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04/08/2008
By EWAN KENNEDY
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Persona sedan is the latest car to come to Australia from the Malaysian car maker Proton. Virtually a four-door variant of the five-door Gen.2 hatchback that’s been here since 2004, it offers exceptional value for money. Positively stacked with the sort of equipment that’s usually only seen on upmarket European cars, Persona has a price list beginning at only $16,990.
Fea tures such as reverse parking sensors and climate-controlled air conditioning are standard and every model comes with alloy wheels. Also in the list of desirable features are remote central locking with boot release, reversing sensors, front and rear foglamps and an MP3-compatible CD audio system.
We like the fact that the Malaysians don’t follow the trend of most other Asian marques in slavishly following European body styling. But at the same time they don’t get too far away from the mainstream and thus alienate buyers. The result is a good looking sedan that stands out from the crowd without being overtly aggressive in doing so. The back end of Persona is particularly appealing to our eyes, with an almost coupe-like rear panel with swooping lights.
The rear of the Persona is tall to make space for a large boot, and we found the 430-litre volume handy during our road-test week with the car. Storage space can be extended to within the car by using a 60/40 split rear seat back.
Not all buyers like hatchbacks with the connotations of load-carrying practicality. So those who still prefer the looks, and the extra body rigidity, provided by a sedan may well find themselves drawn to this Proton.
There’s good interior space and four adults can be carried in reasonable comfort although the boot/rear legroom compromise is weighted more in favour of the aforementioned boot. Headroom will be fine for most tall travellers, but you may be best to try if for yourself as part of your pre-purchase testing.
Interior design is also away from Euro mainstream, with a sporty metallic instrument binnacle and air conditioning control clearly influenced by Proton’s British subsidiary, Lotus. OK, so Lotus is European, but it certainly makes its own statements in design, and this is very obvious in the way the Persona's cabin is set out.
There's a glovebox in the Persona, a feature strangely missing from the Gen.2 hatch. Persona's centre-console bin is much deeper than average and its positively cavernous interior can swallow a lot of stuff. Sadly, that’s not reflected in the tiny door pockets that could struggle to hold the wallet of someone on the well-off side.
If there's a drawback to the Proton Persona to our point of view it’s the rather small 1.6-litre engine. It develops maximum power of 82 kilowatts at 6000 rpm, and produces 148 Newton metres of torque at 4000 rpm. This is the first all-Proton engine, previous ones, although built by Proton, came from Mitsubishi. Again, Lotus has provided expertise for the design.
While there have been improvements to the engine, particularly in the torque range, since we first drove it in 2004, it still needs more grunt to our way of thinking. Then again, we admit to being revheads and the engine may prove fine for others. Provided they are willing to use the gearbox to keep the 1.6 in its ‘happy’ range.
However, Proton has elected to put the blinker lever on the wrong side for Australia, meaning you have to use the gear lever and blinker with the same hand, something that’s not always convenient if you’re doing a lot of gearchanging. This is an odd setup, because the Malaysians drive on the same side of the car as do Australians and we would have expected the blinker to be on the ‘Aussie’ side of the steering wheel.
With today's high fuel prices many buyers are putting fuel economy higher up their list than before, so the Persona's 1.6-litre unit may gain more favour than if it had been introduced a couple of years ago.
This smallish engine has a combined fuel rating of 6.6 litres per 100 kilometres according to the Australian ADR fuel consumption tests. We found that low number was certainly within reach on highway driving, and that suburban running would typically have it sitting in the eight to nine litre range.
By far the biggest benefit gained by Proton from its Lotus design team is in chassis dynamics. On the road the Persona is beautifully balanced with excellent handling road grip and precise steering. The dynamics also adds that certain something called character that’s normally only felt in cars designed and built for the European market.
We should also point out that a good chassis is one that’s always crying out for more grunt, which may be one reason the engine feels down on action.
 If you enjoy driving and like to make trips to quiet country roads just for the fun of it, then the Proton Persona should sit high on your short list of affordable machines. It really is something out of the ordinary in this market segment, even to the extent that you could say it has character, something that’s normally found only in European cars.
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
Proton Persona GX 1.6-litre four-door sedan: $16,990
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard
Air Conditioning: Standard
Automatic Transmission: $2000 option
CD Player: Standard
Central Locking: Standard
Cruise Control: Not offered
Dual Front Airbags: Standard
Front Side Airbags: Not offered
Stability Control: Not offered
Traction Control: Not offered
SPECIFICATIONS (Proton Persona GX 1.6-litre four-door sedan)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 1.597 litres
Configuration: Four cylinders in line
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.1:1
Bore/Stroke: 76.0 mm x 88.0 mm
Maximum Power: 82 kW @ 6000 rpm
Maximum Torque: 148 Nm @ 4000 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Front
Manual Transmission: Five-speed
Automatic Transmission: Four-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 4.052:1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4477 mm
Wheelbase: 2600 mm
Width: 1725 mm
Height: 1438 mm
Turning Circle: 10.1 metres
Kerb Mass: 1250 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 50 litres
Towing Ability: N/A
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: MacPherson struts, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Multi-link, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: 12.0 seconds
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 95RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 6.6 L/100km
GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 7.5/10
Air Pollution Rating: 6.5/10
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three years/unlimited km
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