Proton is an ambitious carmaker with a strong national sense but unlike most national car projects, P1 persevered. Though that “national” title is irrelevant today, its pride remains true to every single Malaysian 40 years after the project was first announced.

Some might argue that Proton (and by some extension, Perodua) squandered any feasible chance of Malaysia being an attractive hub for foreign carmakers who chose Indonesia and Thailand as their destination for growth in the ASEAN region.

Neither of those countries has a national car project of their own – though Indonesia has a controversial one that failed in the 1990s – and yet saw their respective automotive industries blossom.

Though its legacy has some detractors, Proton is still seen as a spirit of achievement for most Malaysians. It was once among the highest-growing brands in the UK in the early 1990s and back then, things were looking so promising for Proton.

Also read: UK fans tell us why old Proton Sagas and Iswaras are getting a bit of a renaissance in Britain

Imagine a brand from a country that was a complete newbie in the automotive industry competing and even winning against other players from countries with an established experienced base.

That’s what makes Proton a strong symbol of national pride and for Muhammad Jeya, that determination is what fuelled him in purchasing a valuable piece of Malaysian automotive history.

Except this important automotive piece was orphaned by Proton. It was a project worth millions of dollars in an attempt to penetrate a difficult market. It would go on national tours but eventually kept in storage for so long that it nearly rotted to oblivion.

This is the tragic downfall and the heroic restoration of the Proton Satria Cabriolet.

Asian Tiger

At its peak in the 1990s, Proton was exported to 5 continents around the world including South America, the Middle East, Southern Africa, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. In Europe, Proton was mainly popular in the UK and Turkiye but P1 had dreams of expanding across Continental Europe.

Also read: Sunroof on a Saga? Take a look at these UK-spec Proton Saga brochures from 30 years ago!

Before Proton tagged the Preve and Iriz as its “world cars,” the Wira was already doing so in the mid-1990s. It was called the Natura in South America and the Persona in the UK and Australia.

Also read: National pride runs deep when we see Protons and Peroduas around the world

However, for the Continental European market, Proton decided to give the Wira and the Satria generic numerical names instead. The Wira would be called the 400 Series while the Satria was called the 300 Series.

This would be followed by the model's engine displacement. For instance, a 1.6-litre variant of the Wira in Continental Europe would be called the Proton 416 and likewise for the Satria equivalent which would be called the Proton 316.

Also read: Top Rank: 12 rare and unique Proton Satria and Satria Neo models

While Proton has a range of models ready for the European left-hand drive (LHD) markets, it needed a new model that would attract the attention of one of the most competitive and mature automotive markets in the world.

The USD 2 mil answer

The Frankfurt Motor Show might not be as glamourous as the Geneva or Paris Motor Shows but it is one of the most important automotive exhibitions in Europe.

It was here in 1997 that Proton officially announced that it would be entering Continental European markets in Germany, France, and Belgium. Aside from the 400-badged Wira and 300-badged Satria, Proton also displayed a purple-coloured topless car at the booth.

The Proton Satria Cabriolet might only be a concept to gauge audience reaction but it’s one of the most expensive one-off projects made by the company at the time. The topless Satria (side note, in official international press releases, it's simply called Proton Cabriolet) was built by an American company called Gaffoglio Family Metalcrafters Inc. (GFMI).

Also read: Proton Satria Cabriolet – The curious convertible

Its name might not sound familiar but the projects that the California-based company were involved in are. Some examples included the 1989 Dodge Viper Concept, 1993 Plymouth Prowler Concept, and 1996 Mercedes-Benz AAV Concept – the precursor to the production first-gen M-Class.

The Satria Cabriolet took 9 weeks to be completed and was rumoured to cost USD 2 million to make. The production model was planned to be launched in 1998 with 3 petrol engines to be offered – 1.3-litre, 1.5-litre, and 1.6-litre. The working concept shown in Germany had a 1.6-litre unit underneath.

According to Tan Sri Tengku Mahaleel Tengku Ariff, the CEO of Proton at the time, the Satria Cabriolet was one of a proposed line-up expansion of Satria-badged models that would also include a Satria MPV aside from the regular Satria and Satria GTi.

Unfortunately, the project would be cancelled as Malaysia’s economy went into a downward spiral following the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997. Proton’s plans for expansion in Continental Europe also imploded as it failed to attract buyers and would eventually pull out by the turn of the millennium.

Also read: Proton Satria GTi conquers Nürburgring to spread the Malaysia Boleh spirit

Auctioning off a treasure

Proton actually built two units of the Satria Cabriolet. The purple unit was more recognisable internationally and at the 2000 Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show (KLIMS), it was given the current ‘Thundercat’ badge, replacing the 14-pointed Malaysian star diamond logo used in export markets.

Also read: Are you old enough to remember these Proton logos?

The other gold unit often made its rounds at Proton roadshows around Malaysia in the 2000s. Aside from the paintwork, the only other difference between the two cars is the transmission – the purple unit has a 4-speed automatic while the gold unit has a 5-speed manual transmission.

The Malaysian convertible attracted plenty of attention from Malaysians everywhere it went and it also sparked intrigue with Jeya. He first laid eyes on the Satria Cabriolet back when he was just getting involved in the local motorsports and drifting scene.

Also read: Cheaper than karting? Start your racing career with a Proton Saga race car from as low as RM 10k!

Eventually, as the years wore on, the Satria Cabriolet became a forgotten relic of the past. Just like many concepts from all these years, its fate was either to be scrapped or simply kept in a lonesome, dusty corner of a storage room. As it turned out, Proton kept both units of the Satria Cabriolet and controversially auctioned both publicly in 2020.

Also read: Nissan crushes its past dreams by sending its old concept cars to the junkyard

News of the two topless Satrias resurfacing after 15 years of silence and in poor condition spread like wildfire across the internet. There were debates on whether this was the right thing to do or not but most Proton enthusiasts were angry at how Proton was “erasing” its heritage.

Also read: Proton was doing the right thing in disposing its old rally and concept cars, here’s why

Amidst the controversy, Proton decided to pull the gold unit out from the auction but the purple unit’s sale continued and found a buyer. A couple of years later, that same purple unit was spotted for sale on Facebook Marketplace and many media covered the ad including this very publication.

Finding your perfect car

Perfection is subjective but finding one’s perfect car is the motto of WapCar after all. Not to toot our own horn but when we asked Jeya what made him buy the purple Satria Cabrio from the previous owner, he laughed and pointed at this writer.

“Your article is the reason I came across the Satria Cabriolet,” he told us when we met at Taiping for a photo shoot of this one-of-a-kind prototype. When Pickles Auction organised the public auction 3 years ago, Jeya was more interested in getting his hands on one of the PERT rally cars.

Also read: The evolution of extreme Proton rally cars – Does rallying have a future in Malaysia?

Being someone who was involved in motorsports, the businessman's eyes were on the rally cars. The Satria Cabriolet was never on his radar until he saw our it resurfaced in our article.

Also read: Remember the Proton Satria Cabriolet? It’s for sale on FB Marketplace!

He told us that while other media covered the Satria Cabriolet’s Marketplace listing, most did not cite the seller or hide their details. “I noticed the seller’s name and contact information were listed in your article,” Jeya told WapCar.

Upon seeing the Satria Cabriolet being put up for sale, Jeya felt a sudden soft spot for the purple car and contacted the owner. According to him, the previous owner wanted to sell off the car due to financial issues and Jeya purchased from them with the intention not just to restore it, but as a sense of national pride.

“I first saw the Satria Cabriolet many years ago when I was participating in motorsports events up north around Perak and Penang. So it holds a very special place in my heart and I felt it’s a duty to restore this national treasure,” Jeya told us.

Being a prototype, the Satria Cabriolet is not registered under the Road Transport Department (JPJ) and hence, it is not road-legal. Besides, it was originally meant to be a show car to parade around and as a study with potential young European buyers.

Still, Jeya bought the purple cabriolet for around RM 15,000 and became the proud owner of one of only a pair of Satria Cabriolets in existence. Road legality aside, he bought a car that is rife with plenty of issues. Forget being neglected, its state when Jeya bought it made a barn find look less challenging.

Also read: Immaculate 1993 Proton Saga found in British garage. Only clocked 16k km!

From zero to hero

After transporting the Satria Cabriolet from its previous location to Taiping, Perak, Jeya and his team got straight to work. The topless concept might cost USD 2 million to develop but after years of being placed in a storage facility, it was slowly rotting to worthless metal.

The floorboards and parts of the body panels were suffering from rust while some of the purple paint had been peeled off. Meanwhile, the rubber components and the suspension were hardened after years of neglect but all of these can be mended.

Jeya and his team began work by fixing the bodywork, removing the rust spots and fixing the floor. IR Spray Taiping gave the Satria Cabriolet a new coat of purple paint but the team paid extra attention not to damage some of the trims and components.

Parts like the front and rear bumpers, front grille along with the side skirts are exclusively bespoke to the Satria Cabriolet and cannot be simply swapped out from that of a standard Satria. Ditto the side windows which also have the GFMI logos etched onto them.

@zmlsyhr Sembang...ye ke? 🤭 #fypmalaysia #carmalaysia #malaysia #proton #protonsatria #satriacabrio #satriacabriolet #protonmalaysia #satriasociety #satriagasm #viralmalaysia #fyp ♬ This Is Not Phonk - Bgnzinho

The real party piece of the Satria Cabriolet is the roof itself but at the state it was in, it needed a lot of work. One of the arms that controlled the roof mechanism was broken and there were no available spares since it was a one-off concept.

So, Jeya and his team devised a custom-built replacement in order for the powered fabric roof to operate again. Even back when it was displayed on the showcase floor in Frankfurt 26 years ago, the soft top is operated via a hydraulic pump system located in the boot and it still works as well as did before.

After spending another RM 40,000 to restore the convertible to its current condition, the Satria Cabriolet was brought to Retro Havoc 2023 back in May where it attracted plenty of attention.

Taiping is one of the wettest towns in Malaysia but here, the Satria Cabriolet looked just at home as it could’ve been back in sunny California where it was built. Underneath, the car runs on the same 1.6-litre 4G92P engine as a standard Satria which runs smoothly.

In fact, every component is still working but this is still an ongoing restoration project for Jeya. Most of the parts remain unchanged including the seats and the fabric roof which have seen enough wear and tear. The bespoke wheels that were seen on the original concept might be the hardest to locate but the Satria GTi alloys it currently sports looked just as good.

Also read: Just how great Malaysia's first hot hatch is? We took the cleanest Proton Satria GTi ever for a ride!

While we were shooting the Satria Cabriolet around Taiping Lake Gardens, we were occasionally approached by some local passers-by. Most of them have never seen the car up close and thought it was a custom job that was not officially done by Proton.

Little do they know, it is a unique and valuable heritage commissioned by Proton only to be kept hidden away and forgotten. Yet, it lives on with a saviour that also resides in their hometown.

Special thanks to Jeya for allowing us to have a closer look at this restored treasure. It is currently listed for sale and you can contact him via Facebook for more enquiries.

@wapcar_zamil Hanya ada 2 di dunia beb! Tun Mahathir pernah naik masa Sukan Komanwel 98'! #fypmalaysia #carmalaysia #malaysia #proton #protonsatria #satriacabrio #satriacabriolet #protonmalaysia #satriasociety #satriagasm #viralmalaysia #fyp #wapcar @retrobodykits @retrohavoc @satriagasm @satriasociety ♬ Beast Mode - ROKKA