5 Proton models most Malaysians forgot about

As our national car company, Proton’s managed to reach some pretty absurd highs over the years. A couple of Proton models have sold pretty well overseas, and some of them have even been featured on Top Gear, a massively popular motoring TV show in the UK (garnering mixed reviews, to be fair). And frankly, the first-generation Proton Saga remains one of the best designed cars ever in this writer’s opinion.

But not all of them were received well, even within the confines of our country, and we’re willing to bet that most of y’all have forgotten about a number of gems in the Proton catalogue. Take this one, for instance…

1. Proton Ertiga (2016-2019)

Technically a rebadge of the Suzuki Ertiga, the Proton Ertiga landed in Malaysia late 2016, and apparently, the six-seater MPV didn’t exactly sell like hot karipaps:

“It was unloved right from the beginning, abandoned by both Suzuki and its adopted parents at Proton, it was never even given a chance to compete properly with Perodua’s Alza.” – Hans, writing for WapCar

Why is that? According to Nazz Abdullah, a local automobile Youtuber, while the Ertiga sold well in India and Indonesia (under different automobile companies), he attributed its failure in Malaysia to its mediocre exterior design and stain-prone, beige-colored interior. It’s quite tragic, as he thought the MPV was pretty decent otherwise. Only 148 units of the Ertiga was assembled at the end of its commercial lifetime in 2019, and it died a quiet, unremarkable death after that.

2. Proton Arena/Jumbuck (2002-2009)

Yeah, that’s a pickup truck with the front of a Proton Wira. Let’s just take 10 seconds to look at it. We good? Alright.

From what we can tell, the Arena, like the Ertiga, wasn’t super in-demand in Malaysia, BUT it did pretty well in its export markets. The pickup truck was renamed the Jumbuck for the export markets of the UK, Taiwan, Australia and South Africa, and to illustrate just how popular the Jumbuck still is: over one-third of all Proton Jumbucks sold in the UK are still on the roads as of late 2022. Amazing.

3. Proton Juara (2001-2004)

This toaster-looking Proton model is the definition of ‘ahead of its time’. See, when the Juara was launched in July 2001, Proton was hoping to sell 5000 to 6000 units of the MPV by the end of the year… but by early December 2001, only 800-odd were snatched up in the local market. Its steep price at the time (RM50,000) combined with its unorthodox exterior were probably what led to its lackluster sales figures. Secondhand Juaras in good condition were sold for only RM3,000 to RM4,000, and by 2004, it was no more… or so people thought.

Here’s where the redemption arc begins – the Juara found a new lease on life starting 2010 as more and more Malaysians were looking to buy one. Many people started using it as a camper van due to its spacious interior, and more businesspeople were looking to buy it for the same reason.

“I never wanted a Juara because of its weird shape, and I’m pretty shocked at the demand for and price of the MPV now. Last time, it’s quite easy to find one, but it’s more difficult now. Businesspeople really like this model.” – Yap Ah Chong, in an interview with Kosmo

So remember, folks, you’re not ugly, you’re just ahead of your time.

4. Proton Putra/Coupe (1996-2001, 2004)

The Putra was an underappreciated, short-lived part of Proton’s, having been on sale for less than four years. It was equipped with a Mitsubishi 1.8-litre 16v DOHC 4G93P engine, which makes it a bit of a race car, and yeah, its UK variant had a fleeting run in the British Touring Car Championship as the Proton Coupe. Unfortunately, not many people wanted it at the time – it was outsold by the Proton Tiara – and it made a brief reappearance in 2004 when it was relaunched in limited quantities.

To this day, Proton purists say it’s one of the best Proton cars ever made, and this writer fervently agrees with that sentiment.

5. BONUS: Proton Wira Taxi in North Korea

So… there’s not much legit info about how or why Wiras were used as taxis in North Korea, but here’s the video of it cruising around in Pyongyang. The only source that we found talking about this mentions that around 2002, one of North Korea’s top leaders (and foreign representative) took a tour of the Proton plant in Shah Alam with 30 other officials. Not just that, he apparently discussed the possibility of a joint venture with Proton to set up a manufacturing plant in North Korea.

It seems that Kim Jong-il was interested in the idea of building cars in North Korea at the time, since he also visited a manufacturing plant in Shanghai. However the idea, like many missile tests, probably never took off. We don’t know if these are still in use today, and we’re not sure if we really wanna find out.