New Proton Waja launched

Good news! Proton Waja just got improved by the malaysian company. Some of the things changed in this new Proton Waja are the front of the car, a much improved interior, new colours and some extra safety options. The front of the new Proton Waja was changed for better aerodynamics and the interior just got something really cool, leather! Also the suspension got some stabilizer bars, two airbags have been fitted, for the two people in front.

Another cool add-on is the ABS, together with fog lights and parking sensors and an alarm. All these new features, 14 in total, make the new Proton Waja the best car in its category when it comes to safety and equipment.

Safety in the Proton Waja average at best

According to the malaysian company, the Proton Waja is the first car to be designed for safety and the first to be tested by EuroNCAP. However, the results were a bit dissapointing, with Proton Waja taking only 3 stars for adult safety and only 1 star for pedestrian safety. They said they will improve future Proton Waja designs to meet higher standards, and to be honest, those 3 stars are huge for them. Previous cars had even less protection so this is big.

In the test, the car was damaged very bad, so bad that it even became unstable. Both people in front of the Proton Waja would've been seriously injured in such an accident. Also the child seatbelts were not designed too well in the Proton Waja and they weren't tested enough previous to this test. Also, the tested version had side airbags, something that never was sold in Malaysia. There are two name versions here, the Proton Waja for most of Europe and the rest of the world, and the Proton Impian for Great Britain, a car with right hand drive.

Proton Waja description

The Proton Waja is powered by two engines, both gasoline, and are a 1.6L and 1.8L in capacity. The newer one is the 1.8L and its got 16 valves and it also has some things that I think you'll apreciate in the Proton Waja. The Proton Waja 1.8L comes with drive-by-wire throttle control and it gives you a much better response when trying to adapt to different conditions on the road. The Proton Waja 1.8 has an improved fuel economy and meets pollution standards that are accepted worldwide.

The Proton Waja 1.6 has an MPI engine, a maximum of 6000rpm and 76kw and a maximum torque of 140Nm. If you're wondering about safety, the Proton Waja 1.6 has both front and rear brakes of 14", ventilated in front and solid in the back. The Proton Waja also has 15" alloy wheels which is a nice touch. If you're interested in how big it is, the Proton Waja is 4465mm in length, 1740mm width and 1420mm height, with a weight of 1200kg. It's big enough to be a family car and that's probably the purpose behind it. If you want to talk performance, it can get from 0 to 100 in 12 seconds with a maximum speed of 186km/h.

Proton Waja MT - a friends opinion on this car

Well, my friend's opinion is a lot influenced by the manufacturing quality of the Proton Waja. He had a problem with the sounds that the Proton Waja made. He started hearing sounds in the cabin of the Proton Waja after around two weeks of driving around in it. Also when he's turning the wheel there is another sound, which was also loud. Another thing that bothered his was the quality of the audio system, which started making noises when the volume was way up. I know, can't expect much from the basic audio system, but still, it's all part of the noise problem that he hated so much at the Proton Waja.

Another problem he had with his Proton Waja MT was with the lights in the back. The switch that turned the lights on and off got defective. Another thing he hated at this Proton Waja was the customer support, which was not helpful at all and even refused to fix things that were in the warranty. Overall, he liked the car, but hated the building quality. So Proton Waja could really be much more if the company would've concentrated on quality. Proton Waja clients normaly complain about the build quality not about the car in general, so they could really do a lot more in this area.

Owner opinion on the Proton Waja 1.6 Automatic

Ok, so I met last week the owner of a Proton Waja. He didn't have it for long but I can tell you that he was extremely unhappy with the car. He only has the Proton Waja for three weeks now, but already the lamp that flashes when the "N" is selected works even when the "D" is selected. So I guess thats not exactly something that he loves about the Proton Waja. Apparently the gear is blocked in the 3rd drive range. He sent it back to the dealer, and he doesn't seem to know what's happening. They keep changing parts but the problem is not solved yet. So thumbs down for Proton Edar and their quality of service. They think that the gearbox is to blame but they don't want to change it, so the Proton Waja just gets new parts and refuse to change it entirely.

His car is a Proton Waja 1.6 Automatic from 2005 with just 2000 km onboard due to all the problems.