proton

Proton are a Malaysian car maker, started in 1983 at the behest of the then Prime Minister of Malaysia in order to build a national car. Since then they have developed into a major car maker, and purchased Lotus in 1996 and also MV Agusta in 2005. Proton build several cars for the mid range of the market. The Proton Satria is a 3 door hatch, while the Savvy, S16, Gen 2 and Persona are sedans. Proton also build a ute called the Jumbuck. Proton are exporting to over 50 countries, and their brand suffered from a perception that it was poorly built and of little resale value. Proton have sought to change this with the release of models such as the Satria Neo with upgraded features and Lotus tuned mechanicals. Under Proton, Lotus have returned to Formula 1 racing as Lotus F1 Racing.