FANS of hot-hatches may remember the
Proton Satria GTi, a model that helped
establish the Malaysian carmaker's
credentials here in the late '90s.
Like practically every Proton built
until recently, the hatch was based on a
superseded Mitsubishi - in Satria's case
a 1991 Mirage. And, while it was never a
technological tour de force, the GTi came
dressed for business with a distinctive
body kit, and backed up its swagger with
handling that confirmed the Lotus badge
on its rump wasn't mere hype.
Unfortunately for Proton, the base
Satria was an old car when it arrived here
in '97, and, having built a small following
with the GTi, the model was discontinued
locally in 2005, leaving a hole in the
range that's taken a while to fill.
Now Proton is ready to step back into
this sector with an all-new car, fittingly
dubbed the Satria Neo. This three-
door hatch is built on a new platform
developed by Proton and manufactured
at the company's state-of-the-art Tajung
Malim plant outside Kuala Lumpur.
An attractive, if conventionally styled
three-door hatch, the Satria Neo sports
enough fresh design cues to differentiate
it from the herd. Its 16-inch alloy wheels
are punched out to the corners and
housed under flared wheel arches,
lending the car a squat, purposeful
stance. The creased bonnet line, pinched,
wraparound headlights and large air
intake convey an air of sportiness, and
there are some other nice touches, such
as the centre-mount exhaust, integrated
rear wing and alloy-look fuel filler cap.
As with the exterior styling, the
interior doesn't attempt to rewrite
the rules, meaning space efficiency is
acceptable without setting any new
standards for roominess. The interior
design is likewise agreeable for the
most part, although the positioning of
the power-window switches appeared
awkward, as did the hard dash plastics,
tiny glove box and lack of steering wheel
reach adjustment.
Fortunately, the story gets better
once out on the curves, as the chassis
guys have done their job well, especially
considering that this is the base car, not
the GTi replacement. (The styling of that
model is signed off, but its delay is linked
to ongoing negotiations with Peugeot
over use of the 207 GTi powerplant).
There's plenty of grip from the 195/5ORl6
Continental rubber, the steering is
reasonably quick and well weighted, and
the overall handling balance is good, if a
little soft for press-on driving.
Countering the chassis's performance
is an engine that needs another 400cc
or so to be in the hunt. The Campro 1.6,
shared with the Gen 2, lacks bottom-end
punch, is not all that flash in the mid-range, and requires plenty of revs to make
respectable progress. In its defence,
however, the engine did free up over the
course of our Malaysian drive program.
Though reasonably refined and
boasting a capable chassis, the Neo needs
a better engine to be a force in Australia. -GED BULMER
Wheels October 2006
