The Proton Cars Thread

Need a cheap sedan? Proton Saga arrives in SA with R200 000 starting price

The Proton Saga has arrived in South Africa to give local buyers another option at the budget end of the sedan market.

A top seller in its Malaysian home market, the Proton Saga will be offered in three flavours, with the 1.3 Standard manual model kicking things off at R199 900. There’s also a Standard auto derivative on offer for R219 900, while the 1.3 Premium range-topper will set you back R239 900.

This makes it the nation’s second least expensive sedan, with only Suzuki’s DZire 1.2 GA undercutting it at R193 900. The next cheapest option is the Honda Amaze 1.2 Trend at R231 200.

All three Proton Saga models are powered by a normally aspirated 1.3-litre petrol engine that produces 70kW and 120Nm, with power going to the front wheels through a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic gearbox. The compact sedan also has a four-star Asean NCAP safety rating.

Standard specification in the base model includes manual air conditioning, Bluetooth connectivity, electric windows and mirrors, height-adjustable driver’s seat and rear parking sensors.


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Proton's new Saga to shake SA budget-car segment: We drive Malaysia's R200 000 top-selling vehicle

While there have been concerns over the past few years regarding the safety of budget price cars, the Saga offers peace of mind with a host of safety features, such as ABS, EBS and brake assist on all variants, and electronic stability control, traction control and hill assist on the auto models, which have earned it a 4-star ASEAN NCAP safety rating. Proton says that the car has passed extensive tests to ensure that you can either avoid an accident completely with the safety features of the vehicle or, should an accident occur, you have maximum protection from injury.

Our test drive was too brief to explore the Saga extensively, but from what we've seen, it seems to be a solid offering at its price. We'll be doing a full review as soon as Proton makes a review car available, but in the meantime, you can experience it by booking a test drive at https://proton.cars/book-a-test-drive/.

Pricing

Proton Saga 1.3L Standard M/T – R199 900
Proton Saga 1.3L Standard A/T – R219 900
Proton Saga 1.3L Premium A/T – R239 900

A five-year or 150 000km warranty is standard, and service plans are sold as an option.

www.news24.com

Proton's new Saga to shake SA budget-car segment: We drive Malaysia's R200 000 top-selling vehicle | Life

Proton South Africa has recently invited us to drive the newly launched Proton Saga, their entry-level model, which is slotting firmly into the budget price section of the local market.
www.news24.com www.news24.com
 
How well is Proton selling in SA? The latest sales figures

Proton has quietly started reporting model sales to Naamsa. Here’s how many vehicles the Malaysian automaker sold in South Africa in July 2023…

The Proton brand returned to the South African market in September 2022 after a decade-long hiatus. Now, the Malaysian automaker has quietly started reporting individual model sales figures to Naamsa, starting with July 2023.

So, just how well is this 40-year-old brand – which is distributed locally by the Combined Motor Holdings (CMH) Group – selling in South Africa right now?

Well, Proton didn’t quite manage to crack 3 figures, having registered 99 units locally in July 2023. That performance saw it place 29th, some way behind the likes of Volvo, Mitsubishi and even a raft of truck makers (such as Iveco, UD Trucks, Scania, MAN and FAW). When considering only the passenger-vehicle segment (and thus excluding light-commercial vehicles and larger trucks), Proton ranked 21st.

Interestingly, 83 of those registrations came via the dealer channel, while 16 represented sales to the rental industry. The Proton X50 was the brand’s top seller in July 2023, with 43 units registered. Next came the X70 (32 units), followed by the Saga sedan (24 units).

www.cars.co.za

How well is Proton selling in SA? The latest sales figures

Proton has quietly started reporting model sales to Naamsa. Here’s how many vehicles the Malaysian brand sold in South Africa in July 2023…
www.cars.co.za www.cars.co.za
 
Proton X90 seven-seat SUV lands in SA with smart looks, keen pricing

Proton has launched its new X90 seven-seat SUV in South Africa and it appears to be something of a bargain.

The Malaysian brand’s importer CMH pulled the covers off the new model at the Festival of Motoring in Johannesburg on Thursday, and the first units are expected to reach local showrooms in early September. It joins the smaller X50 and X70 models that were launched last year.

The Proton X90 will be available in four specification flavours, with the Standard model kicking things off at R559 900. The mid-range Executive will set you back by R589 900, while the Premium stretches things to R644 900, and the six-seat Flagship - a self-explanatory name if ever there was one - is yours for R679 900.

You’re sure getting a lot of metal for your money. With an overall length of 4,830mm the Proton X90 is just over 100mm longer than the Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace and Chery Tiggo 8 Pro.

Proton, along with Volvo and Lotus, is owned by Geely and the X90 is closely based on the Chinese parent brand’s Haoyue SUV.

Proton X90 Pricing (August 2023)

1.5 TGDi BSG Standard - R559 900

1.5 TGDi BSG Executive - R589 900

1.5 TGDi BSG Premium - R644 900

1.5 TGDi BSG Flagship - R679 900

 
They are at least trying to get the price right but their other cars are still too expensive, their X50 is about R100k more expensive than a Haval Jolion, and I can't think of any good reason for that.
 
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