The updated Proton Iriz, Persona and Saga delivered impressive results while winning acclaim for their handling, comfort and safety features from the participants.
Kota Kinabalu is a port city, but roads leading in and out of it are dominated by the mountain with which it shares its name.
Therefore, a route that leads inland and away from the coast will invariably encounter steep terrain as the Crocker Range stands as a natural barrier for roads to go over.
The planned route for Sabah’s leg of the 1 Tank Adventure reflected this limitation while also throwing in another geographical feature - the northernmost point of Borneo.
Combined, it set the stage for the toughest real world test yet faced by the participants.
Flagging off from Proton Harapan Maju in Kota Kinabalu, which officially opened a day earlier on 20 September, the event ended at Proton Shirba Auto, also in Kota Kinabalu.
All participants successfully completed the 525km course.
The best results achieved, as verified by scrutineers from the Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF), were 6.06L /100km for the Proton Iriz, an event best 5.75L/100km for the Proton Saga and a record breaking 5.81L/100km for the Proton Persona, breaking last year’s record of 5.85L/100km.
The best theoretical maximum range achieved, based on the 40-litre fuel tank size of the cars used, was 601km.
This was an impressive result because a strict time limit was set at each checkpoint to ensure participants had to keep to a minimum average speed for safety reasons and ensure the figures were obtained under real-world driving conditions.
Queennera Francine Francis Kitingan, a celebrity radio DJ from Kupi FM, owns a Proton Saga FLX and was amazed by the fuel efficiency, style, stability and features of the Proton Iriz she drove during the event.
“I love my Proton Saga as it is easy to drive and park and has been very reliable, but having tested the new Proton Iriz over the last two days, I think I may have a new favourite Proton model. I really like the way it looks and drives because it feels secure yet fun. I also love the intelligent infotainment system as there are so many songs for me to choose from while the fuel economy is truly surprising. I would not hesitate to recommend this car to anyone as I think it’s very impressive,” she said.
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