Proton unveils Pahlawan series concepts at KLIMS ’10
At first glance, Proton’s pavilion in the Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show (KLIMS ’10) would seem to be nothing more than a glorified display stand for its existing models. Occupying 1,500 m2 of floor space, the first exhibits that greet you as you walk in are the very same cars you see every day on our roads – the Inspira, Persona, Satria Neo CPS, and Exora.
However, if you do walk in, there are some pretty interesting displays in store to capture your attention. Slightly further inside are the company’s up-and-coming electric cars – the Saga EV, and Exora Extended Range Hybrid on display accompanied by a cut-away model of the latter. Both these cars will undergo fleet testing by government agencies soon, so watch this space over the next few months.
Subsidiary Lotus also played its part in the show by sending over the Esprit, one of five new cars unveiled by the firm at the recent Paris Motor Show. Along with the Esprit, Lotus also displayed the Evora S, Exige Cup 260,l and City Car Concept, which is essentially a three-door Proton EMAS with Norfolk’s touches applied to it. The EMAS itself was also on display, and Proton’s Managing Director Dato’ Syed Zainal Abidin confirmed once again that the car is set for eventual production.
The main show at Proton’s booth however, is its line-up of five concept vehicles called the Pahlawan series, all named after the quintet of famous ‘Hang’ warriors from the times of the Malacca Sultanate. The Kasturi concept is essentially a dressed-up version of the Saga BLM facelift which Proton unveiled at the recent Thai Motor Expo 2010 in Bangkok. A dressed-up version of the Inspira was also showcased as the Jebat concept.
Another familiar looking concept is the Lekir, which is actually a Lotus Europa with Proton’s badges. In fact, the Europa was originally planned for production by Proton in Malaysia. Having been replaced by the Evora in Lotus’ line-up, the original manufacturing jigs used by Lotus can even be sent wholesale to either Shah Alam or Tanjung Malim.
Where things start to look less familiar is with the Lekiu, which is a front-wheel drive SUV based on the Exora MPV. The Exora’s torsion beam rear axle makes integration of a four-wheel drive system impossible without substantial re-engineering of the platform’s rear section. A peek under its skirt reveals working underpinnings – suspension, fuel tank, and exhaust were all present, so this model could be closer to production-ready status than we might think.
Finally, we have the Tuah, a concept which previews the next generation Persona. The car on display is merely a non-working life-sized model. Some of you might recall images of a ‘flattened’ Exora prototype running undergoing road tests. We suspect that the underpinnings of that test mule, which features multi-link rear suspension in place of the Exora’s torsion beam, will eventually form the basis of this car.
Around the vicinity of the Tuah, visitors will find three Campro engines on display. There is the basic Campro engine alongside the 125hp Campro CPS. The remaining engine is the eagerly awaited Campro Turbo, which Dato’ Syed Zainal reiterated would go first into the Exora.
Proton’s motorsport arm, R3, also has a dedicated section in the pavilion, putting the Satria Neo S2000 on display along with a specially-prepared Satria Neo CPS tuned to achieve 200hp with the help of a turbocharger and a few other performance enhancing parts.
Budding automotive designers and engineers might want to head right to the end of Proton’s booth to check out a corner dubbed the Styling Studio, where visitors will get a chance to experience first-hand and participate in the different stages of car designing, from the design sketching, right to the opportunity to customise their very own Proton model.
Proton’s pavilion is located at Tun Razak Hall 2, PWTC, directly opposite Perodua in the same hall.
