Opel Speedster Provides Clues to Proton Sportscar
Given its size, Proton obviously cannot challenge the global players head-on so the other strategy for the future (if it wants to remain independent) is to find niches in the market to cater to. One of these is the sportscar niche which has traditionally given manufacturers a fairly good profit margin from low-volume models.
Earlier this year, Proton announced that it had commissioned Lotus Engineering to begin work on a sportscar that was then referred to as the ‘Proton Ultimate’. A few months ago, this car was renamed the ‘Malaysian Sports Car’ (MSC) and a few more details were provided of the car which is expected to go on sale in 2003.
The concept of the MSC is to use advanced engineering but keep costs down through the use of some components that are used in high-volume models. This is the same approach taken for popular sportscar like the Toyota Celica, Nissan Silvia and Ford Puma – they look exciting but there are many components from other models. For the MSC, items like the foot pedals, power window and locking mechanisms, etc can all be shared with the Waja and yet not make a significant difference to the buyer. This is not possible with Lotus cars which, by virtue of being more exclusive, have many customised parts with low production runs that bump up the cost.
OPEL SPEEDSTER
The new Opel Speedster (Vauxhall VX220 in the UK) which has just gone on sale in Europe gives a good idea of how the MSC could be as it was conceived along the same concept and in fact, it uses a Lotus-developed platform and is built at the Lotus factory in UK. Some 80% of the parts in this sportscar are shared with the Open Vectra.
The Speedster has a bonded aluminium chassis that keeps weight way down and yet achieves exceptionally high torsional rigidity. The composite bodywork is designed to withstand frontal and side impacts to the energy levels that regulations set, while an integral steel roll-over bar offers support in the event the car flips upside down.
The compactly dimensioned Speedster (length – 3790 mm, width – 1711 mm) rides on double wishbone suspension and is powered by a mid-mounted 2.2-litre all-aluminium 4-cylinder engine that develops 108 kW/147 bhp. A member of Opel’s ECOTEC engine family, the powerplant weighs just 138 kgs and installed in the Speedster, its fuel consumption is claimed to be as good as 13 kms/litre. The Speedster is claimed to be able to rocket to 100 km/h in less than 6 seconds and continue on to a top speed of 220 km/h.
Inside the two-seater, the dominating feature is the visible aluminium chassis. The instrumentation is kept to bare essentials with two dials and LCD displays that give information as needed. In other words, this is a car that will satisfy the purist. In fact, the Speedster even comes without air-conditioning, central locking… not even power steering! The engineers feel that such features would add weight and clash with its uncompromising character.
CORE TECHNOLOGY
The Lotus-developed core technology used by the Speedster – the exceptionally stiff and light chassis of extruded and bonded aluminium which also forms the load-bearing structure for the car – will also be used in the MSC as will a mid-engined layout. With Lotus having refined this technology – its ultimate form is in the Lotus M250 prototype – the development cost for the MSC would not be very high. According to Tan Sri Tengku Mahaleel, Proton’s CEO, it will cost just a quarter of what it would cost to develop a high-volume sedan. Considering that the Waja was developed at a cost of RM970 million, this means the MSC should cost around RM400 million. The MSC will not be produced in large numbers and a figure of 3,000 units, to be produced over five years, is planned.
The powerplant for the MSC is still a secret but Tengku Mahaleel has indicated that it would have at least 147 kW/200 bhp. It could well be the Petronas engine or to reduce costs, a turbocharged or supercharged Satria GTI engine which is being developed by Proton. But because of the light weight of the car, it will not need a large engine to achieve real sportscar performance. The target is acceleration from standstill to 100 km/h in less than 6 seconds.
When the MSC was first announced, the price indicated was around RM150,000 but that was before any cost studies were done seriously. The figure has now been raised to ‘under RM200,000′ which would still be quite a bargain against comparable imported sportscars.
