You want a fun car to enjoy the back roads and perhaps join the Route Hunters drives. But you are confined to new cars as you do not wish to experiment with 2nd hand vehicles uncertainties. There’s one car we whole heartedly endorse as a proper drivers car at the entry level price range, and thats the Proton Saga.
Awesome Chassis
The car drives really well. The damper tuning and turn in feels far more resolved compared to cars in its class. The steering feel is direct and communicates what the front tyre is doing really well. When you turn the car into a corner, you think the car might feel loose at the back end, but the grip sets in and you can carry alot of speed out of the turn. The drawback is the lack of power really.
This chassis setup had another huge advantage. With the fuel indicator showing 0km range in Mersing, we managed to get to Johor Bharu with the Saga by maximising average speed over some really curvy roads across Johor, getting the highest distance possible for every droplet of fuel. This was thanks in a huge way to the cars superb suspension setup.
Amazing Consumption
Talking about consumption, the car provides good fuel economy returns. For those used to cars above 150bhp you will feel the Saga to be lacking in power on wider open roads. On the tight and twistier sections of our driving roads, this horsepower disadvantage is either less apparent or totally gone. Especially on the downhills. In daily commute situations though the consumption can really benefit in a good way, especially when you’re easy on the throttle thanks to the size of the engine. There’s better range too thanks to the 40 litre fuel tank, which is 4 litres more than the Bezza. Plus we and several others have managed to drive the Saga from Kota Bharu to Johor Bharu on just ONE TANK OF FUEL.
Absolute Bargain
The car is extremely good value. It sits 4 adults comfortably, has got more headroom in the rear than a Toyota Vios which costs nearly 2.5 times more. The highest spec car retails at only RM44,800. Better still prices start from as low as RM34,800. For a brand new car. Which would be our pick of the bunch if we were getting a Saga because its a manual. This will help manage the lack of power, and frees up cash for…
Loads of accessories
The aftermarket is filled with accessories. Everything from rims, suspension, bodykits and exhaust, you have them all. Minor mods which can transform the way the car looks and feels on the road. Plus you get to install an aftermarket head unit which will have proper Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Not that you have to do much to the Saga. Some light cosmetics and a good head unit will be sufficient for us. The car is already a handy drivers tool from the factory.
Conclusion
When we say we Route Hunters is brand blind we mean precisely that. In our experience documenting over 100 roads across Peninsular Malaysia, we realised that fun from behind the wheel can come from any price tag. Which is why what car that comes for the drive does not really matter. What matters is the person behind the wheel. The Saga is precisely one such example, being such good fun on our back roads.