Autoblog

The Malaysian government has decided to end its protection of Malaysia's Proton Motors. In addition to the import duties and taxes levied against foreign carmakers, Proton was also the recipient of tax breaks and "other government incentives."

The decision could be seen as a blow to Proton, but Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is confident that the carmaker can and is turning itself around. Even though it has lost half of its market share while it was being protected by the government, Badawi said recently "No question of a bailing out. Proton is doing well today... they have a good program, they have secured exports to India, China, Indonesia and the Middle East."

For it's part, Proton's efforts to link up with a foreign car company didn't end well last year. For the moment, it has proposed that the government take an official stake in the company.

[Source: InsideLine]

Late last year reports first surfaced that Volkswagen was interested in taking a controlling interest in Malaysian car maker Proton. But by March the talks had apparently broken down. Now for the first time Volkswagen has actually made a statement about Proton.

Volkswagen is picking up the pace in talks with the Malaysian government who happens to be Proton's controlling shareholder. VW officials will meet with government officials in the coming weeks about how to proceed. The result could be either a takeover or just a partnership.

[Source: Volkswagen]

GM has announced plans to start a joint venture with Malaysia's DRB-Hicom to sell a range of Chevrolets in the country and possibly set-up a manufacturing base for cars and parts for sale in southeast Asian region. Following the breakdown in talks with state-owned Proton earlier in the year, GM then turned to DRB-Hicom to help take advantage of the country's cheap labor and free trade agreements.

DRB-Hicom holds a 51% stake in the joint-venture with GM and plans to start operations by as early as October. By manufacturing in Malaysia, GM will be able to export cars and auto supplies to other Asian manufacturers based in Thailand, Japan and Indonesia with barely any taxes. No surprise that other foreign makes such as Volkswagen and PSA Peugeot-Citroen are interested in gaining a foothold in the country.

GM has had some limited success selling its products in Malaysia, where most foreign cars are heavily taxed. It previously sold Holden's older-generation VY Commodore in small numbers but ended this after a single model year due to poor sales. Despite this latest announcement, GM insists that it's still open to forming an alliance with Proton, revealing that there are "significant opportunities" in it.

[Source: Detroit News]

The guy who pulled off this 2-part heist is probably now teaching cucumbers a thing or two about being cool, and instructing killer bees in the value of persistence. The unnamed -- and uncaught -- thief walked into a Porsche dealership in Malaysia nattily dressed and holding a checkbook. He asked if he could test drive a black 911. Once given the keys, he got in, started it up, and drove straight out through the dealer's plate glass window. There was only one thing he didn't realize: the car only had enough gas to go 2 km, so it took the police just 30 minutes to find it abandoned.

But this was no ordinary thief. When he abandoned the car, he took the keys. Then, when the police impounded the car, they put gas in it. Add it up... and you have the same Porsche stolen again, this time from police headquarters. You can read the first part of the heist here, the second, here. Neither the thief -- whom we'll call Cool Hand Ahmad -- nor the car has been found.

Thanks for the tip, Demio121!

[Source: Malaysian Star]

Looks like the talks between Proton and Volkswagen aren't going as well as they could... again. Both companies have said that talks are continuing, but The Edge business newspaper is reporting that no agreement appears likely in the near future. They reported that VW has been "less keen" about the deal lately. The first round of deal breaking news came in December but things appeared to be back on track since then. Seems like there have been a lot of delays in the negotiations, fueling rumors of some discord, even though VW has already signed their letter of intent to purchase 51% of the company.

The deal itself involves the manufacturing part of Proton, which is Malayasian owned. VW is looking for additional production capacity for its Passat sedan to help with Japanese exports. Malayasian built Passats would avoid the Japanese tariffs because of a free trade agreement between these two countries. And even better news for Volkswagen is the fact that Malaysia is also working on free trade deals with Australia and the U.S. So they could also increase manufacturing there in the future for export to those markets as well.

Other companies are still showing interest in Proton, including three Malaysian firms. Some industry insiders even say GM is going to throw its hat into the ring. Another automaker that had been involved in the bidding was PSA Peugeot Citroën, but it has announced that it's no longer interested.

[Source: Motor Authority]

Yesterday it was chipped tires, today it's chipped license plates. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is becoming more popular in everything from credit cards and passports to toll transponders and now license plates. RFID tags can simplify life by providing an automatic ID when scanned. RFID uses a microchip and antenna that stores personal data and can be installed in a device or embedded into an object (or even under the skin). Although this raises a whole 'nother debate about the Big Brother aspect of monitoring people's movements and unwanted access to personal info by hackers, RFID can be used effectively to speed things up. Or to automatically register information. Which brings us to today's use generously shared by our brothers and sisters at Engadget: license plates.

Because of the frequency of auto theft in Malaysia, their Road Transport Department (RTD) has decided to start using RFID-equipped license plates. Integrated microchips will help make scanning and identifying vehicles easier for the authorities. Authorized mechanics will install the plates with the embedded microchips storing data about the vehicle's make, model, and driver info. Known as the e-plate, naturally, it has already been used effectively in Japan and the UK, where the chips can automatically record data from another vehicle's RFID in the event of an accident. Especially in hit-and-run situations this could be a Godsend. The RTD is hoping that Kuala Lumpur will see reductions in thefts as the new plates will make things tougher on carjackers because swapped plates won't match the vehicle ID. The program will start with new registrations and gradually work its way to older models on renewals. You just know these RFID tags are going to be implanted under the skin at birth in the not-too-distant future.

[Source: Engadget]

Following earlier reports of talks between the two firms, Malaysian automaker Proton and PSA group (Peugeot/Citroen) have signed an agreement for inter-company collaboration.

Proton, which once enjoyed a practical monopoly in its domestic market, is facing higher competition after the Malaysian government began relaxing import laws and allowing foreign cars into the market. To keep up with the competition, Proton is entering into a partnership with PSA that will provide them with the French automaker's considerable experience, starting with product development, through assembly and quality control, and all the way down to distribution.

PSA, meanwhile, will benefit from an improved foothold in Malaysia which could serve as a base of operations for all of Southeast Asia.

[Source: Reuters via Yahoo! India]

Malaysian carmaker Proton looks like it finally may be getting some mileage out of its U.K. subsidiary, Lotus. The company's new Satria Neo, an evolution of the Satria GTi, was apparently designed in partnership with Lotus, and the result is a handsome, if somewhat generic, two-door hatchback.

According to Proton, Lotus had its hand in everything from the exterior design to the engine and chassis dynamics, so there's reason to hope that the Satria Neo has reasonable performance potential.

The Neo is offered with 1.3 and 1.6 liter Proton CamPro four-cylinder, DOHC engines, with the more interesting 1.6 liter version offering 110 hp and a 0-100 km/h time of 11.5 seconds with the five-speed manual transmission.

The all-new chassis has a typical MacPherson strut front suspension and multi-link rear setup, with the 1.6-liter model rolling on "turbine-style" 16-inch alloys with 195/50 rubber.

Obviously targeted at a youthful demographic, the Proton Satria Neo launch party featured Malaysian rap superstars Too Phat and DJ Goldfish, and the Neo's minisite includes a "Celeb Blog." A full review of the Neo, including driving impressions, can be found here.

[Source: Proton]

Last week, Malaysian automaker Naza unveiled their new Sutera, a well-equipped bargain basement supermini that's a veritable 'We Are the World' on four wheels. Sutera employs a 65-horsepower 1.1-liter DOHC 16-valve engine from Daihatsu (Japan), boasts a shape penned by Pininfarina (Italy) and features NVH tuning and final suspension fiddling by Lotus Engineering (England). This is a rather ambitious move for the Naza , which has previously dealt largely in rebadged Kias. Exterior styling is standard supermini fare, albeit with a good bit of flare in the triangular details-- the rear brake/turn signal lamps dominate both the rear and side aspects, and the three-pointed door pulls are an unusual element. The most unusual/controversial design element, however, would be the front turn signals, which are located at the base of the windshield (near the base of the A-pillars). Wheels are of the 14" alloy variety, and they definitely look smallish, but should be a good bet for keeping replacement costs down for the tires.

Inside the five door, standard equipment includes power steering, dual airbags, power windows/locks/mirrors, 60/40 split fold rear seats, underseat storage and an MP3-compatible CD stereo. Gauges are of the love/hate center console capping variety, which should enable easier RHD/LHD configurations. As Naza expects to assemble about 30,000 Suteras a year, with plans to sell them everywhere from Malaysia to Malta, Cyprus, India, Brunei, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, and interestingly, the United Kingdom.

Learn more about the Sutera by checking out Naza's site here.

[Sources: Naza, Channel4 UK]

 

Yesterday the Malaysian government opened a drive-in massage parlor on the country's main highway, the North-South Highway. The facility offers massage chairs for patrons similar to those found in some malls in the U.S. Costs, if any, to use the chairs were not specified in the article.

The government approved and funded the parlor in the hopes of reducing traffic accidents by relaxing stressed-out drivers. There are plans to open a second parlor later this year.

[Source: Associated Press via ABC News]