Archive for Proton

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As expected with all Proton model launches in the past year, graphic artist Theophilus Chin has whipped up a virtually kitted up version of the facelifted 2008 Proton GEN2. This concept art is rather conservative. I think the integrated dual exhaust tailpipes into the rear diffuser is a good look for the car. Two more images after the jump.

Related Posts:
2008 Proton GEN2 Facelift with CPS launched!

Click here to read the rest of 2008 Proton GEN2 Facelift Bodykit Artwork

Proton is currently in talks with foreign parties on the development of higher displacement engines such as 1.8 liter and 2.0 liter to complement the existing Campro IAFM and Campro CPS range of 1.3 and 1.6 liter engines. Something will be announced by mid-2008 regarding this, and it will likely involve a tie-up with a foreign car manufacturer.

Proton is also looking into diesel engines for its cars, as diesels are important for new markets that Proton wants to enter such as the Indian market. A foreign partner will also be a part of this as it would be very costly to self-develop a diesel engine all by its own.

In India, the availability of a diesel engine can make or break a model. Lackluster sales of compact cars such as the Chevrolet Aveo notchback sedan are attributed to the lack of a diesel engine by many Indian automotive journalists.

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The facelifted Proton GEN2 which was revealed in Thailand earlier has finally arrived on Malaysian shores. The GEN2 is an important mark in Proton history as it was the first Proton car with the new Proton Campro engine, and with this facelift it gets a new series of engines based on the Campro. Read more details after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of 2008 Proton GEN2 Facelift with CPS launched!

Indian paper The Telegraph has revealed to us one of the partners in India that Proton is talking to. Argentum Motors is the new owner of the defunct Daewoo Motors plant in Surajpur, Uttar Pradesh, a state in northern India.

Proton is reportedly talking to Argentum Motors on using the plant for contract manufacturing or sourcing of components. Argentum executive Ajay Singh says Proton was looking into ways to bring down production costs for its Indian market entry, and the Argentum plant provided some ways to achieve that goal. He added that Argentum is also talking to other manufacturers like Daimler AG.

Related Posts:
Proton to finalise India plan by mid-2008
Proton and the Indian automotive industry

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It appears that a group of people have been working on a Super 2000 Proton Satria Neo rally car, and the above image sent in by LivinCars is proof that such a race machine is in the works. Yahoo Eurosport UK reports that the people behind this car is most likely Mellors Elliot Motorsport based at Bakewell in the Derbyshire region. Mellors Elliot Motorsport was the company that prepared the Proton PERT that Karamjit Singh raced and won in the Production Car World Championship. This is unconfirmed of course.

No specifications at the moment, but FIA regulations for Super 2000 cars include a maximum power output of 280 horsepower normally aspirated, so it’s just natural that the development team tune up the Neo to produce that amount of power to be competitive. There’s also a maximum displacement limit of 2.0 liters - so it’s not very likely that this will be powered by a Campro 1.6 engine. The engine must be mated to a 6-speed sequential gearbox with control specification made by Sadev, Xtrac or Ricardo.

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It’s been quite some time since we’ve heard from Proton’s Race Rally Research division. The last cars that they had put their tuning touch on was Proton Waja MME and the Proton GEN2 MME back in 2006. Because their first product was the Proton Satria R3 based on the Satria GTI, many have been anxiously waiting for the R3-tuned version of the Satria Neo to debut. The wait is over, and the Proton Satria Neo R3 is here.

Read my test drive report after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Proton Satria Neo R3 Test Drive Review

EXCLUSIVE UPDATE: Proton MPV exclusive initial details revealed!
14th October 2008 UPDATE: Proton MPV Spyshots - photos of the actual Proton MPV being tested on public roads!

A forumer posted photos of a Proton MPV test mule with a Toyota Wish body. Proton is currently performing on-road tests of the new MPV and is either:

a) employing a well known disguise technique of using the body of a similiar vehicle to hide the chassis of a car being tested, or…
b) is currently performing powertrain tests with a body of a similiar weight and size.

The photos show that the interior features a Toyota Wish dashboard with a Proton steering wheel. The interior seems to have a bad fit and finish - weird gaps here and there very atypical of a Toyota.

Look at the area around the left-most air conditioning vent as well as the area where the dash meets the center tunnel which runs between the two front seats. The dash could be looking that way because it has been adapted to fit the Proton MPV’s interior. If you look closely, there’s nothing where the dash-mounted shift lever is supposed to be. There is very likely a Proton powertrain and gearbox under this test mule’s engine bay.

On-road tests with a different body can be done if the air intakes provided by the donor body’s grilles and bumper vents as well as undercarriage design are modified to match amount of air cooling that the final product’s design will give the engine bay. Adding ballasts or stripping unnecessary equipment is done to ensure the final body is the same or similiar weight to the actual product.

Hopefully more photos of the new MPV will surface soon, perhaps later in the year we’ll see some with the actual body.

Proton plans to finalise its India strategy by the middle of 2008, according to its managing director Datuk Syed Zainal in a report by The Star yesterday. A suitable partner (or partners) for the Indian market would have the following qualities:

• manufacturing and distribution experience
• car design and localisation capabilites

Proton will be targetting the B-segment and C-segment in India with cars like the Proton Saga and the Proton Person, with a strategy similiar to the one they used in China, which was getting a Chinese manufacturer to buy CKD kits of the GEN2 (CBU imports initially) and handle sales and marketing themselves in their own market which they would be familiar with, something Proton would not have experience with.

Read my previous article for my thoughts on how Proton could fit into the Indian automotive industry: Proton and the Indian automotive industry. It was written before the Saga launch so at that point we were still speculating the Saga’s dimensions.

On the local scenes, there will be something nice from Proton next week

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Proton posted a profit of RM11 million for the Q3 2007 period ending 31st December 2007, a big improvement over the Q3 2006 loss of RM272 million. Proton attributes the profit to higher sales volume and lower operating costs.

Q3 2007 revenue was up to RM1.45 billion, boosted by increased sales of 36,784 in Q3, up by 2,444 units from 34,340 in Q2, thanks to Persona sales of over 30,000 units and Saga bookings of over 35,000 since it was launched on the 18th of January 2008. Proton’s market share in this quarter increased to 34.8% compared to 33.1% and 26.5% in Q2 2007 and Q1 2007 respectively.

Proton managing director Datuk Syed Zainal revealed that Proton will be unveiling its new MPV early next year, but declined to reveal any other details about the MPV.

We can expect the new Proton MPV to have more carryover of components from existing models to improve economies of scale and reduce development costs.

EXCLUSIVE UPDATE: Proton MPV exclusive initial details revealed!