First Drive: 2006 Satria Neo

[Austin850]

I went to Proton showroom on the day Neo was launched. First impression...Neo to me is a great looking car from the outside. Once I stepped into the car...first word that came out of my mouth was "sempit". It's so crampy...I think Kancil offers a better deal in terms of space.

Went there with a friend...he sat on the driver's seat and I hopped into the back seat. With his normal driving position I couldnt into the right side of the back seat....so little legroom. When he moved forward to give me some room at the back...he got his knees up on the steering column...and we are an average sized Malaysian males (about 5'10"). Plus sized drivers...get something else!

The boot...cannot be opened from the outside...you gonna have to open the door first (to gain access to the boot release lever) before you can open the boot . Convenient? I dont think so.

It is for drivers who drive just to get them from point A to point B...not for car lovers...I think. Just an opinion

 

[Vince-MSR]

what different between H n M line???

 

[devilman]

er....such a powerfull car la....but the car a bit small compare with last satria....

 

[devilman]

i really like the car. but the thing is that... the back passenger are small... more tight then the old satria.

thats right...too small...want to put box also susah a bit...:X-: :X-: :X-:

 

[dub.helix]

Looks like a promising car i mean at least better then other proton models, anyone have any idea what engine would fit inside a Neo? beside a MIVEC.....

 

[darween13]

to me the car looks impressive but sadly the safety features has been ignored for the 1.3 line up which many other car enthusiast will try to buy if they cant afford the 1.6...however from wat i saw at the showroom...the car quality looked better than other proton cars..but the durability is not so convincing...n the fuel consumption (petrol price killing bros...) seems to be high according to the sales man...and this car will have its umpph only when the rev is high...so u guyz shud noe b
etter

 

[ariVR4RS]

wait for Gti version..funny thing is the air filter..the corong is direct to the front..scoop all the water as well and also the insects..

no lar

 

[AutumAshes]

i agree with Tom on the 'bling bling' rims, is ugly. i've went to the showroom to check it out myself, is nice from the looks of it, but there is one thing that turns me down, the roof. the roof would be too low for drivers whos' height are around 175cm, dont you guys agree?

 

[bOnk]

except for sempit, small, ugly and etc..etc.. i still find this malaysian made quite nice. but for 55k i think proton cud offer better deal than this

 

[infernaL]

whats the problem with the car? care to share with the rest of us?

i dont know any , just wanna imply that i hope the best for all the car and their owners .

heck , the car just out it would be awhile let say half a year or so till any possible problems would arise if any .

msia is bolehland , so wouldnt it be nice if we have a boleh car ? lol

 

[eddy_azrai]

what is m-line and h-line on 1.6 model stand for??

 

[gloss]

i like the rear more.. front view is not long lasting to see.. interior all reminds me of gen2.. they shld change the interior since its a replacement for gti models...

 

[bangkai_jk]

g8 job again tom.. u can be a pro camera man.. haha
satria neo looks better in photos... the real car not that nice.. juz my 2 cent.. hehe

 

[doksero]

wait for Gti version..funny thing is the air filter..the corong is direct to the front..scoop all the water as well and also the insects..

cool air intake:X-:

 

[killa626]

what is the difference between H-Line and M-Line models?nyway the car looks OK.A better view is the RS version...now thats really sumtin..
G.

 

[cyc1899]

nice....keep it up

 

[benzee]

Wht I saw in the brouchere the Neo & the old model satria the old satria is typical longer in and lower from the ground up. The interior of Neo is typical small the front passenger sit the leg room is less compare to the old model and even the back seat's legroom. The whole Neo is shrink by 3" or feet if I'm not mistaken. Hieght of the Neo is alittle bit taller compare to the old model but the interior head room is low like what the other ppl is talking abt even though the driver seat can adjust the sit high n low but my hair still touch the roof.

About the engine I"m very confuse. I went to Proton Edar showroom saw the engine with the black cover for the plug cables and the other model that i saw at EON showroom is just all silver like the brouchere itself, When i ask the salesman in both of the showroom they give me different answers.Some say the black cover is high-line and the others is normal, and the other salaesman say the other way around, so I'm typically blurred.

The overall design of the car is superb compare all the models from Proton's. Regarding the rims for me I still can take it compare to the steel rims for the 1.3 model. I might wait and see whether is any problem from the car before making my judgement to purchase the car.

Happy Driving Everyone!

 

[antugile]

waaaa...where can I find the NEO Projector light spare parts..hehhe want to retrofit into my car laa..

 

[Edward Chew]

Wow, you will like the engine's sound if you rev it high. The first time i saw that was in front of Stadium Titiwangsa. The Neo's left door has a ribbon on it. Maybe the guy was testing the car, he drove so fast. I crossed the road before it reach me. Really nice sound.

 

[cybreed]

I like the outer styling. Looks to be desired. But when went inside the cars. Gosh. Its like a mismatch of designers from the Waja, & Gen2 combinded forces to create an exceptionaly small place with high price. Makes me wonder, if the designers are under 160cm in height. I'm 170, medium sized body. Its a fit already. Sitting at the back is no joy. Have you guys seen the innovative glove compartment? How wide does it open... 1"? 2"? 3"? And it opens ever so slooooooowwwwwwly.

Engine wise... its not as revvy as I expected it to be. Then again I was testing the 1.3 model. The 1.6 H line was unavailable for some unknown reason. Throttle response was, very much less than wat the older satria can do.

In TOMS article, he mentioned about the headlamps. Yes very nice looking headlamps maybe can install HID... but wait... I saw a set with water vapour inside the headlamps ... brand new in the SHOWROOM =.=".

I'm sure there is a good market for this car. From what I can tell it has POTENTiAL. I'm sure I'm not the target market, as I would prefer power driven in RWD and doing the sideways thingy.

Oh, excellent photos I must say. Puts alot of local mags to shame.

Cheers