PROTON IMPIAN SALOON 2001-2007 Review
Good Points
- It is relatively spacious and comfortable with plenty of equipment
- The ride and handling is good
- It’s cheap to buy
Bad Points
- The engine is weak, unrefined and noisy
- The cabin feels very dated
- Poor build quality and cheap materials used
Engines
There is just the one engine in the Impian, a 1.6-litre petrol unit producing 102bhp.
Performance & Economy
The 1.6-litre engine is fairly economical achieving 42mpg, but that’s about the only good thing about it. It’s extremely unrefined, noisy and needs to be worked extremely hard to get any decent sort of performance out of it. It is so poor that on motorways you may even get the feeling that it is struggling to keep up with the traffic.
There is the choice of either a four-speed automatic gearbox or the standard manual, but we’d go for the manual as it performs smoothly and is more likely to get the most out of the already underpowered engine. When it comes to insurance the Impian falls into group 9 which is pretty standard for this type of car.
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Introduction
The Impian may mean ’dream’ but unfortunately for Proton they couldn’t have been further from the truth. Its looks are fairly dull and uninspiring, the cabin is constructed of plastics and cheap materials and the only engine, a 1.6-litre petrol, is unrefined and noisy. It does have a few redeeming factors though as Lotus have given a helping hand when it comes to the cars handling, which is rather good and it should easily seat five adults inside in relative comfort.
Exterior & Interior
The Impian is unlikely to be turning heads as you drive down the street with its dull and uninspiring looks. The inside isn’t much better either with everything using cheap plastic materials. It does at least seat five adults relatively comfortably even on longer journeys as it comes with plenty of head and leg room for all of the cars occupants. The boot is a good size too and comes with the added bonus of the back seats being able to split and fold for any larger items you might need to transport. The central console and dash don’t appear to have had much thought put into them though with you having to hunt around for controls the first few times you use it.
There is only the choice of two trim levels, the GLS and the GSX. The GLS comes with air-con, alloys, a CD stereo, electric windows and mirrors, parking sensors and plenty of airbags. The GSX adds a CD multi-changer, leather trim, heated mirrors, lumbar support and climate control.
Drive
Lotus has had a hand in the handling of the Impian as it is owned by Proton and as a result it is one of the best features about the car. It provides a very good and responsive drive with good body control in the corners, supple suspension, accurate steering and plenty of grip. There is a lot of engine noise in the cabin though especially at higher speeds along with wind and road noise. The engine will leave you uninspired and due to the lack of choice, there is nothing you can do to improve this.
Faults & Repairs
There are very few problems to report about the Impian. The main issues that do crop up are often with the electrics so be sure to test everything thoroughly on a test drive. The cheap interior has also proven to be rather flimsy so make sure that everything is where it should be and that none of it is falling off. Other than that there should be few other problems provided it is serviced regularly. Servicing costs shouldn’t prove to be to costly and repairs shouldn’t cost too much either as parts are relatively cheap and easy to come by and with the 100,000 mile powertrain warranty you should have little to worry about there.
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