Lotus? “If I buy Proton, I will cut it off, and probably retain a 20 to 30% stake, which translates to a lot of savings every year. There is a lot of potential buyers for Lotus, and once a deal is signed it will be written back to the books of Proton,” he said.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton P3-21A Tuah interior revealed for the first time!

Paul Tan — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 02:46:55 +0000

And here we have our first real peek into the interior of Proton’s upcoming P3-21A global sedan, thanks to reader Daud who spotted a group of 3 units being test driven by Proton engineers parked in Genting Sempah.

Click the image below to zoom in and you’ll be able to see some details. We’ve done our best to enhance the contrast of the image so you can make out the details through the reflection. It’s a pretty good looking dashboard, and we think we can spot out paddle shifters, an engine push-start button, and a multi-info display in the instrumentation cluster.

The interior is predominantly a sleek black/dark grey and silver, with a curved centre console that meets the centre dash area. The in-car entertainment controls seem to be mounted high up the dashboard, close to the centre air conditioning vents.

Check out the gallery below for more shots from the set. Some other angles we have area rear disc brakes, an oil cooler spotted behind the bumper, and a shot of the rear tail lamps of the P3-21A lit up.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton extends free rear lap belt installation programme

Danny Tan — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 02:25:17 +0000

Proton has announced an extension of the end date of its free rear centre lap belt installation service from 31 December 2011 to 31 January 2012. This is due to poor response so far – only about 17% out of the 225,930 affected Proton vehicles have been installed with the rear lap belt, to date.

Since the Government first announced in June 2008 to make it compulsory for vehicles to be fitted with the lap belt, Proton has been installing it at no cost to owners of the Saga LMST and Gen.2 models manufactured between 2004 and 2008.

In September this year, Proton embarked on an outreach programme consisting of roadshows and on-ground activities across the country to create awareness on this matter. This included setting up hospitality and safety marquees at highway R&Rs in Dengkil, Ayer Keroh, Gunung Semanggol and Temerloh, and pamphlet distribution at selected tolls.

Stepping up efforts, Proton Mobile Teams (eight teams of four technical personnel) were also dispatched beginning early this month to used car outlets and locations such as mosques, hypermarkets and petrol stations.

“We would like to urge our customers with the affected cars, and Malaysians in general, to not only comply with the new ruling to avoid getting fined by the authorities, but to adopt the practice of using seat belts for rear occupants in the name of safety. We also urge parents to take up the habit of ensuring that their children who are seated at the back are properly belted up,” said Proton Group MD Dato’ Sri Syed Zainal Abidin.

With this extension, Saga LMST and Gen.2 owners who have yet to fix their rear centre lap belts can make an appointment at authorised Proton Service Centres to have it done. Installation will take approximately 15 to 20 minutes per car.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Proton and Hawtai expected to ink collaboration deal soon

Anthony Lim — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 02:18:00 +0000

Reports indicate that Proton and Chinese carmaker Hawtai Automobile are expected to sign an official collaboration agreement before Chinese New Year at the earliest.

According to an unnamed Hawtai executive, discussions have already reached a much deeper state, and the exec added that the two sides have also explored plans to establish a new team of around 30 people in Beijing, with Hawtai planning to send nine other employees to Malaysia.

In October, at the China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit in Nanning, Guangxi, Proton and Hawtai agreed on a potential collaboration, aiming to establish a technology site – with each having a 50% ownership share – to research and develop new models and key auto parts.

Besides R&D, the venture is also to focus on engineering and technology support, quality assurance work, supplier management and other basic tasks. Additionally, work on developing new vehicles, including new energy cars, is part of the agenda.

The reports state that domestic production of the Exora MPV and the upcoming P3-21A sedan – to be assembled at Ordos City, Inner Mongolia – will be the first order of business. The two companies are currently exploring ideas on how to lower costs to export the vehicles – which comply with Euro 5 emission standards – to Europe and other markets abroad.

The cooperation between Proton and Hawtai is to be carried out according to a new business model that won’t be limited to just Malaysia and China, but will include different markets from across the globe, acording to Hou Haijing, acting vice president and director of Hawtai’s automobile division. The two companies will use a global platform to develop new vehicle technology, procure auto parts and finally expand into new foreign markets, he added.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Mon, 13 Feb 12 02:56:53 +0000.

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Paul Tan's Automotive News » Proton

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Proton extends free rear lap belt installation programme

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