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Driving the Waja 1.8X
As a sign of Proton’s more direct involvement in some areas, the press preview was organized by the manufacturer instead of its distributor. For the test-drive, a route was planned from the factory in Shah Alam, Selangor to Bukit Tinggi near Genting Highlands and back – not a particularly long drive but the twisty Bukit Tinggi road offers a good test for any car.
Within a short while of driving the Waja 1.8X, it was evident that the car has a more European character in terms of driving. The engine didn’t have a fast-revving feel and more of a ‘lazy cruiser’ character – something which is quite different from previous Protons. This is not to say it isn’t spirited; it certainly showed more zip than the Waja 1.6 and particularly when moving off from traffic lights, it would pull more strongly.
What interested me more was the transmission programming and I put it to various situations to see how it would behave. One thing I discovered was that it won’t shift down automatically on lifting off, something which I liked when I tested the latest Renault Scenic (which is said to have the same type of transmission). The behaviour in the Scenic was really nice as it allowed for sporty cornering as if you dropped a gear prior to entering.
However, I did find some other conditions when a lower gear would suddenly be engaged. This was dependent on the way the brake pedal was pressed. Hard braking would initiate a downshift and sudden braking would also do the same, both of which make sense. According to the Renault engineer who was with me, the programming strategy is different from that in the Laguna II and was in accordance with the requirements specified by Proton. In other words, Proton wanted a character more suited to Malaysian driving styles.
Transitions between gears were smooth with almost no shift shock. However, what I didn’t like was the specific ‘hold’ feature in the programming. Said to be done to enhance driving pleasure, this feature keeps a gear position when you lift off, so the revs don’t fall as the next higher gear is selected because load is reduced. I did not find that pleasant at all as sometimes, the engine would be held at 4000 rpm and took quite some time to upshift by itself. With some transmissions, you can ‘force’ the upshift by lifting off suddenly but this did not seem to work with the Waja.
In some circumstances, such a feature may be useful but to my mind, it can also have implications on fuel consumption. Those extra moments of remaining at high revs mean extra petrol is consumed when some can be saved by allowing the transmission to shift up faster and lower engine speed.
In the ride and handling department, the Waja has won many points – hardly surprising when one considers that Lotus was involved. The expertise that has gone into some exceptional sportscars like the Lotus Elise has been used for tuning the Waja suspension and it was always felt that the car could handle much more power.
The bigger wheels do make a difference in steering, particularly the ‘turn-in’, and there’s a nice direct feel through the steering. Responsiveness is good and on the twisty sections up the Bukit Tinggi hill, the car was a joy to drive fast. But the rear end did not seem well tied down and sometimes stepped out a bit. This may tie in with some lateral motion when getting over speed-humps, something which a Lotus engineer who was present suspected was due to unbalanced or insufficient tightening of some links at the rear axle. Probably one of those things one finds with early production units when workers are not so familiar with the assembly yet (although one would expect them to already be familiar with the Waja by now).
The bigger wheels give a nicer, more solid ride that is even closer to a European sedan than the Waja 1.6. However, in spite of what was said about NVH improvements, I could not discern any difference from the Waja 1.6 in terms of noise levels which are reasonably low but engine noise still intrudes more than I feel should be the case.
There’s not much to comment about the cabin appointments which will be familiar with anyone who has a Waja 1.6X. Actually, I had not tested a Waja for some time and I recall that in the early units, I had two criticisms – one concerned the seat structure and the other was the quality of the ashtray opening action. The former has been improved (this was done quite early when even overseas journalists had negative comments) but it seems like the ashtray still has that cheap feel to it when you slide it out. Back then, I was told that it was mainly to do with the spring tension but in the Waja 1.8X, it still slides out in a crude manner and is loose.
Ergonomics are fairly good although in some areas, improvements can be made. I found I had to look around the steering wheel to determine the various positions for the cruise control switch as most of it was obscured. Reflections on the plastic dust cover of the instrument panel are also excessive and irritating. Personally, I did not really like the driving position which I found too much like a sportscar – but I would not criticize it since that is something personal. I found that in spite of adjusting the seat down, the steering wheel position was still low in relation to my body, which I do not find so comfortable.
Conclusion
The addition of the new Waja 1.8 to the range is certainly a welcome one. There have been people who want the extra power and from Proton’s studies, these are young executives who have perhaps become young parents and miss their Satria GTI days. The sportiness in the Waja 1.8 will certainly compensate for that loss, I think!
In press materials, no mention is made of the fact that the engine is supplied by Renault but everyone knows this. Proton is obviously taking a little bit of risk offering a French powerplant since they have previously had a reputation for not being all that great and spares have also been expensive. But critics should not base their opinions on historical experiences and indeed, today’s Renault engines are as good as they come, with many advancements in design and engineering. They are fairly reliable and like many European engines, designed for long service intervals. As for parts, it would seem pretty certain the Proton will ensure that prices are reasonable and the only issue for them will be that they have to carry more different parts for the powertrain since there won’t be common ones with the Mitsubishi-based engines.
Pricing remains a secret as I write this report but you will know by Thursday afternoon. I heard that the standard Waja 1.8 should be around RM70,000 while the Waja 1.8X could be in the mid-RM70,000s. Still good value for money although there will be the lure of some Korean products which are priced just a little bit higher.
