Proton Saga EV Green Propulsion Concept

The electric Saga (officially called the Proton Saga EV Green Propulsion Concept for now) is probably being considered for the local market, although the auto maker is very tight-lipped about possible launch dates. It could take years.

The emissions-free Proton Saga EV on display features a 125kW (168hp) brushless DC electric motor, mated to a 5 speed manual transmission. It has a 20kWh Lithium Ion Polymer battery pack (12 separate batteries stored in the trunk). Because of the batteries, truckspace is pretty much non-existent but this is quite normal with concept electric cars based on a chassis that was originally designed to take a regular combustion engine and fuel tank. A production car would ideally have neater integration of the batteries.

According to Proton, the Saga EV can sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in 10.1 seconds, up to a top speed of 161 km/h, with a driving range of 109 kilometers over a full charge. Both the Detroit Electric e46 and e63 will feature a 150kW Axial Magnetic Flux motor instead. also features re-generative braking and an electric power steering, apart from a built-in Batter Management System (BCMU), a plug-in charger (with a household power outlet), air conditioning as well as an In-Vehicle display screen that displays various information pertaining to the electric vehicle functions. Sources also revealed that Proton has plans to built an electric Exora MPV, and, is currently working on some hybrid vehicles as well, for research and development. click here for more photos of Saga Ev Propulsion

source:

paultan.org

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Proton Exora Turbo Concept

At Universiti Putra Malaysia during the “Proton Exora – The Making” seminar, Proton has unveiled ProtonExora Prestige Turbo Prototype. The powerplant based on the 1.6 liter CamPro with bolt on turbo system. The Prestige Concept is said to produce up to 270 horsepower with a torque figure that is rated at about 350Nm.Proton has been sending a group of engineers to Lotus, UK to develop this turbo charged engine. The first result is expected to be out in 2010 or 2011. One of the reason to have turbocharged engine is the cost to develop another 2,0 campro will cost them a bomb. So the fast and easy solution is to add turbo on its 1.6 campro which capable to deliver power equivalent to of a 2.0l powerplant. It wipe out one major issue that the current Exora has, which is a lack of go.

source:

malaysia-kini.com

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Naza Donates Kia Pregio To Orphanage

Naza Group of Companies on Thursday donated a 12-seater Kia Pregio van to Rumah Kasih Kampung Ulu Inas, an orphanage in Negeri Sembilan.

Its joint group executive chairman, SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin, said the donation was part of the group's corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme.

"We are delighted to assist the orphanage as we are always mindful of our CSR in providing any form of help to those in need.

"Such a practice is not new as it has been carried out since Naza's formation, my late father Tan Sri SM Nasimuddin was always ready to help those in need," he said at the handling over ceremony here Thursday.

Naza Group of Companies started from humble beginnings as a used and reconditioned car trader under Naza Motor Trading in 1975.

The group has evolved into a diversified conglomerate venturing into multiple motor vehicle sectors such as retailing, importing, distribution and dealership for international marques.

source: bernama.com

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Proton Moves To Strengthen Export Market

Proton Holdings Bhd has taken further steps to ensure that its overall export plans and strategies are align with those of its international importers and distributors.

In line with this, the national carmaker held a two-day International Distributor Conference that ended last Friday, where it not only shared updates and details but also held dialogue sessions to gather feedback on various operational issues abroad.

The annual conference, held this year in Phuket, Thailand, is one of Proton's distributor and importer engagement exercises organised by its international sales and services division.

Emphasis was on high growth regional markets, namely Asean, China, India and Middle East-North Africa (MENA), where Proton is able to benefit from the economies of scale, quality and capability transfer, the company said.

The markets were chosen for their pre-existing trade and culture linkages with Malaysia and Proton leveraged on this to reduce its cost in making further inroads, it said in a statement Monday.

The strategy also identified several key regional centres, namely China and Iran, for the establishment of completely knocked down (CKD) operations which allowed Proton to serve its customers in the region more effectively.

"The current environment clearly indicates that the challenges ahead would demand for a more aggressive export strategy for Proton," said managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir.

"Staying competitive and our ability to sustain requires for our export operations to operate differently and if need be, drastic changes will be made to ensure growth in Proton's business abroad," he said.

According to Syed Zainal Abidin, the national carmaker wants to ensure that its international importers and distributors are on the same page when it comes to Proton's moving forward strategy.

"To strengthen the distribution network, Proton will finetune some key areas, such as product forecasting, and improve several aspects of its operation, particularly in product quality control, after-sales services, marketing and branding and product positioning," he said.

source: bernama.com

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Viva Facelift ?.... or Viva Special Edition?

While surfing the web, I found a website called hitzcity which posted these images. Those "shocking" photos probably a new facelifted Perodua's Viva for upcoming models. But for now, the only new stuffs that we can found from the photos are the new bumper for the upcoming Viva fitted with two fog lamps and the newly restyled grille which is more elegant compared to the old Viva. Considering the minor changes to the front, the rear also could have only minor changes such as a new bumper. There are also rumours going around that suggest the spy shots are just photos of future Viva SE.

older Perodua Viva

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Proton Finished Fifth (4th registered IRC car) in Russia

Wilks recovered after dropping from third to seventh position on Day 2, and finished the Rally Russia in fourth overall, even after picking up a puncture on SS13. The duo also managed to set the third fastest time on SS9. In the driver’s championship, the Brit is 15th overall (among 34 drivers), while Proton is now in fifth place, behind Abarth which has thus far scored 24 points, and ahead of Honda, which has only scored one single point.




Here are the results of each day of IRC Russia:

Day One:

SS1 - Yashino (15.14km)
1 Hanninen (Skoda) 8:42.1
2 Basso (Abarth) 8:49.8
3 Kopecky (Skoda) 8:51.0
4 Flodin (Subaru) 8:51.5
5 Wilks (Proton) 8:53.3
6 Alen (Abarth) 8:53.6
7 Wittmann (Mitsubishi) 9:21.7
8 Zheludov (Peugeot) 9:23.3

SS2 - Kutuzovo (10.35km)
1 Hanninen (Skoda) 5:37.4
2 Kopecky (Skoda) 5:38.5
3 Flodin (Subaru) 5:42.5
4 Basso (Abarth) 5:43.9
5 Wilks (Proton) 5:45.5
6 Alen (Abarth) 5:47.5
7 Wittmann (Mitsubishi) 6:00.6
8 Zheludov (Peugeot) 6:16.6

SS3 - Yashino 2 (15.14km)
1 Hanninen (Skoda) 8:37.0
2 Kopecky (Skoda) 8:51.7
3 Wilks (Proton) 8:54.6
4 Zheludov (Peugeot) 9:06.2
5 Flodin (Subaru) 9:24.2
6 Alen (Abarth) 9:31.4
7 Basso (Abarth)9:32.7
8 Wittmann (Mitsubishi) 9:36.3

SS4 - Kutuzovo 2 (10.35km)
1 Hanninen (Skoda) 5:32.0
2 Kopecky (Skoda) 5:34.8
3 Alen (Abarth) 5:41.0
4 Wilks (Proton) 5:41.6
5 Basso (Abarth) 5:43.2
6 Zheludov (Peugeot) 5:46.3
7 Wittmann (Mitsubishi) 6:04.9
8 Zimin (Mitsubishi) 6:10.7


Day Two:

SS5 - Druzhnoselie 1 Stage cancelled after car zero crashes heavily mid-stage

SS6 - Losevo 1
1 Hannien 11:31.0
2 Wilks 11:43.5
3 Kopecky 11:44.1
4 Flodin 11:45.9
5 Basso 11:47.2
6 Alen 11:48.0

SS7 - Topolki 1
1 Hanninen 16:12.4
2 Kopecky 16:21.7
3 Alen 16:24.0
4 Basso 16:54.7
5 Zhigunov 16:58.2
6 Zheludov 17:36.7
15 Wilks 19:56.8
Wilks loses more than three minutes with a front left puncture. He is forced to stop and change the wheel. He slips from third overall to seventh.

SS8 - Druzhnoselie 2
1 Hanninen 4:15.8
2 Alen 4:21.4
3 Kopecky 4:22.3
4 Flodin 4:22.5
5 Basso 4:24.0
6 Zheludov 4:28.7
7 Wilks 4:29.5 SS9

SS9 - Losevo 2
1 Hanninen 11:27.9
2 Kopecly 11:31.3
3 Wilks 11:41.0
4 Flodin 11:43.0
5 Basso 11:47.5
6 Zheludov 12:03.3
Alen retires mid-stage after ripping a wheel off his Abarth. Wilks is back up to sixth.

SS10 - Topolki 2 Stage cancelled


Day Three:

SS11 - Dubinino (8.65km)
1 Alen 4:22.2
2 Kopecky 4:23.7
3 Zheludov 4:24.9
4 Wilks 4:25.0
5 Flodin 4:25.5
6 Hanninen 4:26.3

SS12 - Perevozoe 1 (10.93km)
1 Hanninen 6:50.2
2 Alen 6:50.5
3 Flodin 6:53.1
4 Kopecky 6:53.8
5 Wilks 6:54.0
6 Basso 7:02.4

SS13 - Borovinka (15.91km)
1 Hanninen 11:06.6
2 Alen 11:12.4
3 Kopecky 11:14.5
4 Flodin 11:19.5
5 Wilks 11:20.5
6 Basso 11:34.7

SS14 - Dubinino (8.65km)
1 Hanninen 4:17.2
2 Alen 4:17.6
3 Kopecky 4:18.0
4 Flodin 4:24.4
5 Basso 4:25.0
6 Wittmann 4:35.5
13 Wilks 5:01.8

SS15 - Perevozoe 1 (10.93km)
1 Hanninen 6:45.3
2 Kopecky 6:50.7 3
Flodin 6:57.4
4 Wilks 7:01.2
5 Basso 7:06.8
6 Alen 7:08.5


source:
icars.sg
guywilks.com

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2009 Edition To Be The Biggest MME

It’s that time of the year again where the biggest race in Asia is about to go off and this time it’s the tenth addition of the Merdeka Millennium Endurance (MME) Race.

Organised and promoted by Sepang International Circuit (SIC), its aim is to make Sepang as the hub of motorsport activities in the region and as an effort to develop motorsport in Malaysia and the Asian region.

In commemorating this tenth celebration, some changes have been made to make the race more exciting. With the separation of the class B and C into the Sepang 1000km race (S1K), the faster main class O and A will have more grids to fill up all the way to 77 cars.

For a fair race, the class A will be split into two, A1 and A2, to separate between production supercars as A1 (Group B or GT4 or non FIA homologated production sports) and production sports and saloon cars in A2 (Group N and Group A or non FIA homologated Touring Cars).

The 77 slots on the starting grid is split into the three classes, 27 for class O, 25 for class A1 and 25 for class A2.

Also to honor the month of Ramadhan which is the fasting month for Muslims, the race date that is usually set on the last weekend of August is moved forward to the second weekend of the month which is on the 8th.

source: malaysiagp.com.my

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Perodua Expects Automotive Industry To Recover Next Year

Perodua has forecast that the Malaysian automotive industry will recover slightly next year, with the company's total industry volume (TIV) expected to reach 165,000 units.

This is close to Perodua's historic high of 167,000 units in 2008.

Perodua Sales Sdn Bhd director of sales and after sales division, Ahmad Suhaimi Mohd Anuar said, Perodua expects sales to reach 158,000 units by year end.

"We expect sales to pick up in the second half of the year driven by the demand for new cars for the festive season as well as the launch of our MPV this November," he said during the launch of "The Star Power of 9 Contest" on Thursday at the Perodua showroom here.

Suhaimi stated that the Malaysian automotive industry's performance is a lot better when compared with others in most parts of the world.

"For Perodua, we did better than the market, dropping just over seven percent in the first half of 2009.

"The Malaysian automotive industry's performance for the first six months is within our expectations. Total TIV was down nearly 11 percent to 249,000 units from the 278,000 units in the same period last year.

"We expect the TIV to contract between 10 and 12 percent this year to between 480,000 units and 490,000 units," Suhaimi said.


source:
bernama.com

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Proton in Russia for IRC

Guy, Phil and the Proton World Rally Team are confident Rally Russia will mark another important step in the development of the new Satria Neo Super 2000.

Double British champion Guy said: "The car is still very new, so we’re improving and learning more with every kilometre we drive.

"Russia will be a really good experience for us, and a valuable chance to develop the Proton some more on gravel.

"We already found a few ideas that could help us in Belgium, and we’re looking forward to the chance of putting them into practice in Russia.”

Guy and Phil contested Rally Russia last year and led the 2WD category before being forced out with a mechanical problem.

Guy said: “There are some quite quick stages, which I always enjoy, and some very tricky places as well. I won't set targets this weekend. Our job is to accumulate as much data as possible."

Rally Russia gets under way with a start ramp ceremony in Vyborg before four gravel stages that end late at night.

Friday's second leg is made up of six stages divided into two identical loops of three. It includes the legendary 29.31km Topolki test.

And Saturday's final leg consists of five stages before a 15:00 finish back at Vyborg.

source:
guywilks.com

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Proton Saga SE, Exora Manual and Satria S2000 unveiled

PROTON Holdings Berhad unveiled the Saga SE (Special Edition) and EXORA 1.6 MT (Manual Transmission) at the Hari Peneroka 2009 launch held at FELDA Maokil here today. The two cars, along with the Satria Neo Super 2000 Rally Car developed by UK-based motorsport preparation company Mellors Elliot Motorsport (MEM), were unveiled by the Prime Minister YAB Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak.

"The move to unveil the cars here is in line with the Prime Minister's One Malaysia call for equality amongst all Malaysians," said Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh.

He said it also coincided with Proton's aspiration as a national car maker to be close to the people regardless of race, religion, economic standing and status.

The Saga SE, a premium and sporty variant to the existing Saga, is targeted for youngsters who want to be different and comes in two exclusive colours of brilliant red and solid white.

It is handsomely dressed up with stylish black finishing roof top and front grille, new front and side skirting,rear lip spoilers, rear skirting with black diffuser as well as a new alloy rim design.

The Saga SE boasts of a new interior finishing complete with leather seats and door trims with matching leather-wrapped steering wheel, pearl white meter panel finishing, dark chrome air-cond vents and is fitted with a CD player with MP3 capability.

The Exora 1.6 MT (Manual Transmission) on the other hand, is the much awaited manual transmission version of the country's first homegrown MPV.

Proton Saga SE Manual – RM43,000
Proton Saga SE Auto – RM45,500

Proton Exora M/T Solid – RM64,548.00
Proton Exora M/T Metallic – RM64,998.00

PROTON Holdings Berhad Managing Director, Dato' Haji Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said, "Both the new models are available for booking now, with RM500 for the Saga SE and RM1,000 for the Exora MT. They will be available for sale at all Proton Edar and EON showrooms on 15 August onwards for the Saga SE, and on 16 July onwards for the Exora MT." Click here to view more images of Saga SE and Proton Exora

source:

cbt.com.my

bernama.com

paultan.org

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Proton Needs Foreign Partner, said Najib

The government is still open to the idea of a strategic foreign partner for Proton Holdings Bhd but it has to be on the right terms and conditions, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

"I don't think Proton can manage without one (foreign partner) but it has to be the right one. The terms and conditions must be fair to us as well," he said.

"So, moving forward, a restructuring of the national carmaker is necessary in terms of having a strong and appropriate foreign partner," Najib said in a 30-minute interview with Adam Bakhtiar of CNBC, which was aired Friday.

He said even the vendor system has allowed proliferation of too many companies and they are not competitive or of higher quality.

Asked if the National Automotive Policy and Bumiputera equity participation in the vendor system will be liberalised further, Najib, who is also the Finance Minister, said: "We certainly want to upgrade the quality."

The companies should go for consolidation to strengthen their performance, he said.

Najib said that auto tariffs would also need to be reviewed from time to time.

"But we have to look into Proton's position as well. A stronger Proton certainly will be able to compete within Asean even if the tariffs are reduced," he said.

source: bernama.com

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Wilks's Positive Thinking for PROTON in IRC

Wilks, who was giving Proton's Satria Neo Super 2000 its debut in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, retired on the opening day of the event following a crash.

However, the two-time British Rally champion said the fact he was as high as eleventh on the car's first proper event suggested the Proton has a huge amount of potential.

Indeed he has already turned his attentions to the next round of the series, Rally Russia, which runs from July 9-11.
"I'm disappointed and the whole of the Proton team is that we weren't able to finish and get the mileage in the car we were looking for," said Wilks.
"The Proton had been really well received by the IRC fans and they were brilliant helping us to get back on the road after our accident.

"I'm already thinking ahead to Rally Russia now though. We always knew it was going to be difficult against the more experienced teams here. But we know what we have got to do.
“Given time and testing and some data to compare our performance against the others we'll be right up there."

source: crash.net

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Better Results for Proton

Proton Holdings Bhd expects to report better results for the first quarter ended June 30 on the back of higher sales following the launch of its multi purpose vehicle Exora.

"We have improved compared to the fourth quarter," said managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Mohamad Tahir on the sidelines of the two-day Invest Malaysia 2009 conference at Shangri-la Hotel here Wednesday.

The national car maker posted a pre-tax loss of RM391.935 million in the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2009 on the back of RM1.401 billion revenue.

Syed Zainal Abidin said the better performance for the first three months of this year was due to higher sales following the launch of Exora which has "an order bank of three to four months".

Proton planned ship Exora to Indonesia and Thailand this year, he added.

Asked on competition particularly from Perodua, Syed Zainal Abidin said: "Competition is there everyday. We are mindful about the movement of our competitors. I think competition is healthy but we have to strategise our plan.

"When we introduced Exora, Toyota and Nissan also strategising their plans. It is something that we should not be totally worried. As a company, we will continue to come up with new variants and interesting ways to market our car."

On other markets for Exora besides Indonesia and Thailand, he said Proton would start focusing on other markets like the Middle East next year.

"This calendar year is going to be mainly Asean including Singapore. Next year, we hope to do CKD (completely-knocked down) assemblies in China and Iran," he said.

On the legal dispute with Proton's former Chinese partner, Syed Zainal Abidin said: "We have already started the process. The first judgement during the arbitration was on our favour. They have filed the suit. We stand a very good case.

"We don't want to indulge in detail. We consulted our lawyer. We believed we are very clear in what we do. We consulted also the government of China. We are quite clear. So let allow the court case process."

Last Friday, Proton said Goldstar Heavy Industrial Co Ltd had filed a suit against the group alleging failure to meet obligations under a 2002 joint-venture agreement.

Proton's units, Proton Automobiles (China) Ltd and Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Sdn Bhd, had been served with a Memorandum of Complaint by Goldstar for the alleged breach of contract.

source: bernama.com

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Proton Aims To Sell 60 Units Of Lotus Cars Annually

Proton Holdings Bhd, the holding company of Lotus Group International Limited, expects to sell at least 50 to 60 units of Lotus cars annually.

Managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said since the introduction of the luxury sports car in Malaysia in 2002, the Malaysian carmaker has seen encouraging growth in demand for it.

Currently, there are 150 units of Lotus cars on the road, he told reporters at the launch of the Lotus Showcase 2009 here Wednesday.

To further increase its portfolio, Syed Zainal said it will launch the Lotus Evora by the third quarter of this year.

To date, Proton has introduced the Lotus Elise, the Exige and Europa to the market.

To expand its exposure, Syed Zainal said Proton would be showcasing the Lotus car to the public, at the Showcase 2009 to be held until July 5 at The Garden Mall, Mid Valley.

Featuring the Elise S, Exige S and Europa S models, along with the Lotus 2-Eleven track car, he said it was an opportunity for the public to experience at first-hand the world-class Lotus car.

The Showcase 2009 is open daily from 10am to 10pm. The event is the first public showcase for the Lotus.

"It is good that we do this before the Evora comes on. People will appreciate the lotus value.

"The Evora will be different. We will enlarge the market.This is where we think the volume will be," he noted.

source:

bernama.com

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Petter Solberg considering to join Abarth in 2010.. Proton?

Petter tested the Proton Satria Neo S2000 early this year and just recently, the Abarth Grande Punto S2000.

Petter Solberg has admitted that he would consider taking part in next year's Super 2000 World Cup after testing an Abarth Grande Punto S2000 on gravel recently, but what about Proton?, according to Motorsport News.

"Provided the manufacturer is coming in and the looking to make the commitment with a car for the world championship, then yes, I would consider it. Nothing is sure about next year. I have meetings with Proton and with Abarth and with some other contacts, but nothing is decided. I want to be in a manufacturer team and I want to be back pushing for a new car to be developed and promoted." Petter Solberg

So far, both Proton and Abarth have committed to rallying in the IRC and will probably move into the WRC with the new S2000 World Cupformat

source:

rallybuzz.com

rallypert.blogspot.com

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A1 Team MAL Presents Awards To TOC Graduates

A1 Team Malaysia Commercial Director, Owen Leed, represented the team at last weekend’s TOC (The Otomotif College) graduation ceremony, presenting certificates to 120 students and special awards to five outstanding achievers. The Otomotif College has been a long standing commercial partner of A1 Team Malaysia, with the team being supported by this specialist automotive training college since 2006.

The A1GP team, through its commercial partnership with TOC, has built up close links with the college, participating in many events held by the faculty and offering special opportunities to students whenever possible. At the last A1GP Sepang event the team hosted a number of students, giving them a chance to experience the work of the pit crew in A1 Team Malaysia’s garage during the race weekend.

At Sunday’s event, Leed gave a congratulatory speech to the students at the graduation ceremony, praising them for their achievements. Following the presentation of certificates to 120 students by Leed, the A1 Team Malaysia commercial principal honoured five students with Outstanding Achievers Awards. They each received a certificate, cash prize and a commemorative trophy to mark their success.

Leed said of his participation in the event, “A1 Team Malaysia has built a strong relationship with The Otomotif College and we’re very proud to have taken part in this very special occasion for the students. Foundation training is very important for any career and these students will benefit from this in any future employment. Everyone at A1 Team Malaysia is an example of the hard work, motivation and determination you need to achieve success, and we recognize the commitment which all of these students have had in the pursuit of their own achievements."

source:

zerotohundred.com

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Cheaper future Exora against Perodua's D46T

Recently, we've heard that Perodua is in their preparation of launching their first MPV (codenamed D46T) which will be nearly RM 20,000 cheaper than Proton's recently launched Exora. As their defensive strategy, Proton is in their plan of producing a cheaper version of Proton Exora. The cheaper Exora will be further downgraded in terms of equipment, and will likely feature a manual gearbox. We can also see that the wheels is steel with a cover instead of proper alloy wheels

Right now, the Exora is only available in M-Line and H-Line

source:

paultan.org

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Proton still interested in WRC

Mellors Elliott Motorsport (MEM) team principal Chris Mellors has confirmed Proton remains interested in a World Rally Championship entry, despite committing its Satria Neo S2000 car to the remainder of this season's IRC series.

"The IRC programme is fantastic news," said Mellors. "Everybody is behind this project, behind the team and behind Guy (Guy Wilks) and Phil Pugh (as co-driver). Proton is funding the rest of the season. As for what's beyond that, well let's just see what comes from the rest of 2009."

Mellors said Proton still has aspirations in the World Rally Championship (WRC). He added: "We're still very interested in the WRC, of course we are, but there needs to be a great deal of clarification on the technical regulations. This is, ultimately, incredibly confusing to go to Malaysia to explain the future of the WRC.

"When they ask me if the WRC is going to be Super 2000, I tell them it is, but it might be with a 1.6 turbo engine and that might - or might not - be coming in 2011 or 2013. The board of Proton needs a clear plan and that clear plan comes from IRC - which is why, for the foreseeable future, we're going to be there."

source:

autosport.com

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No Restart for Wilks driving Satria S2000 in Ypres

The repeat passage over the long Hollebeke stage, this time in darkness, proved to be problematic indeed for a few drivers as the darkened roads caught them out for various reasons.

Driving the Proton Satria Neo S2000 on its maiden IRC event, Guy Wilks went off and damaged his car's suspension, sending him into retirement.

The team was hopeful that Guy Wilks and Phil Pugh would be able to run untimed through today's final ten stages in order to gain invaluable testing miles on the promising new car, following an off-road excursion yesterday. Having been in 12th place on the penultimate stage of Day 1, the Proton crew made the necessary repairs but it was not possible for the Satria to join the 59 cars from 73 that started the event to tackle today's marathon 10-stage charge to the finish.

"It wasn't easy out there," Wilks said. "We had a lot of small issues with the car, which can only be expected, such as the temperature warning alarms going off which was very distracting. Because it's such a new car we've also had to run without the optimum gear ratios as they haven't been homologated yet, so the acceleration that's in the car hasn't been translated into the times."

Meanwhile, Freddy Loix managed to hold onto the lead of Rally Ypres at the conclusion of Day One, but Kris Meeke is keeping the pressure on his IRC title rival.

source:

uk.eurosport.yahoo.com

ircseries.com

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A1 Team Malaysia's Official Timepiece Introduces Special Watch

Chronoforce, official watch partner to A1 Team Malaysia, launches a “limited edition” watch to mark the partnership today. The A1 Team Malaysia Chronoforce watch features the team logo on the face just above the six o’clock position.

The A1 Team Malaysia watch, which will be a limited edition of 500 pieces, is a chronograph time piece which features a multiple layer dial and screw crown. It is water resistant to 10 ATM (+/-100m) and is encased in the highest quality 316L stainless steel.

Chronoforce was founded in 2005, the same year that A1 Team Malaysia first took to the track in A1GP and produces a watch collection which combines style with the need to perform under pressure at extreme speed. The new limited edition A1 Team Malaysia Chronoforce watch is an excellent example of the company’s offering.

Fans who are looking for something unique to wear and to demonstrate their support of the team should visit Berjaya Times Square this weekend where the watches are on display in the main lobby area right next door to Starbucks. All the members of A1 Team Malaysia wear Chronoforce watches.

source:

a1.gpgrid.com

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