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Proton Perdana
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The Proton Perdana is a mid-size car produced by Proton. It is a badge engineered version of the seventh-generation Mitsubishi Eterna.
History
Perdana SEi (1995-1998)
The Perdana was first introduced by Proton in 1995 with Mitsubishi's proven 2.0L 4G63 engine. It was based on the Mitsubishi Galant platform and was thus similar to the Mitsubishi Eterna in Japan, but received minor internal and external changes when it was launched locally in Malaysia.
Discussion
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Encyclopedia
The Proton Perdana is a mid-size car produced by Proton. It is a badge engineered version of the seventh-generation Mitsubishi Eterna.
History
Perdana SEi (1995-1998)
The Perdana was first introduced by Proton in 1995 with Mitsubishi's proven 2.0L 4G63 engine. It was based on the Mitsubishi Galant platform and was thus similar to the Mitsubishi Eterna in Japan, but received minor internal and external changes when it was launched locally in Malaysia. The first generation Perdana was also Proton's first car to offer an anti-lock braking system (ABS) and cruise control.
In 1997, the Perdana was given a facelift with a chrome grille, a new rim design, new body colours and upgraded interior trimmings.
Perdana V6 (1999-present)
In 1999, Proton shoehorned a 2.0 L 6A12 V6 engine (also sourced by Mitsubishi) into the Perdana. The so-called Proton Perdana V6 also had a new bodykit and 16" rims. The original Perdana soldiered on for a short while before it was dropped. With Lotus-tuned and upgraded suspension settings, the car handles well through tight corners and it is a good high speed cruiser.
In 2003, the Perdana V6 was given a major facelift, gaining a new Alfa Romeo-esque front grill (earning the moniker "Alfadana" in Malaysia) and new bumpers. Inside, it was given a new aluminium-effect trim. This iteration remains on sale to date. Also made available is a luxury variant of the Proton Perdana V6 with an extended length of 25cm (10 inches) in the rear door, dubbed the Proton Perdana V6 Executive. The Executive is essentially a conversion of the Perdana V6 by Automotive Conversion Engineering (ACE), a subsidiary of EON specialised in developing limousines for statesmen and building TD2000s. Two Perdana V6 Limousine variants are additionally released by ACE with extended lengths of 66cm (26 inches) and 91cm (36 inches), and sport far more luxuries then the Executive variant.
Like the original Perdana, the Perdana V6 was not exported to Europe, although it was tested by Britain's Top Gear magazine in their April 1999 issue, as there were plans at the time to sell the V6 in Europe. The plan never materialised.
New Perdana V6 (2010)
Proton Perdana future a 2.0 L and 2.4 L V6 engine sourced by Honda Inspire into the Perdana. The so-called Proton Perdana V6 also had a bodykit.The 16" for 2.0 and 17" for 2.4 rims. The original Perdana soldiered on for a short while before it was dropped. With Lotus and Honda upgraded suspension settings, the car handles well through tight corners and it is a good high speed cruiser.Like the original Perdana, the Perdana V6 future also exported to Europe,
Prospective successor
As a tie-up between Proton and Volkswagen was discussed between 2004 to 2007, it was expected the successor to the Perdana would be based on a Volkswagen Passat platform. However, the plan was cancelled when Volkswagen announced that negotiations about the partnership had failed.
There was also talk between Proton and Mitsubishi Australia in 2005 to have a replacement Perdana in the form of a rebadged Mitsubishi 380 sedan. These talks never eventuated.
Proton announced that the Persona would be replacing the Perdana in January 2008.
Use in the Malaysian government
Under the guidelines of Malaysia's automotive policies, cars for use by federal and state governments are required to be of national makes. As Proton is the only purely local carmaker to produce cars large enough to qualify as upper-range vehicles, the Perdana, along with the Waja, is favoured as a government car for high-ranking government officials, including the Prime Minister. With the exception of Sarawak, the Proton Perdana V6 Executive is currently the standard Perdana in use for such purposes.
Maintenance cost controversy
The build quality and cost of maintenance of the Perdana V6 Executive was questioned following a controversy in July 2008 on a move by the Barisan Nasional-ruled Terengganu state government to purchase 14 Mercedes-Benz E200 Kompressors, which were intended to replace existing 2004 Perdana V6 Executives as part of their fleet of state government cars. Terengganu State Secretary Mokhtar Nong argued that the decision was made as a result of the Perdanas' lack of reliability, explaining the Perdanas often require costly maintenance, especially on the gearbox, when used for continuous, long distance journeys. Two of the Perdana V6s in particular needed cumulative repair costs of RM175,229.97 and RM132,357.76 respectively since 2004.
Proton denied the allegation of high maintenance costs from Terengganu state government, citing the regular maintenance (motor oil and oil filter replacement) for the Perdana to be around RM200. The controversy has raised suspicion of maintenance fraud by the state government of Terengganu, as the regular cumulative maintenance costs of a typical Perdana V6 for the same period is far lower than the claim by the state government and also due to the fact that there was no such warranty claims being made by the state government since October 2004 for one of the defected cars.
The state of Perak also said the same for the Perdanas, and has recently purchased a fleet of Toyota Camry's to replace the Perdanas. It is said that after 3 years in service the cost of servicing those cars were very high that buying Toyota Camry's would save money after 3 years.
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