If you have been considering a new example of the current Proton Saga with a manual transmission, best get your order in quick as production of the national carmaker’s sedan with the DIY gearbox option will come to a close by the end of this year, Proton has confirmed. Limited units are still available, though you’ll likely need to enquire with several dealerships to know about stock allocation.
Despite the Saga enjoying its strongest sales numbers in the last decade since 2013 (when the low-cost SV was introduced), with nearly 50,000 units delivered as of the end of August this year, or a 6.7% gain over the same period last year, demand for the manual transmission-equipped Saga has been very low.
This development is a significant one, as it would mean that Proton will no longer produce a model with a manual transmission from 2025 onwards. Fans of the affordable, manual transmission vehicle will lament this, but the writing has in fact long been on the wall for the three-pedal, regular passenger car.
Within Proton’s own product line, recent models that offered the choice of a manual transmission included the Persona and Iriz, though the manuals for these were dropped when their respective facelift models emerged in August 2021 for the 2022 model year.
Our man, Hafriz Shah reached out to Proton in 2020 regarding demand for its manual transmission-equipped cars, and the national carmaker said that in 2019, just five percent of all Sagas, three percent of Irizes and two percent of Personas sold were equipped with a manual gearbox, or fewer than 2,700 units – or less than four percent – comprised the over-67,000 units of the three models combined in that time.
In short, the lack of demand, and therefore economic sense for continuing production of cars with a manual transmission affects even Proton, and not for lack of trying on the manufacturer’s part. When the Iriz was launched exactly 10 years ago today in 2014, Proton offered its B-segment hatchback with the manual gearbox across all trim levels and both 1.3L and 1.6L engine variants.
Weak demand for the manual transmission in this area of the market also applies to Perodua, which had already discontinued the MT for Myvi and Axia, save for the base variant Axia E that is based on the previous-generation car.
Therefore, money talks, or more specifically, where customers choose to put theirs, and so it appears the manual transmission-equipped family car is an increasingly rare place for the car buyer to do so. If you’ve been on the fence with deciding upon a new, manual transmission Proton, perhaps the close of production for the MT-equipped Saga could tip the balance.
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It is bound to happen. Looking at how small the margin for manual is selling compares to auto. Saga has become everyone first car, with the standard variant is the best to start with. Manual will always cater to the enthusiast. Auto is convenient for everyone. After all, Saga is still the best car, very engaging for little spirited driving, while giving the comfort that the driver and passenger needed
I’ll always buy MT if the specs are the same as the HIGH model. But unfortunately, most if not all MT specs are LOW.
The latest Saga manual gearbox is is sourced from China, but shift quality is better compare to the Getrag before it (a few YT reviewer/owner confirmed so). So, last chance for those who want a new car with nice manual shifter.