Much has been said about the recently launched Proton Iriz and Persona facelifts, from the driving experience to the headline grabbing price cuts. However, our interview with the national carmaker’s chief designer Azlan Othman has now shed some light about some of the design changes of the two cars, and the decisions behind them.
According to Azlan, a lot of work has been done to increase the commonalities between the two cars, with items like the bonnet and reflector headlights now shared across both models – previously, the Iriz featured projector lamps. This provides the added benefit of reducing cost, which is likely one of the reasons why Proton has managed to drop the starting price of the Iriz below RM37,000.
When asked why the cars did not come with items like LED headlights, as the Perodua Myvi does, Azlan said, “A lot of people say we should fix the fundamental things first. From what we know from reports and everything else, the lights were not the main issues of the cars in the past, so we had to be practical. The cost of the cars was a much more important thing to consider.
“So these were conscious decisions that we made to commonise what we could and make some of the other parts as different as we could. At the end of the day, it’s about providing the best value to our customers; we can’t just give good looks. Value is very important.”
Even so, Proton went to great lengths to differentiate the two cars stylistically, with different grilles, bumpers, wheels and even colour options for each one. Azlan said that while the company managed to lower the price of the cars through parts sharing, there was also a need to retain their individual personalities.
“Like I said, it’s about providing the best value for our customers. But at the same time, each character has to be distinct between the two cars. We’ve styled them in such a way that we want them to be different. So as much as you want to give the best value or the lowest price by commonising everything, that would not fulfil the design intent of making sure the cars look different enough to appeal to the customers,” he said.
The Iriz and Persona receive a variety of updates both aesthetically and mechanically, including a new infotainment system with the “Hi Proton” voice control. Power comes from a 109 PS 1.6 litre VVT engine paired to either a five-speed manual gearbox or a CVT, with the Iriz also getting the option of a 95 PS 1.3 litre mill. Prices range from RM36,700 to RM50,700 for the Iriz and from RM42,600 to RM54,600 for the Persona.
GALLERY: 2019 Proton Iriz 1.6 Premium CVT
GALLERY: 2019 Proton Persona 1.6 Premium
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Takmau pening, takmau fikir. Beli je P2
Ramai member2 & famili lebih rela beli sekenhen Honda city, vios, civic dari amik Proton baru… bila tanya knape? Diorang pon xtau knape.
My family has 2 preves, 2 saga flx, 1 exora, 1 iriz, 1 savvy and 1 new iriz coming soon.
Not good enough. A Satria GTI and a Wira 1.8 must be in the list.
Proton Juara mpv.
family of a sinking ship. HKL.
Dont forget savvy..
Then take my proton tiara in ur list..
Have you been to Japan. The juara type of van is popular there. Now the front is like a mini aphard
For 50k you can get a decent quality City or Vios which is a proper sedan for your family.
Of course there is a probability of buying a problematic used car, but doing some proper research will help. Not to mention that some new cars are also problematic.
U r saying its better to go 50-50 on used car without warranty than go with new car with warranty?
If i were to spend the same amount of money for a car then the best way is to buy new. If i cant afford the car i want new, then only i will go used.
An 18 months old Honda city or vios can be bought at that price, go ask the respective dealers for pre reg or pre owned cars. Car is relatively new, with complete service history and still in warranty.
What would people in Langkawi buy? A Proton or Japanese car? There we know which car is more favourable for the same price.
Neither. I see mostly are conti brands
Because they are ashamed to admit ‘biar papa asal bergaya’. Aku ada Honda, kau ade?
Another reason is they have never felt continental cars before and under the impression it will always breakdown and maintenance is super high.
Tu la sebabnya ramai pemilik Bezza komplen kenapa servis kereta mereka mahal gila bila dibanding dengan Proton Persona. Tak pakai otak bila beli, tak pikir.
But but… How come more people complaint of Proton’s bad service in JD Power? Proton owners tak pikir bila beli kah?
Which era of JD Power survey did you referred to? Because according to 2018 Customer Satisfaction Survey, Proton has outranked Mazda, Volkswagen & surprisingly Perodua, achieving only 2 points below market average. So I am curious why with your negative comments laced with untruths.
Here in Penang (and also in Kedah) there are lots of Iriz on the road. Not as much as Myvi’s , but it’s not an ‘exotic’ car.
Beli P2 byk pening dan masalah wor, kereta tak cukup power, tak selesa, sentiasa keluar error signal pun tak tahu mahu berhenti kereta atau tidak. Kereta berhenti kat lampu isyarat sentiasa bergegar, cabin dlm byk bising, kelajuan 70km/jam tekan brek gagal berhenti jarak pendek apabila depan kereta tiba² lampu belakangnya bernyala
RV can’t save lives compared to the superior Iriz safety specs.
This is very sad. After waiting many years for Iriz facelift, it turns out to be a dissapointment as the facelift design is getting worse. With this game over design, it will be tough for Proton to increase Iriz sales. Maybe the sales will decrease a lot since we have a better game changer with stunning design, Perodua Myvi. This should be a lesson for Proton to hire world-class designers and fire the current designers to change their game.
Proton now just distribute Geely cars. They just bring in Geely vehicles and tampal the Proton logo on the car.
Hello Proton, Naza does the same thing for Kia cars. Proton should at least make their own cars with the Geely engine!
It is very sad indeed. The increase in accidents & road deaths are no coincidence with the increase in Perodua sales. The longstanding problem of easily spoiled 3rd brake lights and the rear lights indistinguishable from brake lights contribute much to one of the highest accident rates in the world, and the unsafe milo tin body played no small part in the mortality rates. Truly sad indeed for someone to glorify a deathtrap. Are you the salesperson by the way? You sound like one. Ever heard the words conscious and responsibility toward mankind?
Never been seen a human being got easily aroused by a simple design in the Myvi to the extend calling it ‘stunning’.
Amazing indeed. Exotic or premium cars will either be rubbish or god stunning to you.
Campro? Eeeuuuwww!
If you are constipated, please go to the nearest toilet and not continue to stay at your keyboard.
Correct bro. Local Malaysia parents to be blamed here becuz, when their kids go kolej and maktab. They rather get jazz & myvi for them , but not iriz & persona. When we go balek kampung , we rather get alphard estima. But not exora & ertiga. When get a job promotion, we rather get a honda civic. But not suprima & preve.
When we asked them, why never consider to get proton cars. They sez the cars not gud. Padahal they nvr buy proton cars pon, how do they noe not gud… Typical local parents pon nak up
I have order an Iriz, a much safer car than P2 cars.
After 2 years, hope no regret..
Mine already 4 years, no problem
The car is 5 years old already. They should already be in the testing phase of the replacement model not facelifting the old model
Well, all the best Mr.Azlan.But I do have a request.Your future design should be inspired by the current hot hatch line up by top marques; I’m sure that’ll elevate proton’s sales & image.
You ran out of ideas and made the Iriz uglier for the sake of being different??
Iriz Fc terribad.. The fuel meter show 410km left then from Klang to Uniten then Bangi then Klang back.. 220km left.. Meh..
Maibi only last 180km per fuel tank. How?
What is Maibi?
Then what is Iriz Fc? Is it some new football club that likes to travel around Klang, Bangi & Uniten?
FC is fuel consumption. Takkan u tak tahu
Everyone also knew Maibi is Myvi. Didn’t you get the memo?
I remember when the Persona VVT launched, Proton boosted that almost everything was knew.
when compare old IRIZ and new, older IRIZ headlamps still looks nicer
Why can’t they make the design more sporty like suzuki swift?
The design is really outdated and out of proportion (ie Persona).
Did the TEAM and Management who approved this design buy these cars?
The Chinese says what, Proton just kowtow. Simple. The reduction of cost just shows how much the previous management overcharge the current customers. If i’m one of them, i’ll be very very piss.
I’m probably the only one who thinks the new iriz looks great. Not ‘stunning’ but definitely wouldn’t mind owning one of these.
Anyway better test drive dulu baru critic. Better go and see dengan mata sendiri, bukan through pictures je. I thought the new myvis were ugly before I saw them on the roads and these irizs look better than the myvis did in pictures.
Persona? Still bad proportions, but a bit premium than before. Not something I’d buy personally. But if you’re looking for value, now its a better competitor for the class la.
Well said!
New Iriz facelift grille is ugly. Why Azlan could’nt just use the infinite weave grille of the X70? The V shaped & plasticky grille are the turn-offs.
Well said!
what happen to the jatco cvt torque converter based plan?
still no ball to drop the punch cvt?
last time we complaint kaw2 on preve cvt laggy characteristic, proton fan boy said it was tuned to be like conti car, damn
No problems with our 2 turbo preves, 2012 and 2013 models. One of our preve knock the back if a jazz with only a scratch. The jazz dent here and there.
Buy Iriz manual is also a good option. It uses gear box from gatrag. Why I say Iriz is safer than any perodua car, is because the body is of ultra high tensile steel. I also have an Iriz from 2015. No problem after using almost 5 years. You can use Iriz for rally unlike P2 cars because proton cars have good rigid chasis too.