Car 101: Me and My Proton

It has been 2 years now and my Proton is still going strong, clocking over 55,000 kilometers. The best part of car is the low maintenance cost. All you need is to take care of the water and oil. The worst part of the car; how should I put it; “demoralizing”. It has no air-bag, no other safety features, too many rattling parts, underpowered, ancient design and the list can go on and on.

I spent almost RM5,000 just for sound proofing, sound system and other accessories which is made as “standard” in other non-national cars. I have wasted my annual leaves just for the trip to the Proton Service Centre.

Despite of the harsh reality of the Proton cars, I am quite satisfied with my Proton. It has not failed me for the last 2 years and it takes me from point A to B without a hassle. But now I guess, change is in the air. Other car manufacturers are coming up with better and newer models which makes switching car to a non-national one more sense. In fact, 3 of my colleagues who were driving Proton have made the change to Korean cars and more is to come.

The way I see, the Proton’s problem is not in the car but in the company. If they could only improve on the quality control (they already taking steps on this but the result is yet to be seen) and launch new and refreshing models. The other car companies are already doing that and managing it well despite of the high protection given by the Government to Proton.

As I said I am not a Proton lover…

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