It's here. Finally. After more than a month's wait. Was it worth the wait?
Here it is guys. Collected my car with much butterflies in the stomach and
excitement a 3-year old would demonstrate when given an ice-cream. Really
cannot explain how a car can have such an effect on the full grown men. But
then again, many at ZTH would probably react the same way :) Faisal, of R3
Marketing, was there to ensure everything went to plan (that's customer
service for ya, folks!) and of course my SA - Affandy was present to assist
me with checking before official handing-over. No major issues except that
the carbon fibre spoiler has been temporarily replaced with a PU GTi
version. Faisal explained that there was a quality issue and a new, better
vendor has been assigned to develop the replacements. An official letter
from R3 was issued to inform buyers of the situation. A replacement would
be available sometime in January. And oh, nice R3 cap Faisal, thanks!
First impressions? It's quite preliminary, since I've only deflowered it
for 100km. Actually I don't think I've officially deflowered it yet. Here
goes nothing:
Exterior
I am pretty neutral about the styling. I like its subtlety. And it actually
looks better in the flesh. This car has presence. No doubt about that. The
Advanti rims, wrapped in Yoko rubber look the business, and I really do not
mind the red + white decal too. The R3 badges are nice, and I'll be sure to
guard them with my life, since they are rare and according to Faisal
expensive to make because of its short run. I have minor qualms about the
fitting of the spoiler, and one of the R3 strips on the side. Other than
that, top job.
Interior
I love the Recaro SR4 seats. Snuggly and tight. However, one complain would
be that I think it sits too high. Especially for a 6ft 2-incher like me. It
would have been super if it was just a tad lower. The MOMO Tuner steering
is nice although I do miss my MOMO Race somewhat. I also like the carbon
fibre knob. Not quite MOMO Air Leather, but nice feel. The R3 carpets are
nice, and the red door and seat trimmings are ok. Pretty neutral on that. I
just wished the dashboard panels were carbon fibre, even faux carbon fibre
would do. But that isn't really a complaint, just a thought.
The fittings are pretty tight, no squeaks or rattles although I did notice
a slight rattle on my right speaker when the bass pumps (which is not much,
from the Clarion head unit). The dreaded usually useless coin box is still
flimsy. You would think that after 20 years in the business, Proton would
get that right, but no they didn't. It did fit snuggly back in place after
some coercion though. I suggest removing the damn thing from the dashboard
mould altogether. Nobody uses it anyway.
One thing I dislike are the pedals. Yes, they are GTi ones. But they are
awfully small. And they feel light and aluminium-ish. Also, no thanks to my
size 11 feet! One of my first mods would be to replace them with Sparco
Carbons. I also think the clutch pedal rides too high. Way higher than my
1.8 Persona and a Putra I recently tested. I'll get the SC to adjust the
pedal-height on my 1,000km service, if that's even possible. Just feels
plain wierd. And thanks to the overly high clutch, an embarrassing incident
entailed at the lights at Bangsar Shopping Complex. Engine stalled as I
released the clutch. Hmm. Not good. Haha.
The cabin is surprisingly quiet, despite the fact that some sound dampening
have been removed.
One thing left out I feel is the V-Kool tinting on the SGTi. The exclusion
means forking out even more money - for slightly more comfort and security.
Drats. A thumbs down here.
Performance
I'm running it in gently, despite claims by a certain Motoman, so no
revving above 3,000rpm. At least not until I hit the 1,000km mark. Despite
that fact, low-end torque is good. I can feel the poke as low as 2,000rpm.
The short-throw gearbox is nice, although still quite 'stiff' I must say.
Will know when it's properly run-in. But you know what? The SR Q an,what car??
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Limited Edition M24 Satria R3 : First Impressio
Started by
Vernieman
, Dec 14 2004 10:37 PM, 62 replies to this topic