2022 Proton Saga MC2 facelift. You’ve seen the spyshots and teasers; now here’s the ‘minor change’ of Proton’s A-segment sedan in full, officially launched this morning. As you can see, the changes aren’t major. This update focuses on equipment to keep the Saga competitive against its chief domestic rival, the Perodua Bezza, plus minor aesthetic details in and out, which we will detail here. No changes mechanically – the Saga continues with the familiar 1.3 litre four-cylinder NA engine with 95 PS at 5,750 rpm and 120 Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm. The DOHC VVT unit is paired to a five-speed manual gearbox in the base Standard MT or a Hyundai-sourced four-speed auto in the other variants. This 4AT replaced the previous CVT in the August 2019 facelift. Since then, Proton sold 123,512 units of the sedan. By the way, the Standard MT is now the only manual variant in the entire Proton range after the 2022 Iriz/Persona facelift went full auto. Speaking of variants, the 2022 Saga range starts from the Standard MT and Standard AT, before jumping to the Premium (no Executive in the middle). New for 2022 is the range-topping Premium S, which exclusively gets many of the new features you’ll read about here. The changes are minimal, and the Saga continues with the same bumpers and lights at both ends, which means that there’s no upgrade to LED headlamps from halogens. There’s a small change to the grille – Proton’s new round logo is present, after the ‘uncaged’ tiger appeared on the Iriz/Persona. The ‘Infinite Weave’ pattern remains, but there’s an indent on the ‘Ethereal Bow’ strip below where it cradles the logo – the previous strip was a straight line. The strip is in red only on the Premium S though; it remains as silver on the Standard and Premium. The Premium S (for Sport, we presume) is also the only one to get side skirts and front bumper skirts. The latter consists of two pieces of add-ons at the corners of the front bumpers, as opposed to a full width piece. Together with the side skirts, it gives the Saga slightly lowered look. However, the rear bumper has been left alone and there are no side add-ons at the back, so it’s not quite a full bodykit. The neat bootlid spoiler has been on every variant of the 2019 Saga, and so is the case here. Only the Premium S gets a black number plate garnish for the Proton script to sit on; it’s body coloured for the rest. Speaking of black paint, the wing mirrors are now in that instead of body colour. On the Standard, the mirror caps and door handles are also in black, but that’s because they’re unpainted plastic. Lastly, rims. The 2022 Saga gets a striking set of 15-inch alloys. The two-tone wheel design has many spokes, but only four are picked out in bright silver for a “four-spoke look”. This look is reserved for the Premium S – the Premium actually has the same wheel, but it looks a lot more “regular” in single-tone. The Standard AT carries over the same 14-inch alloys while the Standard MT gets steel wheels with caps. Both wheel sizes come with Atlas AS380 tyres – 175/65 for the 14″ and 185/55 for the 15″. Atlas is a brand of China’s Linglong Tire. Proton says that the new tyres reduce road noise and increase grip, while damping rates have been revised for better ride comfort and handling.
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