TEST DRIVE : PROTON IRIZ 1.3 AND 1.6 REVIEW – BEST HATCHBACK SPECIFICATION

CAR MODEL : PROTON IRIZ 1.3 & 1.6 MT CVT
(Standard, Executive and Premium)

ENGINE : 1.3 liter, Campro VVT, 4 cylinder

TRANSMISSION : Auto CVT 5 speed and 5 speed manual

POWER BHP : 96 & 105

TORQUE NM : 120 & 150

0-100 KMH ACCELERATION SECONDS:
1.3 MT 12.2 sec
1.3 CVT 13.1 sec
1.6 MT 11.1 sec
1.6 CVT 11.1 sec

TOP SPEED :
1.3 MT 165 kmh
1.3 CVT 150 kmh
1.6 MT 175 kmh
1.6 CVT 170 kmh

TEST DRIVE & PROTON IRIZ 1.3 AND 1.6 REVIEW – BEST HATCHBACK SPECIFICATION

FUEL CONSUMPTION :
6.6 l/100km for 1.6MT
7.4 l/100km for 1.6CVT
13 km/l auto to 15 km/l manual

DIMENSION MM :
1722 width
1554 height
3920 length

TYRE + SPORT RIM SIZE :
14 inch alloy rim 175/65 r14 tyres (1.3)
15 inch alloy rim 195/55 r15 tyres (1.6)

PRICE : RM42K to RM63K

MONTHLY INSTALLMENT : RM454 to RM674 per month

WHAT WE LIKE ABOUT Proton Iriz?

1) Very spacious and comfortable cabin
2) Premium Interior and dashboard design
3) All variant with top safety features
4) Front looks very stylish
5) Smooth engine, gearbox, suspension and very stable handling

WHAT WE DON’T LIKE ABOUT Proton Iriz

1) 1.3 liter VVT engine is just enough for this car. Better get 1.6 version for more spirited drive.
2) The 1.3 engine gives less acceleration feel. Even in the manual version.
3) The 14 inches sport rim is too small and looks funny.
4) The rear looks, especially the rear lamp and bumper design quite bad more towards myvi looks.
5) The price should be lower as this is a local product. Premium at 63K for a compact car is just too much.

5 STAR RATING

5 =(Very good)
4 = (Good)
3 = (Normal)
2 = (Quite bad)
1 = (worst)

EXTERIOR REVIEW

1) Front bumper : 5
2) Headlamp : 5
3) Rear bumper : 2
4) Tail lamp : 3
5) Side view : 3
6) Sport rim : 3
7) Front grille : 5
8) Body kit & skirting : 4

Additional comment :

We believe most of us Malaysian loves the front look of the Proton iriz eventhough it has some Fiesta looks embed on to the Iriz’s face but Proton successfully makes it even better with very stylish projector headlamp added with Proton’s signature inside it like how Audi did to their cars.

Not to forget, the LED daylight for premium and fog lamps for Iriz Exec looks nice.

But proton should maintain the front fog lamp for Iriz 1.6 premium and allocate the LED daylight somewhere else as fog lamps are also very important for safe driving at night.

15 inch sport rim should be a minimum rim size for Iriz Exec 1.3. 14 inch rim size is too weird on the big Iriz due to the wheel bay is too big and have a lot of gap between the tyres and the body.

16 or 17 inches looks better for Premium version but there is a drawback for bigger rims especially the high cost to change the tyres and the overall engine efficiency will have some negative effect.

Rear view is the most critical point that needs to be enhanced by Proton for the next facelifted Iriz (iriz facelift). We personally dont really like how the rear part from the tyres to the most rear tailgate is designed. It looks too short and the rear bumper does not provide enough protection for the rear tyres and suspension system in a rear collision event.

Proton should make it longer to make it safer, looks better and provides more boot space (now only 215 liter) inside the rear of Proton Iriz.

INTERIOR REVIEW

1) Seat comfort : 5
2) Dashboard : 5
3) Speedometer : 5
4) Window : 5
5) Leg room space : 5
6) Head room space : 4
7) Width shoulder space : 5
8) Audio speaker sound quality : 4
9) Audio multimedia player : 4
10) Air conditiond : 4
11) Noise sound insulation : 5
12) Door trim : 4
13) Steering wheel : 4
14) Head and arm rest : 4

Additional comment:

The seats are very comfortable especially the semi bucket seat for front driver and passenger.

Looking at the star rating for Iriz’s interior, we hardly find any of negative point inside the cabin of Iriz. That translates to a very successful design of interior especially the dashboard.

We really like the dashboard. The surface design is like a leather dashboard cover that is stitched nicely although it is actually a plastic dashboard. The air conditioning vent looks nicer with chrome linings.

The best part is the center dashboard with multimedia player which has a higher position and premium looks including the new air cond knob design.

Speedometer looks like the one inside an Audi car. With center information lcd display in red and clear KMH and RPM meter, we have no problem with them at all.

Door trim is very nice with soft fabric and semi leather.

The most significant improvement among Proton cars are the door seals that absorbs noise nicely especially when you close the door.

Headroom space is just nice but the rear head room space is a bit lesser where some of taller guys will have a little clearance to the seatbelt mounting at the roof just like in a Myvi.

Headrest in a premium car is comfortable with leather wrappings on 5 of them. While rear headrest for lower spec with fabric seat is too low and it provides not enough support for your head to rest on it.

Front side triangle window on the front pillar helps you to minimise blind spot and gives a very spacious feeling inside the car.

Shoulder space and leg room are definitely not an issue inside the Iriz cabin. It is wider and longer than Myvi. The rear seat also gives longer thigh support for the best passenger comfort.

Multimedia and cd player on the Iriz dashboard gives good sound via its door speakers.

Noise insulation is very good inside the Iriz. We can only hear the air blown from the aircond louvre and very minimal road noise while cruising at below 100kmh.

SAFETY & FEATURES REVIEW

Overall : The Proton Iriz has the best safety features among B segment hatchback car in Malaysia without cutting the safety spec even at the cheapest Iriz 1.3 MT.

All variants gets the 5 star safety rating, minimum 2 airbags, ABS, EBD and the best part is, it has the traction control with ESC which hardly can be found on a car below RM 100K. Even the expensive Toyota Camry dont have it.

ENGINE PERFORMANCE REVIEW

Good : The VVT engine gives a lot of improvement especially in terms of smoother acceleration, a lot less of engine noise & vibration and better fuel consumption with addition of less friction internal part inside the campro VVT engine.

Bad :

The 1.3 liter VVT engine is just enough for this car. For those who loves spirited drive, sorry guys, the 1.3 Iriz is not for you. It has a same output as Saga FLX but unfortunately the Iriz is heavier by more than 100kg compared to Saga FLX. So the best choice for young and energetic driver is the 1.6 Iriz.

But as far as the engine is not an aluminium, you can have the NA upgrade on it to the max and make your 1.3 ride, a powerful one.

TRANSMISSION REVIEW

Using the manual box, we found that it is lighter, easier to shift and quicker to engage. However, as usual, the 4th gear failed to give you enough punch from the engine which makes it a compulsory to downshift straight to the third gear to take over any cars and to climb a hill.

The top 5th gear gives a good 80kmh at above 2000 RPM while cruising. Since the engine noise is very minimal and the smoothest RPM gain among Proton engine, sometimes you forgot to shift the gear and that needs quite a long time for you to be used to it i think.

RIDE AND HANDLING REVIEW

Good:

There is no surprise on how well the Lotus ride and handling on most Proton Cars. The stability, confidence in motion and taking corners are the best among moderate cars sold in malaysia and even better than the imported cars.

The new Electronic Power steering is a major improvement on this car. It gives lighter feels at low speed and add a bit of heavy feels to increase your confidence at high speed.

The EPS module in Iriz has better setting for different speed compared to the EPS in Perodua cars which has more fake feeling. The Iriz gives better feel and confidence during your low speed and high speed cruising.

Bad:

None

EXTRA NOTE FOR BUYER AND FUTURE OWNER:

5 YEAR WARRANTY OR 150K KM

Before you buy, it is advised to make a research on the major problems, maintenance cost in RM like how much to repair or replace normally broken parts such as air cond, gearbox, window, windscreen, head lamp, bumper, wheels @ tyres @ rims, drive shaft, side mirror, radiator, alternator, ECU computer box, any sensors like MAF and ABS, Engine parts like head, cam, gasket, filter, timing belt and exhaust system.

Normal servicing costs are also important such as minor service of engine oil, air filter, oil filter, gearbox oil, coolant replacement, wheel allignment balancing, sport rim with tyre pressure check, top overhaul, brake fluid change, power steering fluid change, brake pad, brake disk and shoe.

Road tax per year based on engine Capacity and car type. Please refer JPJ or RTD official web for current tax charges. Cars below 1.6 cc will be charged below RM100 per year.

Insurance charges normally around 0.03% out of sum insured or current car resale value.

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Performance : Good @ bad acceleration
Fuel Consumption : km/liter
Good point :
Bad point :
Problem so far :
Service maintenance cost : RM
Other notes :

Door panel and trim of Proton Iriz

Side view of Iriz Premium 1.6 full spec.

Rear boot space with spare tyre.

Iriz exhaust muffler and tips.

Proton Iriz emblem

Premium leather seat inside the Proton Iriz.

IRIZ exec in green

Iriz lower spec with fabric seat.

Rear boot space Iriz 215 liter.

Dashboard design interior of Proton Iriz.

Rear seat folded.

Iriz with new gray colour.