I haven't read that many article, which are kind to Proton. However, recently came across this one while surfing the net. Motor Industry: don't ridicule Proton by Brian Edwards. You can even download a copy of it in the pdf format.

He write:
Increasingly, if you want your car manufacturer to be around long enough to honour the warranty, it's beginning to look as if Proton might just be a better bet than some of the names people don't joke about.
Read it for yourself and decide.

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New hybrid technology

I am really excited about one recent development in the Malaysian auto industry, namely the release of two vehicles equiped with a revolutionary hybrid fuel technology called Hydrogen Fuel Technology (HFT) or "Hydroxene".

L.M. Star Autoworld Sdn Bhd, a relatively new player in the market, recently released two Chinese made vehicles, the LMG Tourer and the LMG Trekker, both of which incorporates the above mentioned technology.

The "Hydroxene" technology was developed by Malaysian scientist Dr. Halim Ali. I am guessing that the Hydroxene unit breaks down water into Hydrogen and Oxygen and uses them as fuel along with the normal petrol. BTW, Dr Halim is the director of Hydrogen Fuel Technology (M) Sdn Bhd. According to Dr. Halim, fuel consumption can be reduced by half with the hydroxene technology.

The unit can also be incorporated into other vehicles and costs between RM2000 and RM3000.

Some details about the vehicles:

1. LMG Tourer: An SUV, the vehicle seats seven people. It is priced at RM58,888 (not sure whether that is the "on-the-road" price).

2. LMG Trekker: A four door pickup truck, priced at RM84,888.

Both come with 2.4 litre engines and are available in 5 colours: silver, red, champagne, black and white.

MORE INFO:

1. The company is planning to invest a lot of money (RM178 million according to the NST and RM378mil according to the Star) in a vehicle assembly plant (which may be the biggest in South) at either Johor or Kota Tinggi.

2. President and CEO of L.M> Star Autoworld Sdn Bhd is Abdul Uzza Shikh Mohamed .

3. At present the vehicles are being assembled by Oriental Assemblers Sdn Bhd under a 2 year contract.

Related Links:
- Scientist claims to have cracked water-fuel secret
- LMG Trekker Details

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Puspakom check

I finally got a buyer for my car. Learnt that it is now compulsory to take the car for sale to Puspakom for a checkup. So drove down to their branch in Alor Star. Their full address is:

Lot 74, Jln Perak,
05150 Mukhim Mergong,
Alor Setar, KEDAH.
04-7337663 (tel)
04-7310201 (fax)

Took the guy just 30 minutes to check my car and give it the OK chop. It cost me RM30/

NOTE: Don't forget to take along a copy or original car registration papers (Perakuan Pendaftaran Kenderaan, JPJ) when you take the car for the checkup.

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The PWC report in brief

According to a recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers, Proton was mismanaged from 1996 (when Proton bought a 63.75 per cent stake in Lotus Group International Ltd) until late last year. FYI, Tengku Tan Sri Mahaleel Ariff was Proton's chief executive from 1997 until he was removed in July last year.

The PWC study was commissioned by Proton chairman Datuk Mohamed Azlan Hashim and the present management on September 2 last year.

The report was revealed by a financial weekly and a foreign newspaper (leaked?)

The report mentions that some projects were implemented without proper consultation or consent, billions of ringgit in expenditure spent without indepth discussion, and the board being unaware of legal problems.

Proton managing director Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir does not rule out the possibility of going to the courts.

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Putting your brand on other's cars

A few days back, I was having a cup of tea with a colleague and he was going on about how Naza cars are just rebadged foreign cars. In his words, "just rename and put the brand KIA". Thus according to him, they don't deserve the "national car" status and government protection.

To me there is nothing wrong with rebadged cars or producing your brand version of other car manufacturer. In fact it is not new and has been practised in the auto industry for a long time. Suzuki produces cars in India through Maruti Udyog, a joint venture with the Indian Goverment. The Suzuki Swit is sold there as the Maruti Swift. It is also sold as the Pontiac Firefly (Canada), Chevrolet Sprint (USA/Canada) and Geo Metro (USA/Canada).

Lotus has agreements with several car companies to produce own-brand versions. This includes the Lotus Cortina (Ford), Lotus Sunbeam (Chrysler) and Lotus Carlton (Vauxhall).

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