The Proton Iriz is the product of the Proton’s ambitious goal at developing a global small car, hence the initial codename, GSC. 

It made its debut in September 2014, with a whopping eight variants offered at launch. Over the years, Proton trimmed the number of variants, as well as giving the model some updates.

In an effort to keep the Iriz competitive against the Perodua Myvi, its main B-segment rival, Proton gave the Iriz its biggest update in 2019, adding features such as a revamped exterior, new wheel designs, “Hi Proton” voice command infotainment system, and a new meter cluster.

And by September 2021, the Iriz would turn 7 years old – in time for a replacement by industry standards.

Like the Proton Saga, we believe that the current-generation Proton Iriz will soldier on for a couple more years.

Developing a brand-new platform ain't cheap

The biggest reason why the next-generation Proton Iriz may not be happening so soon is because of high development cost.

Back then, Proton invested roughly RM 300 million to develop the Proton Iriz – a rather substantial amount, considering that the Iriz was a brand-new model for Proton. Everything had to be developed from the ground-up.

Even rebadging a Geely model isn’t feasible because of two main reasons.

The first is because Geely does not have a BMA-based B-segment hatchback to begin with. Small cars just aren't Geely's advantage. 

The second reason is cost. Recall that Proton paid a total of RM 808.3 million in licensing fees for the three Geely models, namely the Geely Boyue (Proton X70), Geely Binyue (Proton X50), and an upcoming third model. That works out to an average of RM 269 million in licensing fees per car.

What about the BMA platform you ask?

The original plan was to have the next-generation Proton Iriz to be built on a modified version of the Proton X50’s BMA platform, but the biggest issue is cost. The BMA platform is not cheap and the Proton Iriz competes in a price-sensitive segment. To remain competitive against the Perodua Myvi, the Iriz needs to be priced between RM 40k to RM 50k.

The Iriz competes against the way-more-successful Perodua Myvi. Compared to the Iriz, the Myvi offers considerably better value for money, as it includes features such as LED headlights, ASA 2.0 AEB suite, digital air-conditioning controls, and a built-in Smart Tag reader. Furthermore, the Myvi comes with at least 4 airbags, more than the Iriz’s minimum twin airbags.

Seeing that Proton is currently gearing up to introduce yet another updated Iriz over the next couple of weeks/months, we reckon that a successor model is ruled out for the time being.

So far, the upcoming Proton Iriz is said to be receiving the same Hyundai-sourced four-speed torque converter automatic transmission as the 2019 Proton Saga. In addition to that, the updated 2021 Proton Iriz could be receiving some form of ADAS features, seeing that it scored a 5-star rating under the more stringent 2017-2020 ASEAN NCAP test protocol.

With all said and done, there’s a lot to look forward to in the upcoming 2021 Proton Iriz, as Proton has seemingly acknowledged one of the biggest flaws with the car – its less-than-stellar CVT-type automatic transmission.