Proton Persona Elegance

Proton Persona Elegance. available in three trim levels – Base Line, Medium Line and High Line – the Persona Elegance is powered by the familiar 1.6-litre Campro IAFM engine with 110 bhp at 6,500 rpm and 148 Nm of torque from 4000 rpm. Buyers can choose between a four-speed automatic or five-speed manual, but the High Line model only comes with the auto ‘box.

Although output remains, the Campro IAFM in the Persona Elegance comes with a new 32 bit ECU from Continental, which also supplied the previous 16 bit version. According to a Proton source, the new 32 bit ECU has more capabilities compared to the older 16 bit version – capable of more inputs, you can configure more parameters, and it can also interconnect with more systems such as “talking” to a Body Control Module such as the one in the Exora.

It is more of a future-proofing and cost-effectiveness move. Torque and power output remains the same as before. Firstly, Siemens VDO have been moving their global ECU manufacturing to 32 bit being the minimum, so it is not feasible for Proton to continue ordering 16 bit ECUs when the 32 bit version can be had at a far more competitive price. This move is also in preparation for the new Project Phoenix engine that we will soon see in Protons, which will require the capabilities of the new ECU.

UPDATE: Since we first published this article we’ve received more information on the new Persona Elegance. The changes go beyond just an aesthetic make-over. We already know there’s a new bodykit, front grille, bumpers and new LED tail lamps. But beyond that, here’s what’s different:

• The seat backrest angle has been changed to offer better comfort.
• Extra soundproofing material has been added to pillars to improve interior NVH.
• Despite power output and torque being the same, a source has indicated that the engine should feel livelier and more responsive. We’ll try to get an initial impression from the showrooms over this weekend.

The original story continues below…

There are a couple of changes to the exterior. As all of you already know from our previous reveals, the Persona Elegance comes with a new rear lamp cluster, now with LED brake lights. The nine LEDs are arranged in two rows – four up and five down. All trims except for the Base Line come with a bodykit, slim rear spoiler and foglamps, although the turning lamps on the side mirrors (illuminates in a cool light bar form) and chrome door handles are standard across the board.

Up front, the facelifted Persona uses the same nose as the Gen 2 CPS along with its “black out” headlamp housing, but with a different grille design. The Proton logo and its “wings” is pushed up to the top of the grille while the Gen 2 CPS has a central emblem. The 15-inch rim design is also new, although the 195/60 size of the tyres are unchanged. As before, the Base Line makes do with steel rims and hubcaps.

Inside, the most apparent change is the replacement of the previous custom designed audio head unit for a conventional single-DIN unit, once again by Blaupunkt. The USB compatible unit should be easier to operate than before with minimal and large buttons, and all trims but the Base Line get steering wheel controls. The meter cluster graphics are also new, now with white numbering and red needles plus a red inner ring, much more “premium looking” than the plain orange dials used before. Proton also says that the angle of rear seat has been changed for improved comfort.

Medium and High Line cars get a GPS navigation set stuck on the windscreen, driver’s seat height adjuster and electric side mirrors. Only the High Line gets leather seats and trim (Base and Medium Line sports a new fabric material), cruise control and remote release for the trunk.

Safety kit wise, the High Line comes with ABS and EBD, two airbags and two pre-tensioner seatblets. Out of this, the Medium Line only gets a driver’s airbag and pre-tensioner seatbelt, while the Base Line gets none of the above.

Here is the price list for the Persona Elegance:

Base Line (M) RM46,499
Base Line (A) RM49,499
Medium Line (M) RM52,999
Medium Line (A) RM55,999
High Line (A) RM59,499

Proton’s latest is available in two new colours – Chiffon Green and Bronze Garnet – in addition to silver and black. Brilliant Red is a colour exclusive to the High Line. Now in showrooms and ready for booking, the Persona Elegance comes with a 2-year/50,000 km manufacturer’s warranty plus a 3-year/125,000 km extended warranty programme – that’s a total of 5 years.

Pictures from the launch this morning, studio images, a video and a full scan of the brochure showing the equipment list of all variants are after the jump.

Proton Persona facelift snapped at Petronas Sepang

Our little hardworking secret project for 2010 team was having a short break and discussion at the Petronas near the Sepang International Circuit a few weeks ago and it so happened that a lightly disguised facelifted Proton Persona was being refueled there

We wasted no time and snapped away to bring you a closer look to what we’ll soon be able to buy next year. Look after the jump for all four photos in high resolution goodness.

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THE CAMPRO ENGINE

Developed in partnership with Lotus Engineering, this engine grants PROTON complete vehicle design independence. Its breakthrough engine technology produces low fuel consumption, yet gives rapid, high power response, and can even be produced to run on alternative fuels.

Its represents true world class powertrain engineering, and a revolutionary step forward in engine manufacture, with low toxic emissions, low noise levels and above all, highly economical maintenance of long service intervals.

Major design objectives :

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Space-saving transverse east-west direction engine installation

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Designed for long life of at least 10 years or 250,000 km

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Best performance in class

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Flexibility to use future technology (CPS & NGV)

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80% recyclable to meet 2005 requirements

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comply to future exhaust emission legislation requirement

Proton to participate in Geneva 2010 – world debut of new design language coming up?

In the last few days of the 2009, Proton styling department chief Azlan Othman revealed that an announcement would be made soon on the showcase of a new design direction and language for Proton Design. He mentioned that it would be a ‘worldwide announcement’, and I think Proton MD Datuk Syed Zainal has just given us a clue as to when this announcement is going to happen!

He revealed at Proton’s 2010 Family Day celebrations that Proton would be participating in the 2010 Geneva Motor Show in March this year. Geneva is probably one of the most important non-American market motorshows out there along with the Frankfurt show, which is just a wee bit strange considering there are no Swiss automotive manufacturers.

A Geneva exhibit usually warrants something big to showcase to make it worth it so maybe… just maybe… perhaps what Azlan meant was that Proton could be showing an interesting concept car featuring future design language elements in it? Peugeot is also taking the same route, showcasing its Peugeot SR1 Concept there.

Other than that, DSZ also said that the Exora is due for a Middle Eastern market debut soon, and a consolidation process of its Shah Alam and Tanjung Malim plants are underway and scheduled to complete by the end of this year. No details have been revealed but in Proton’s current overcapacity state we might see Proton consolidate all manufacturing in one plant?

Until March then!

Proton Satria Neo S2000 starts pre-season testing

Proton has started pre-season tests for its Satria Neo Super 2000 rally car, which will compete a full season in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and selected races of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) in 2010, according to Alister McRae during our recent taxi ride session with him. The team plans to campaign more than one car, so it’s using a test session in Wales as a chance to “audition” new drivers.

Finland’s Anton Alen and Matti Rantanen and Belgian Francois Duval drove the Neo S2000 at the Sweet Lamb test facility in Wales. Chris Mellors, who runs MEM, the outfit that built the car, said: “We had three great drivers who gave us some very positive and valuable feedback. From our point of view one of the most encouraging things is that we put the equivalent of a world championship rally distance on the car without having to do any work to it.”

Alen, who is considering Proton as one of his options for next season’s IRC, said: “The car felt very stable and the engine had a really good spread of torque right from the bottom all the way to the top.”

A couple of days after the test, Duval slipped on some ice back in his homeland and broke two vertebrae in his back. He is expected to recover fully, but will be out of action for at least eight weeks

Miss Australia Universe endorses the Proton Saga!

The Saga is the latest model to join Proton Australia’s line-up, selling Down Under as the Proton S16. As its name suggests, the S16 is powered by the 110 bhp 1.6-litre Campro IAFM engine paired to a five-speed manual ‘box.

Its drive away retail price of $11,990 makes it the lowest priced new car in Australia. Before launch, Proton billed the S16 as the cheapest sedan in the market, but latest currency exchange rates have given the S16 an even stronger selling point.

The auto version will debut shortly while July 2010 will see the introduction a GXR variant that adds dual airbags, ABS, alloys, reverse sensors and fog lamps to the kit list.

It’s clearly a very good deal, but since the Saga’s looks aren’t exactly what you’d call pretty, Proton Australia has signed on Miss Universe Australia 2009 Rachael Finch for some “look at me” appeal. She will be featured in all S16 ads in Australia. A clearer view of the lovely Miss Finch is available after the jump!

Lotus appoints ex-Ferrari man as head of design De

Lotus has announced the appointment of Donato Coco as the Group’s Director of Design. In this newly created position, Mr Coco will lead all design activities for Lotus Cars and Lotus Engineering. He will assume the role on 4 January 2010.

The Italian was previously Director of Design and Development at Ferrari where he worked on the F430 Scuderia coupé and Spider 16M, Ferrari California, 599XX and the freshly launched F458 Italia. Prior to Ferrari, Donato was Chief Designer at Citroën and was responsible for the Picasso, C3, C3 Pluriel, C2, C1 and the Xsara WRC, amongst others. Coco holds an MA in Automotive Design from the Royal College of Art, London.

Head of Lotus Design, Russell Carr will continue to work on both Lotus products and third party design work, an area which is growing rapidly especially in emerging Asian markets such as China.

The Lotus F1 Drivers in Malaysia made a short visit

Lotus F1 Drivers, Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen have a short visit to Proton’s Centre of Excellence (COE) in Shah Alam, Malaysia. They have a closed door meeting with the Proton management, possessing few pictures and what left. Heikkin looked really interested in Proton Satria Neo S2000 Rally car that just came from the second finish in Rally of Scotland, taking a seat and asked questions. Check out photos of the LotusF1 drivers after the jump. (Credit to Paultan for info and pictures.)

2010 Proton Persona facelift sighted on test!

Click for high resolution image

Drex Chan sent in these great photos of what appears to be the Proton Persona facelift that’s due next year. The Persona was first launched in 2007, so mid next year would be about the right time for a facelift if you follow a 5 year model lifecycle, though most of us probably feel like a replacement is due since the Persona is actually a GEN2 sedan, and the GEN2 has been around a long time.

Click for high resolution image

The front bumper is derived from the GEN2 CPS. The rear end shows tail lamps that have been taped up to hide an updated design. It looks like Proton has incorporated the use of LED lighting in the updated Persona’s tail lamps.

Two more details – firstly the wing mirrors also appear to be taped up. The tape hides the use of turn signal indicators integrated in the wing mirrors. Secondly, in the engine bay we can see that the engine uses coil on plug ignition, which means it is a Campro IAFM engine. This means that Proton is continuing with the separation of the Campro into two different versions – the IAFM engine as an economy-skewed engine while the CPS engine is more for power. They should really just have one powerful and fuel efficient engine for the 1.6 liter size – I’m sure it will be better for economies of scale.

There are a few more photos that you can view at drexchan’s fotopic page. UPDATE: Drex has sent in the pix on his fotopic page to be hosted here instead, as his fotopic page has ran out of bandwidth. According to Drex, the test engineers informed him that the IAFM engine would get an improved ECU. Look after the jump for the rest of the pix.

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2009 PROTON PERSONA CM GX $18,990*

 

Drive Away No More to Pay

Total photo(s): 6

vehicle details

Vehicle
2009 PROTON PERSONA CM GX

Price
$18,990* Drive Away No More to Pay

Kilometres
0

Colour
metal grey

Transmission
4 speed Automatic

Body
4 door 5 seat SEDAN

DriveType
Front

Reg Plate
TBA

Engine
4 cylinder Unleaded Multi-point injected 1.6L (1597cc)

VIN
tba

Stock #
N89013

Comments

CAN YOU AFFORD $79 A WEEK never to be repeated price on the persona, over $2000 savings. this car has full option with alloys keyless entry and boot with rear sensors, come with 3 year wrrty and racv road side assis. dose 6.6 kms per 100 kms and its the same size as corolla or a focus and a mazda 3

vehicle features *(please confirm with seller)

12V Sockets - Auxiliary
Engine Immobiliser

15In Alloy Wheels
Floor Mats

4 Speaker Stereo
Fog Lamps - Front

Abs (Antilock Brakes)
Fog Lamps - Rear

Adjustable Steering Col. - Tilt Only
Headlamps - Clear Lenses

Air Conditioning
Intermittent Wipers

Airbags - Driver & Passenger (Dual)
Metallic Finish Centre Stack/ Hvac

Alarm
Metallic Finish Door Handles - Interior

Audio - Mp3 Decoder
Metallic Finish Gear Shift Gate

Body Colour - Bumpers
Metallic Finish Inserts

Body Colour - Door Handles
Metallic Finish Instrument Surrounds

Body Colour - Exterior Mirrors Partial
Multi-Function Steering Wheel

Body Side Mouldings - Colour Coded
Power Door Mirrors

Cd Player
Power Steering

Central Locking - Remote/Keyless
Power Windows - Front & Rear

Chrome Exhaust Tip
Remote Boot/Hatch Release

Chrome Rear Garnish
Remote Fuel Lid Release

Clear Side Indicator Lenses
Seat - Height Adjustable Driver

Control - Park Distance Rear
Seatbelt - Pretensioners 1St Row (Front)

Cup Holders - 1St Row
Seats - 2Nd Row Split Fold

Cup Holders - 2Nd Row
Sunvisor - Vanity Mirror For Passenger

Disc Brakes Front Ventilated
Tacho

Disc Brakes Rear Solid
Trip Computer

Ebd (Electronic Brake Force Distribution)

Mysterious clay model in Proton R&D video

The clay model you see above was captured from a Proton R&D video clip posted onto Youtube by a user. You’ll be able to see the clay model around the 41 second mark. I’ve no idea what it’s supposed to be, but anything that just might be a preview of a future Proton model is always intriguing. It could also only be some kind of old design study that’ll never see the light of day But back to reality – it actually kinda looks like a GEN2/Persona, with unfinished headlamps, so it could be a half way done clay model on the way to becoming a GEN2/Persona. You can watch the video after the jump

Persona Problem

Done regular service at 44k mileage.
Engine sounds tep tep tep. It was canistor problem. Order and wait 2 weeks
until service centre call me back.
Another sound like 'kelukkkk' when make U-turn or hard cornering.
Mechanic said, it was steering valve problem. Order and wait for 2 weeks also.
Lucky it was in warranty period...will update soon when finish changing both item.

Proton Exora To Hit Thai Market Next Week

BANGKOK, Nov 27 (Bernama) -- With over 7,000 of its cars already on the road, Proton is set to launch its maiden multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) Exora in the Thai market at the Thailand International Motor Expo next week.
Based on initial feedback from the media and industry experts, Phranakorn Auto Sales general manager (operations) Apichart Wangsatorntanakhun said they were expecting a good response from Thai buyers.
"We took more than a dozen journalists to test the Exora in Malaysia. Exora received excellent reviews from the media, as well as those who came for discussion with us and saw the car at our showroom," he said in an interview here.
The Nation daily, in its review Friday said that Exora, with good handling and ride balance for its class, combined with versatile interior, was a good value as a family-mover against the smaller Toyota Avanza and the pricey Honda Freed.
Proton made its entry into the Japanese manufacturers-dominated Thai market at the end of 2007 to take advantage of the low five per cent import duty imposed under the Asean Free Trade Area agreement. Phranakorn was appointed as its official distributor.
According to Apichart, Exora's competitive pricing matched with quality, interior design and various accessories like leather seats and DVD player would enable it to compete with other MPVs in the market.
"It's value for money...it's similar to what Japanese manufacturers have been doing and is their secret for success. But now, their cars are a bit over priced," he said, adding that Honda Freed launched here two weeks ago was priced at between 894,000 Baht and 1,074,500 Baht (RM1 = 10 Baht).
Apichart said the 1.6-litre engine with five-speed manual or four-speed automatic Exora in five colours would hit the market in the price range between 699,000 Baht to 799,000 Baht.
Launched on April 15 in Malaysia, the Exora model has received 26,000 bookings todate, and 17,000 units were already registered in the domestic market there, as well as making its debut in Indonesia and Singapore.
Apichart said since its entry into the highly-competive market, Proton had sold more than 7,000 cars, with the top model being Savvy.
Asked on Phranakorn's sales target for Exora, Apichart said they had set a high target but declined to reveal.
"Overall, we hope to get about 900 bookings for all our models during the motor show.
"In fact, we are giving free insurance and free leather seats for Savvy buyers," he said.
Last year, Proton, which has 35 dealers nationwide, received 863 bookings during the popular expo attended by more than 1.5 million people. There were 14,000 orders.
Other Proton models available here are Neo, Gen 2, Persona and Persona CNG.
He said the overall sales was good, considering the weak Thai automotive market where sales dropped by 20 per cent for passenger cars and 28 per cent for pick-ups.
-- BERNAMA

Proton’s profit up from higher sales and bigger mart share

SHAH ALAM: Proton Holdings Bhd reported a higher profit and revenue during its second quarter as the company sold more cars and enjoyed cost savings from the consolidation of its sales and vendor network.

The national car maker, which saw its market share rise to 29% from 26% a year ago, is seeking to ratchet up export sales as it engineers a new cost efficiency programme that aims to bring in an additional half billion ringgit.

“The consolidation effort has given us significant improvement,’’ said managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir when announcing the group’s results yesterday.

For its second quarter ended Sept 30, Proton posted a net profit of RM82.1mil, or 14.9 sen a share, compared with RM43.8mil, or 8 sen a share, in the previous corresponding period.

Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir announcing the group’s second quarter results on Monday. Beside him is CFO Azhar Othman and behind them the Proton logo

Revenue rose 14% to RM2.1bil from RM1.85bil as the company’s sales bucked the industry-wide trend by showing a strong increase.

“Proton has beaten the consensus by a mile,’’ said AmResearch Sdn Bhd analyst Hafriz Hezri.

Hafriz attributed the strong performance to a favourable model mix where larger numbers of the higher margin Exora were sold and also cost gains from the consolidation of the vendor and dealer network.

“Improvement on our operating profit was largely due to the increase in domestic sales volume and profit margins which continued to strengthen through a better product mix,” said chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Salleh in a statement.

“Our domestic sales volume grew by 11% compared with the immediate preceding quarter and this was primarily driven by the increase in sales of our top three models – the Persona, Saga and Exora.’’

The best selling models account for 86% of total sales and demand for the Saga has exceeded initial expectations with the company having to ramp up production to meet the 7,500 bookings a month.

Proton will be exporting the Saga to Australia and Egypt

Apart from better domestic sales, ongoing efforts to cut cost – the latest through the rationalisation of its dealer and vendor network – has borne fruit.

Syed Zainal in the briefing said the cost per unit was down, along with administration and manufacturing charges.

To help cut cost further, Syed Zainal said consultants had been hired to look at the entire process and systems of the company.

Proton is going to spend RM150mil on new systems and information technology infrastructure but aims to reap conservatively RM530mil in EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) savings by its 2012/13 financial year.

Proton is also expecting a revenue and profit bump from its partner in China Youngman as the latter starts with its CKD programme.

“As we move forward, volume from China will be more significant,’’ Syed Zainal said.

Apart from expecting gains from the China market, Proton is also seeking export growth from other markets in the Middle East and in the future, India.

“As for export, next month we will be launching the Exora in Thailand, as well as the Saga in Australia and Egypt. Notwithstanding the challenges, the group believes that sales volume prospects will be resilient,’’ said Syed Zainal.

In the pipeline is a global car, where styling and design, along with key components, are done outside of Proton.

Proton is already exploring green technology and aims to launch a fleet programme with the Government where between 50 and 100 of its electric cars would be used by the civil service.

Proton is also looking to develop a new powertrain.

“We will continue to focus on enhancing our returns by investing in the development of new value-for-money products, expansion into key selected markets and the execution of operational efficiency initiatives such as the rationalisation of dealers and suppliers, improvements in quality and capacity optimisation,’’ Syed Zainal said.

Malaysian carmaker Proton posts quarterly profit

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia

Malaysian national carmaker Proton reported an 87 percent jump in its quarterly profit and said it was not threatened by the launch of a seven-seater multipurpose vehicle by its domestic rival Perodua.

Proton said in a statement Monday it posted a net profit of 82 million ringgit ($24.3 million) for the quarter through September. Revenue rose 13.5 percent to 2.1 billion ringgit ($621 million) as Proton expanded its market share to 29 percent from 26 percent a year earlier.

Proton's Managing Director Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said sales had risen 11 percent from the previous quarter, thanks to strong demand for its Exora multipurpose vehicle which was launched in March as well as the Saga and Persona sedans.

The Exora marks a turning point in Proton's product range, which previously focused only on passenger cars. The Exora accounts for at least a third of sales, but faces a stiff challenge after compact car maker Perodua launched a multipurpose vehicle touted to be the cheapest in the market.

"We expect some impact to the overall sales ... but our network has been prepared. We have a plan. We are not going to be threatened," Syed Zainal told reporters. "We believe the Exora has a better value proposition but we let the customer judge."

Perodua, partly owned by Japanese mini-car maker Daihatsu Motor Corp., overtook Proton in 2006 to become the top selling car maker in Malaysia and has maintained its pole position since.

Earlier Monday, Perodua launched the Alza, its first multipurpose vehicle and first 1.5 liter engine car. All its other vehicles have engines of between 0.6 and 1.3 liter.

Priced between $56,000 ringgit ($16,570) and $70,000 ringgit ($20,700), officials said they expect to sell 4,000 units of the Alza a month -- far more than Proton's monthly target of 2,500 units for the Exora.

Perodua has a 31 percent market share so far this year in Malaysia -- the largest passenger car market in Southeast Asia -- and expects to increase its share to 33 percent next year, officials said.

The Exora, which has a 1.6 liter engine capacity, is priced at below $76,000 ringgit ($22,480). Proton recently introduced a basic Exora model minus the frills to lower the price to $58,000 ($17,160) -- closing the gap with Perodua's Alza.

Syed Zainal said Proton would introduce new facelift next year to its cars to sustain sales.

The company remains cautious about the outlook for vehicle demand amid the weak global economy but it will invest in new product development including hybrid and electric vehicles, and accelerate exports to grow its earnings, he said.

He said alliance talks with Volkswagen AG were ongoing and hopes they would be finalized soon but declined give further details.

For the first half of its fiscal year ending March 2010, Proton's net profit rose 42.5 percent from a year earlier to 136.61 million ringgit ($40 million) while revenue was up 11 percent to 3.96 billion ringgit ($1.17 billion).

2010 Proton Persona facelift sighted on test!

Click for high resolution image

Drex Chan sent in these great photos of what appears to be the Proton Persona facelift that’s due next year. The Persona was first launched in 2007, so mid next year would be about the right time for a facelift if you follow a 5 year model lifecycle, though most of us probably feel like a replacement is due since the Persona is actually a GEN2 sedan, and the GEN2 has been around a long time.

Click for high resolution image

The front bumper is derived from the GEN2 CPS. The rear end shows tail lamps that have been taped up to hide an updated design. It looks like Proton has incorporated the use of LED lighting in the updated Persona’s tail lamps.

Two more details – firstly the wing mirrors also appear to be taped up. The tape hides the use of turn signal indicators integrated in the wing mirrors. Secondly, in the engine bay we can see that the engine uses coil on plug ignition, which means it is a Campro IAFM engine. This means that Proton is continuing with the separation of the Campro into two different versions – the IAFM engine as an economy-skewed engine while the CPS engine is more for power. They should really just have one powerful and fuel efficient engine for the 1.6 liter size – I’m sure it will be better for economies of scale.

There are a few more photos that you can view at drexchan’s fotopic page. UPDATE: Drex has sent in the pix on his fotopic page to be hosted here instead, as his fotopic page has ran out of bandwidth. According to Drex, the test engineers informed him that the IAFM engine would get an improved ECU. Look after the jump for the rest of the pix.

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Knowing Your Tyre Spring

Devices for measuring tyre spring rate are classified depending on the following criteria:
* Time-variation of tyre applied forces:
o static measurement;
o dynamic measurement;
o both type measurement.
* Direction of applied force:
o vertical (radial);
o longitudinal;
o lateral.
* Part of device that is moving:
o tyre hub;
o contact surface.
The test rig for measuring static vertical spring rate of passenger tyre and the vertical force transducer are shown, respectively, in figure 1 and figure 2 [1]. The test rig consists of several subassemblies: wheel attachment, loading system, measuring systems for vertical displacement and force.
Click to open on a new window
Figure 1 - Set-up for measuring vertical tyre spring rate [1]
Click to open on a new window
Figure 2 - Vertical force transducer [2]
Some device specifications are:
* wheel diameter = 12' to 15';
* fixed spindle, non-rotating wheel;
* vertical movement is effected by contact patch of the force transducer;
* vertical force up to 5000N.
Operation mode: a small vertical displacement of contact patch is induced, in such a way to primarily increase, and secondarily decrease tyre deflection. For every vertical position of contact patch, tyre deflection and vertical force are measured, using, respectively, a inductive transducer and strain gauge transducer shown in figure 2. The results are plotted vertical force vs. tyre deflection (figure 2 at chapter "Truck tyre spring rate").
A machine to measure vertical stiffness and damping coefficient of agricultural tractor tyre was built at Louisiana State University [2].
Measurement type, performed on a rigid surface for non-rolling tyre are:
* static stiffness and contact area;
* dynamic stiffness and damping coefficient.
The tyre loading machine subassemblies are: frame, axle, wheel attachment, loading system, oscillatory mechanism, displacement transducer, tyre load scale, and data logging system, figure 3.
Click to open on a new window
Figure 3 - The loading machine [2]
Some machine specifications are:
* tyre axle shaft can move in the vertical direction and can rotate, allowing for measurement at various tyre angular positions;
* wheel attachment system allows for various tyre sizes;
* for static measurements, a hydraulic cylinder pinned to the top of the frame provides up to 31 kN of compression force;
* a scale with three load cells, supporting the steel contact pad, is located directly under the tyre;
* a linear displacement transducer gives the position of the axle relative to the frame;
* during dynamic experiments, a sinusoidal motion is imposed to the axle by an eccentric shaft actuated by a hydraulic motor through a chain drive; the motor rotational speed can be adjusted to impose a certain oscillation frequency to the axle.
The data from the three load cells and from the linear displacement transducer are collected by a 48-channel data logger and transferred to a portable computer.
Some aspects of static experiments
* the vertical load is increased until it just exceeds the maximum value recommended for the set inflation pressure;
* the vertical load is slowly reduced to zero.
The increasing-decreasing load cycle is repeated two to four times to reduce measurement errors and to detect any hysteresis. Also, sets of measurements are made for different inflation pressures. A schematic static experiment is shown in figure 4.
Click to open on a new window
Figure 4 - Schematic of static experiment for tyre spring rate [2]
Deflections versus load curves are plotted for various tyre angular positions to study the effect of lug position on stiffness. Measurements effected on 14.9R30 agricultural tyre shown the lug position did not appear to affect static tyre stiffness significantly.
Some aspects of dynamic experiments
* the tyre is lowered onto the contact pad;
* the oscillatory mechanism is attached to the axle and it is adjusted until the desired preload is obtained;
* for 15 seconds tyre load, axle position and hydraulic motor angular speed are recorded;
* measurements are performed for different hydraulic motor speed, inflation pressure and preload.

proton previews the Proton Saga EV Concept

Proton previewed an all-electric version of the Proton Saga sedan in University Putra Malaysia, Serdang during the “Proton Exora – The Making” seminar organized by SAE International earlier this week. The “Proton” name would definitely make sense on this particular car!

You might expect this plug-in electric vehicle to have been co-developed with Detroit Electric which have a deal to produce electric cars based on the Proton GEN2 and the Proton Persona for certain overseas markets under the Detroit Electric brand. But on the contrary, what you see above is an in-house project done with the help of unnamed suppliers and partners.

This means that unlike the Detroit Electric e46 (based on the Proton Gen 2) and the Detroit Electric e63 (based on the Proton Persona), the electric Saga (officially called the Proton Saga EV Green Propulsion Concept for now) is probably being considered for the local market, although the auto maker is very tight-lipped about possible launch dates. It could take years.

The emissions-free Proton Saga EV on display features a 125kW (168hp) brushless DC electric motor, mated to a 5 speed manual transmission. It has a 20kWh Lithium Ion Polymer battery pack (12 separate batteries stored in the trunk). Because of the batteries, truckspace is pretty much non-existent but this is quite normal with concept electric cars based on a chassis that was originally designed to take a regular combustion engine and fuel tank. A production car would ideally have neater integration of the batteries.

According to Proton, the Saga EV can sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in 10.1 seconds, up to a top speed of 161 km/h, with a driving range of 109 kilometers over a full charge. Both the Detroit Electric e46 and e63 will feature a 150kW Axial Magnetic Flux motor instead.

There is more! The “green-mobil” also features re-generative braking and an electric power steering, apart from a built-in Batter Management System (BCMU), a plug-in charger (with a household power outlet), air conditioning as well as an In-Vehicle display screen that displays various information pertaining to the electric vehicle functions. Sources also revealed that Proton has plans to built an electric Exora MPV, and, is currently working on some hybrid vehicles as well, for research and development.

Since Proton took the trouble to produce a fully functioning Saga EV Concept, I am sure it is a matter of time till we actually see Proton-built electric cars on the road, but it doesn’t end at just producing such emissions-free vehicles. There has to an infrastructure ready to accommodate charging in the outdoors, which is something that will involve the government, apart from the private sector.