IT’S easier to pawn off Proton to foreign interest as there’s a high price to pay for the dignity of having your own national car, said Dr Mahathir Mohamad today.

“There’s no need to defend that we still have a national car. It is now owned, manufactured and will be driven to success by others. It (Proton) cannot be said to be a national car,” said Dr Mahathir, who started Proton in 1983 during his second year as prime minister.

Last month, Chinese billionaire Li Shufu’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group acquired a 49.9% stake in Proton Holdings Bhd from conglomerate DRB-Hicom Bhd.

The 92-year-old has been critical of the move and denied wanting to sell Proton despite going on several trips to China to tour Geely’s factories.  

“I admit I paid Geely a visit in China. I have also visited Volvo in Sweden, Jaguar in Britain, Nissan and Toyota in Japan, and Volkswagen in Germany,” he said in his blog today. 

“I have visited many automotive companies around the world to sell off Proton. But it seems that I have failed where others have succeeded. Well done and congratulations,” he said.

Dr Mahathir resigned as Proton chairman in March 2016. The Chinese automaker bought Sweden’s Volvo Cars in 2010 for US$1.5 billion.

In last month’s deal, Geely also agreed to buy a 51% stake in sports-car maker Lotus Cars from Proton. 

DRB-Hicom is owned by well-connected tycoon Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary.  

“Perhaps I failed to mention the deal to buy the engines from Geely. Geely owns Volvo and I found engines by Volvo to be well designed,” Dr Mahathir said. 

He said Proton did not have engines that met European standards. “If Proton’s cars were fitted with Geely/Volvo engines, perhaps we could have fulfilled the Euro 6 specifications.”

Dr Mahathir said he tried to upgrade Proton’s engines. 

“But Proton refused,” Dr Mahathir said, adding that his proposals to create a new pick-up truck were also shot down.

Other proposals included an upgrade of the 1,600cc Campro engines with turbochargers to equal the power of 2,000cc Perdana engines.

“The cars were not fitted (with the new engines) because of a lack of components. Output was low and so was demand. Sales could not be boosted. There was not enough income to pay off the vendors and cover the overhead.” – June 6, 2017.