I spent a lot of time working in Malaysia. Imported cars are very expensive in KL. Protons, being domestically manufactured, attracted no import tax. I have quite a bit of time driving a Proton Wira which was based on an old Mitsubishi Lancer. Ahhh, memories.....

I own one of these, that button resets the alarm, not unpair the keys as far as I can tell. Safety is pretty good, these actually had the stiffest chassis out of any hatchback sold in Australia in 2006. Higher end versions got automatic climate control. The mediocre engine performance was a tradeoff for reliability, I've done 100km of track driving in one sitting with no cool down laps without overheating. Good review!

I lived in Malaysia for many years and still go back there often to visit friends etc. I have a 1.6 version of one of these parked over there that I never bothered to sell. Every year I come back, reconnect the battery, hop in and just drive - objectively it’s a pile of shit but it just works.

I bought a 2010 Neo in 2011, it’s was just over 6 months old and as new condition. It was a great little car, with amazing handling and ice cold air conditioning but slightly let down by poor quality interior. It was comfortable enough, but I’d have loved to get my hands on one of the editions with leather upholstery. Mine had a leak from the power steering which Proton repaired under warranty with no fuss. Mine was burnt orange which when polished looked absolutely stunning. I should add that I lived in Thailand at this time, and made frequent trips to Malaysia. There are tuners in Malaysia that add a turbo kit and all sorts of mods, I was often tempted but I kept mine stock.

Its really cool for us Malaysian. Many people bought it to race and went touge with it. There is also a special edition call R3 Clubsport and a R3 Lotus Racinv Edition. These were very rare and highly sought after here in Malaysia.

Fascinating to see these cars being reviewed by a Brit, as a used/vintage car. In Malaysia, I wouldn’t say we praise the build quality or practicality but it IS an underrated yet desirable, cheap enthusiast car. Handling is famous. Gear shift is crisp. The looks has its fans.

I think its genuinely so unknown that it can't be uncool. Cars usually become uncool by reputation like Jazz's are for old people, Skoda's are taxis etc.

This is still one of the best handling car that Proton ever made. The handling was tuned by Lotus so yeah it shows.

Spoke to the owner of this car at The Late Brake Show back in December and he actually led me on to this channel. I used to own a 1.6 Proton Gen 2 GLS. I'll be honest I loved that car, the bare basics but boy was it fun to drive, not exactly something i get from my current Pug 207 Sport Diesel.

I used to had one. This car was so cheap and I turned it into a track day car. I had upgraded the suspension, camshaft, bore up the cylinder block and added a turbo which boosted the car from 94hp to 375hp. But, I kept that car exterior in stock. I sold the car in 2016, and bought a 2016 Volvo V70.

I remember when top gear had this car on a 2008 episode when they were testing this and a Perodua Myvi and Chevrolet Aveo as cars people will end up buying because of the recession. The version they had was red with white stripes and the bit I can remember is James May being amazed that they managed to to fake Allen head bolts on the plastic fuel filler cap. To be honest they tended to be the affordable option to many of the more expensive cars from Ford and the VW group even the northern police forces in the UK had a few Protons on their general patrol vehicles.

I genuinely don't know how you can put out so many videos each week! (a good thing)

This is actually a good car, it's cheap yes but the fact it's still working tells you it has tested the test of time. Compared to a 206 you see a lot of them in the scrap yards and what I don't get is motor journos are obsessed with torque. It wasnt even mentioned back when this car was originally brought to the market. Yes the Satria had been around for a long time. It's like MG Rover who just recycled the car over and over again.

Back in the day that Protons were on sale, they were mostly sold to people who wanted a new car but couldn't afford a good one or the repayments. When they appeared on the used market you had to be careful as most had never seen a spanner. The interiors wore out quickly, and the lack of any servicing meant that there are far better options.

Saya pernah memiliki bmw f20 dan sekarang merc s205 tetapi masih menyimpan dan menggunakan satria neo 1.6 cps. Ianya adalah kereta pertama saya sejak 2011 sehingga sekarang dan masih tidak gagal memberi senyuman kepuasan setiap kali memandunya. Ya, ia tidak selaju kereta sukan yg lain seangkatannya tetapi kepuasan pemanduannya di jalanan terutama yang berliku membuatkan saya merasa muda 11 tahun semula. 😃

In 2017, my lady wife learned to drive in one of these, as a driving school in Battersea had a whole fleet of them. I have absolutely no idea why they chose to have a fleet of ten year old Proton Satria Neos over virtually anything else...

People can laugh but two of the most reliable cars I've owned among my 44 or so. Proton Emerald 1.5 ( Mitsubishi Lancer underneath) and Proton compact 1.3 ( Mitsubishi colt underneath) Emerald 5 years Compact 3 years , never a day they failed to start or left me stranded or failed an MOT costing more than £50 .

I think that's the first time I've heard anyone make reference to the alloys going the same way. This has been triggering my OCD for years!

this car have quite a special place among malaysians..but it really does pale in comparison to the older 1.8l Satria GTi, despite having a superior chassis..even on it's best variant what you have there is prolly the most basic early production model, the 1.3.. the later 1.6litre came with a newer CPS engine that fixed the torque holiday on lower rpm and having overall smoother powerband.. some later variant came with special equipment and suspension setup like the Lotus Racing or R3 variants-i'm not sure if these were ever available there over the UK i wish that you would get your hand on the older Satria GTi, would love to see your opinion on one of those

I recently just work at their factory as a production worker driving the forklift and lift stuff, easy work. At first peek inside the factory I could see dozens of neo parts including the side panel that were untouchable and have been kept in mint condition. They were mostly being used as spare parts if I'm not mistaken

They did make a very attractive rally car , something quite different from the usual Fiestas , and they did sound pretty good too .

These quirky car reviews are great, refreshing to see and a change from usual car channels pumping out the same reviews as other channels.

Been happily waiting for a video on a Proton vehicle and it turns out my hopes have been fulfilled! Been fascinated by the Proton Satria since a few years ago and although they are quite admittedly not up to standard even in its day, I believe they have a special place in their home country and their neighbouring markets like Singapore among others. Looking forward to a Satria GTi review!

I've been following you for a while. Never thought u would drive something from my own country! U should drive the OG satria

I had completely forgotten about this car brand. Always nice to learn about something completely new. Nice video. Keep up the good work.

I still kept my Neo, but mine is the high spec with CPS engine (not sold in UK if I don't mistaken), which probably do better in low revs compare the original CamPro but still not a better engine if compare other's 1.6L competitors, yet still it is a fun car and more character to drive especially in winding roads. Balance is far better than any Civic and tenancy to understeer are much lower. Yes, the interior are awful but you never watch the interior when you just too fun looking on the road driving it. The engine although isn't that good on range, but reliability is for me exceptional. Mine has passed 260k km mileage (used it for 8 years, brand new from factory), yet not much power loss and still kicking hitting 7k rpm in factory spec. I love this car.

as a American living on the east coast i want more hatchbacks and wagons for sale this car looks really good !

so happy to see this review. ive ben a proton advocate for about 15 years. on my 4th. with a satria 1.5. so many things can be done, but even out of the box they are a lot of fun for not a lot of money. keep up the good work sir

Good to se you bro, proton interests me as many years ago i came across a proton dealership and they had a flagship car in shop it was decent looking like a tuned up hot hatch

I feel sorry for Proton. They are cheap yest but really reliable. I had a Gen 2 1.6 since 2007 and nothing went wrong apart from some ignition coils. Really nice to drive too.

Don't stop what you're doing James's, these reviews are fantastic and funny!

Look-wise this be one of the most underrated cars I’ve seen recently, very interesting design on the exterior especially at the front

Back in 2005 Australia had the Satria GTI came with a 1.8 Mitsubishi 4G engine. During the hot hatch era, haven't thought of the Satria since.

The thing about Campro engine and throttle response (both 1.6L and 1.3L) is that you need to accelerate much longer and reach higher RPM to achieve satisfactory amount of pickup and "feel" while driving.

For £1500 I would take this over a polo,fiesta ect it's different. Got that lotus badge and cool center exhaust.

I used to love the satria neo on WRC3

Great piece as always, very insightful and coming from a practical mind.

The variety of these videos are brilliant, well done Jay.

This is a needs must type of car. The old Satria GTI however. Really cool 😎

There’s one on sale 10 miles from me and it’s the 1.6GSX version. £1800 for only 30,000 miles. Very tempted to go drive it

Nice one jay....am quite suprised that these satria neos are still running on UK roads...am suprised that parts are expensive and hard to find for these cars in the UK, as mellors motorsport are still selling rally prepared proton iriz in the UK, spares in malaysia for satria neo are cheap as chips and are plentiful, plus there are daily flights from Kuala lumpur to heathrow...so it would makes sense to order parts from malaysia and have it shipped to the UK...in all honesty, the satria makes a superb beater car....aa it is able to hold up to abuse pretty well...take care and love from malaysia

Mini Cooper still gives me goosebumps. Mine was disaster despite being relatively new. NEVER AGAIN will I buy a BMW manufactured product!

I briefly looked at Protons for my first car but quickly decided against it. It just seemed like a bad idea, in the end I bought a Hyundai i20

And so it begins. Always interested to hear Jay's take on cars, and this one certainly didn't disappoint. Curious to see if there'd be more Proton coverage on the channel, but until then, I'll indulge myself by watching the rest of Jay's videos since I do have quite a bit of catching up to do. #ProtonMalaysia

I nearly bought an ex-police Proton Impian a couple years ago as a backup car, mighty 1.6L Mitsubishi block under the hood. The most garish interior I've ever seen... chrome ringed dials and seats looking like a bizarre mix of wicker and tartan, and it was very cool. Lotus handling and all, definitely a tin can deathtrap 😂. Do love the look of that Satria though. Imagine that with a Rover K-Series under the bonnet

Mock it all you want, as a first car or a budget motor I fail to see the problem. I entered the world of driving in the mid nineties, your first car had plenty of visible rust, a choke on the carburettor, no power steering & not much else. We live in times now where your average sixth former goes to school in a financed Audi A1. It's not the Proton's fault it's deemed uncool.

I once had an old Proton 1.5 saloon, bought as a stop gap for £125, it certainly was pretty basic, but I ragged the hell out of it for nearly a year with no problems at all, the mate I sold it to ran it for a couple of years until he crashed it!

That interior would put me off buying one of them ,the exterior actually looks decent .

10:30 The reason for the delay in response is due to the drive by wire throttle pedal. There are tuners who'll mod it for around MYR50 (£10) and it'll improve right away. Or alternatively you can get a throttle controller.

I've driven more Protons than I'd like to admit, having spent some time in South-East Asia in the late 80s/early 90s. Back then they were all based on previous generation Mitsubishis, so were dull to drive, but generally reliable. However, the build quality on even quite new cars was dire.

I have a Proton Saga 1.3 for almost 11yrs, and the car still going strong. I dont compare it with other brands because the Saga is my 1st car and i love it

Loving the consistent content lately Jay 👌

Ok👍🇲🇾i love your honesty...i never met this channel but this is a pretty good review.

Nice to see you review a car from my country. Yeah the plastics are really poor and seating position is too high. The 1.3 and 1.6 IAFM engines were bad but later on proton had a 1.6 CPS engine with 125hp and a 1.6 CPS R3 engine with 145hp. Those were the fun models. Currently own a 2013 Satria Neo R3. The handling is 80-90% of a Subaru BRZ/ Toyota 86. The handling and chassis are solid, Lotus definitely did their magic.

Malaysian here. Owned the 1.6 Highline version ( dual front airbags, and rear spoiler with rear wiper ). Not a car for 0-100 km/h nor top speed. But a hatch that outhandles a number of faster, more expensive cars, as long as the driver knows how to wrangle the Neo in corners, and proper undercarriage setup ( mine was -1.5 camber front, -1 camber rear, 0 toe, running road legal semi slick tires with stock dampers + spring setup ). Corners neutral to slight oversteer. I have also driven the Clubsport version ( that handles WAY even better with oversteer on demand ), the Neo S2000 test car ( 200hp due to supercharger + Ohlins DPV front and rear, road legal semi slick tires, upgraded brakes setup ), a real roarer of a hatch, and the Neo Lotus Edition as well. I'd say the Clubsport is the best of 'em all.

Back when it was new I thought this thing was cool as all hell because Alister McRae drove one in APRC. And they said it's 'Developed by Lotus'.

It looks like a car from gta

Never seen one before, but I like the look of it, with the wide arches. Yes, really. And I will always respect cheap transport that does the job, which presumably this did/does?

I live in the UK and I own one of two left in Lincolnshire. It's an amazing car. Handles like a go kart. I just wish it had more oomph since it struggles up anything that resembles a hill. 🤣

never heard of these but i kind of like it, not that i'd call myself a fan of it or anything but since it's something else compared to every other car on the road, i do find it interesting. Would definitely like to look at one for myself with my own eyes

I had a 1993 Dodge Colt 1.5l as my first car and I loved it! I find this little car to be pretty nice and just right for doing what it has to do!

Never heard of Proton before watching this channel. Now that I've seen it, I reckon that I haven't missed much. Though I do like the looks of the older model. ✌🏻🇺🇸

Met the owner of this at the late brake show live in Somerset, spent quite a while chatting about all of the "qwerks" of this car, he had a long list! Happy to see more absolute nuggets on the channel Jay! Still got a shed of an EK3 civic and an E30 318i if you're interested :P

I had a previous gen proton satria 1.3 Li when i was 24, brought from a dealership in morcott that me & my dad had brought cars from before it became a proton dealer. It was a 6 month old ex demo that had similar issues, cheap interior, gutless engine, poor fuel economy, terrible ride (it did handle well though, gearbox was good too), no space. But it was reliable unlike my previous 1998 1.4 corsa mk1. I did test a neo when i decided to sell it, but it was no better than the older car, & the bigger proton Gen2 was just as bad. Tried a panda 100hp too which i quite liked, but ended up with a mk2 focus 1.8 zetec instead

Maybe it's because there are none of these where I'm from, but I think these look nice. There's a charm In how they look like a freebie first car in an open world MMO and everybody loves an underdog.

Reckon this might become one of your most viewed videos. When hubnut did a proton it went crazy.

I actually really want a Satria Neo. Always have since it was launched. I also fancied either a Proton Savvy or a Perodua Myvi. I'm a bit weird.

I had a MK4 prelude about 18 years ago and someone had done the same with the wheels. Couldn't wait to wear the tyres out and swap them back

Damn that mirror adjustment gear is straight out of the 80's Mitsubishi parts bin.

I love your delivery Jay. Pete 🇬🇧

Always quite liked the look of these. Not a patch on the original Lotus GTi one though

My Peugeot turbo diesel had terrible rev hang, before I drained the fuel pump and richened up the fuelling a little by turning the internal allen screw by 90 degrees, which also advanced the pump timing a small amount. That wasn't a difficult job with a mechanical pump but I expect this car would need a remap to achieve same, as was the case with my motorbike.

Bigging up that last 30cc!!

Back then I saw one of these cars, and now I still do like this car.

Owned one of these as a stop gap had it 6 month - pretty decent car tbh - economy was a bit rubbish and tax band a little high for the car .. but decent handling went well once you got moving..but most impirtantly it was pretty fun to drive !! and nothing on it broke even after 6 months of total abuse & I sold it for than I bought it!

For cars like this in this sort of range the test whether it's a good car or not is simple, does it make you giggle as you through it around in the twisty bits, can you get out of it with a smile after blast down a twisty hilly road, not up the hill mind you

Kereta ini sangat menjadi kegilaan ramai rakyat Malaysia

I do have a weird soft spot for the gen 2 less so the satria neo but still a soft spot...but I think I just I like supporting underdogs..not that I'd buy the underdog..as I'll end up regretting it in the end xD

Nice one Jay! Make me want to buy one as a courtesy car!

It looks like a mix of cars all in one.

I owned one of these for 6 years. It was unrefined, cheap, uncomfortable with poor fuel economy. It was also the most reliable car i have ever owned and the one i missed the most when i finally said goodbye. I'm pleased i owned something that not many other people had even heard of. As someone else said, it is so unknown that no one ever ribbed me for owning one, and in fact a lot of people loved the look of it. I purchased it last minute after the head gasket went on my Honda Civic and i needed a car quick to go on holiday to Cornwall. Everything you said in your video is correct, but i loved it 😂

Before buying my Mii, I looked at a Savvy, mostly as it looked neat, and is a bit out there. I was put off by Proton leaving the market and I needed a reliabled daily to get to work. Most Protons from the mid 2000's really do look quite good on the surface just ashame it's only on the surface.

I totally forgot about the Satria Neo R3! Now those were cool.

OMG finally someone that shares my OCD about twisty alloys, I hate them

I came oh so close to buying a year-old one of these Protons, and I found the driving experience not too bad at all - the thing certainly handled well. I do agree with you on the quality of that interior though - even for a budget car it felt deeply cheap. It didn't fill me with confidence as to how well it would last down the years.

The "pair / unpair keys" button has to be one of the worst features of all time.

I owned a 1.6 in Diamond Black in South Africa and had Proton install Oxblood Red leather...it came out beautifully...wasn`t very powerful but did handle well when you chucked it about in the corners...sadly I borrowed it to my GF and she wrapped it around a lamp post...

I rather like it. What you see is what you get. Nothing special for little money

"It really hurts my brain" love it!!🤣

cant believe you would review this car !! in Malaysia the price of the satria neo can get u an e46 or e36. Satria neo is still very famous in the tuner culture here, kids here tune/modify them and they always vouch for the handling capability. Hats off in referencing the satria gti !! I would turn my head every time every single time the satria gti pass by in my e46...so rare even in Malaysia

The old satria used to basically be a lotus tuned mitsubishi mirage Cyborg r which I really like.

I'v heard, and shoot me if I'm wrong, you can supposedly fit a Lancer V6 and drivetrain into it, even with a small turbo after a few custom modifications to really capitalise on the suspension set-up.

My mrs has two favourite cars The mazzer GT sport coupe ... and the old proton satria GTi 🤣 no joke. She will definitely own both sooner rather than later.

Hi there! I've got a friend back in Malaysia who knows the entire backstory for this generation of Satria, as he's been digging through every part number whilst restoring a R3 edition car to stock form. The rev hang and torque dip were some unfortunate features of this being one of Proton's first attempts at building a fully domestic engine. The dip was especially pronounced due to Proton's insistence of relatively primitive VVT on this first variant, fixed by variable intake runners in later models. Elsewhere, the Proton leadership wanted to make 'world cars', pushing hard for export of the Impian and Satria to the UK market with this new engine. The engineers quickly realised the CamPro engine would never meet UK fuel and emissions standards, and so working with the limited computing power of the in-house tuned ECU, they were forced to introduce features like the rev-hang, using the e-throttle. Unfortunately, all variants of the Satria Neo had relatively poor MPG nevertheless, as the car was simply too heavy for its torque output, incorporating high strength steel in the frame, conservatively applied, without any lightweighting done in less crucial areas. The Satria's chassis was an experiment in high strength steel construction for torsional rigidity and safety, with Proton later going on to use more of the stuff (with relevant lightweighting) in the Preve and Iriz models of the 2010s.

I really wanted to see UK people react to the Satria Neo R3, which is a much more better looking version and more punch to the engine. Develops 125bhp thanks to the CamPro CPS unit. Looks awesome in Red and Gunmetal grey rims

I'd never even heard of the brand Proton until this video

The best spec to buy would be the 1.6 with variable valve lift system CPS which Lotus even licensed to Porsche sometime.in the 90s. It produces 125bhp, luke warm by hot hatch standards but surely a whole lot better than 95bh0 in.the stock 1.3 litre

I thought these looked rather cool a few years ago, after seeing the rally versions on Top Gear back when they versed the Australian Top Gear. That middle exhaust was a bit different too.

95bhp from a 1.3 NA engine is pretty good, you didn’t mention the torque figures so perhaps it’s a weak point like you mentioned.

I have a 16 year old lad. He's already telling me he wants a classic car when he is 17, as do lots of his friends....I'm truly impressed....