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Basic information of my car:

2012 Proton Persona Elegance 1.6 Base Line (Auto)

Engine: DOHC inline-4, 16 valves

Horsepower: 110hp @ 6,500rpm

Torque: 148Nm @ 4,000rpm

Suspension (Front/Rear): MacPhearson / Multilink with stabilizer bar

Reasons why I bought this car

I got my car in October 2018, shortly after I had started University. Since I moved into campus, I needed a car to travel between Kajang and my home in KL during the weekends.

Car Selection Process

I had a budget of: RM20,000

Models that I’ve considered included : Manual transmission Preves, Satria Neos, V6 Perdanas, and Fiestas from the late 00's to early 10's. A family friend had also offered to sell me a 2005 Hyundai Matrix at a bargain. If I could afford it, I would've loved to have an E36 320i, or a W124 230E.

The car was a gift from my dad, and as fate would have it, it was this Persona. One morning while I was on campus, my dad texted me that his client was looking to let go of his Persona. I looked at the photos he sent over, and I was pleased. My dad accepted the Persona as a payment-in-kind, and we arranged to pick it up that weekend.

User experience

• I have already done 143,700km.
• My average fuel consumption is 11.0 L/km.

My Persona has served me well thus far. Over the past year, I've put alot of TLC into this car, and invested over 5 figures into restoring and improving it. Although it's not very refined, and pretty rough around the edges, it's a tough, reliable car, and it is an absolute joy to drive.

To cut to the chase, if you are looking for an economical urban runabout that is nippy at lowrevs and has a full-suite of safety features, you’d be better off with a Perodua, Hyundai i10, or a Kia Picanto. However, if you are on a tight budget and looking for a comfortable highway cruiser that can also haul ass up Genting, this Persona is the perfect car for you. I’ll explain why:

First of all, the Persona's brilliant chassis contributes to its positive ride and handling characteristics. The ride is firm, but comfortable, and compliant. The hydraulic power steering is well weighted and decently responsive. Understeer is minimal, and only tends to occur when accelerating out of a corner. The car feels planted while cornering, and it can turn-in with no drama, even when the corner suddenly tightens. Steering feel is brilliant, it feels like I'm gliding my palm on the surface of the road. Like Jeremy Clarkson once described a car he tested, "I could run over a bird, and I'll be able to tell just from the steering, what kind of bird it was, and what it had for dinner". Albeit, the Persona is nowhere near the same league as a small sports car in terms of handling, but it is as good as an economy car can get.

However, I wish I could say the same about the drivetrain. This car's DOHC Campro IAFM does not have cam profile switching, unlike the engines used in the Gen-2 CPS and Waja CPS. Drivers have complained about the torque dip between 2,000 to 3,000 rpm, which is the rev range we most commonly use during daily driving. Apparently, Proton had tuned the ECU in the facelifted Persona to remedy this issue, and I'm glad they did. Although it is very sluggish at low rpm, most of the power starts to kick in beyond 3,500 rpm, and it reaches peak torque at 4,000 rpm. Despite having a 4AT, it still pulls like a train when I lock it in 2nd gear.

The four-speed automatic does its job decently. It is smooth and reliable, but I'm sure most Persona owners wish it had 5 gears instead. At a cruising speed of 100km/h, the engine runs at 2,750 rpm in 4th gear. Although the engine remains smooth when pushed beyond 3,500 rpm, it gets quite loud. Furthermore, due to the Campro engine’s low torque characteristics, the transmission kicks down immediately when accelerating even at half throttle.

In traffic, the Persona doesn't idle as smoothly as its Japanese counterparts, and the urban fuel consumption is poor. It's gotten alot worse since I've installed my RE004 tyres and soundproofing materials. Expect to get around 11.5 litres/100km in traffic, and 7.5 litres/100km on the highway in a stock Persona.

The Persona is a practical family sedan, with a cavernous boot. No wonder it's favored by Malaysian taxi drivers, who also install NGV tanks. The rear seats aren't very comfortable, and not very spacious for a C-segment sized sedan. The cushioning on the rear bench has been shortened, giving you the illusion of more legroom, at the expense of under-thigh support. If the rear bench was more plush, you'll have as little legroom as an E36 BMW.

As for the styling, I'd say it's very well proportioned. The car has a wide-enough stance, the front wheels are far enough away from the A-pillar, the front overhang isn't excessive, and the rear overhang and tail are long enough. It doesn't have Tom Cruise-looks like an E39, but hey it's presentable enough.

But I'll need to address the elephant in the room. This base model Persona lacks basic safety features. It has no airbags, no traction control, and no ABS (though I can manage without the TC and ABS). The brakes don't have much stopping power, even when in good condition, and I have to rely on good tyres and engine braking when driving on mountain passes and Karak Highway. But the brake feel is decent, and they're not prone to locking up.

When I first took ownership, it was in poor shape mechanically, despite it looking tidy from the outside. The noisy Campro IAFM engine leaked oil, and whined at highway speeds, and the vibration from the rough idle was unbearable when stationary.

The sound insulation was poor, and the road noise was intrusive. Fit and finish was poor, and large panel gaps were noticeable when the doors were closed. The suspension was on its way out, as the car managed to make even a freshly-paved road feel lumpy, and the front end started to sag down a year later.

Moreover, the car came with a rubbish set of Silverstone M3 Synergy tires that had as much grip as a stick of butter, and would aquaplane over the smallest puddle. That following summer, I spent my entire internship allowance to swap them out for a set of Continental CC6 tires, which made a world's difference to the ride comfort and grip.

Since then, I've replaced/fixed the following items on my car:

- Engine mountings

- Valve cover

- Valve cover gasket

- Radiator

- Intake manifold

- Upgraded to a sports exhaust manifold

- Removed the catalytic converter

- Suspension on all four wheels

- Steering rack

- Brake discs and pads (original 1-pot)

- Fan motors

- Air-con compressor

- Window tinting

More recently, I've replaced my Continental CC6's with a fresh set of Bridgestone Potenza Adrenalin RE004's and 16" sports rims.

I've also sent my car to KL Auto, a soundproofing specialist at Jalan Ipoh. I've soundproofed my doors, wheel arches, and rear boot. Now my car feels more solid, and alot more dampened when driving over bumpy roads, and outside noise when sitting in traffic has been reduced significantly. Sooner or later, I'll soundproof my floor, to eliminate the road noise.

I've also replaced Proton's old sound system with a lovely Kenwood head unit and JBL speakers. My favorite tracks like Money For Nothing and Fade To Black have never sounded so good before ;)

Pros of my car:

• Brilliant ride and handling
• Affordable maintenance
• Decent mid-range power
• Spacious boot
• Good looks

Cons of my car:

• Lackluster Build quality
• Poor interior fit and finish
• High fuel consumption
• Poor NVH insulation
• Lack of basic safety features

Ratings: 

Total Score: 3.5

Performance: 4

Quality & Features: 2

Space: 3.5

Ride Comfort: 3.5

Fuel Economy: 3

Price & Cost: 3

Summary :

I didn't like this car when I first got it, and even my friends thought it sucked. But I've grown quite fond of this car over the past 4 years. After putting in so much effort into improving this car, I feel a much greater sense of appreciation, and I drive it everywhere with pride. This car has been with me through university, two internships, and my current job. I've driven across Malaysia multiple times for business trips, holidays with all my friends, as well as dates. As I move up the corporate ladder, I hope I'll be able to buy the cars I really desire. But in the meantime, I plan to keep this old girl for many years to come.

Last:

Earlier this year, I made friends with an MX-5 owner. He was part of a group of MX-5 owners who go for drives together. He didn't have time to join his upcoming Sunday drive, so he invited me to take his place and join his group at Ulu Yam.

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