Proton's Savvy is a lightweight

Proton turned the tables on most of the manufacturers in Melbourne, "bringing in some blokes" to pull the wraps on the Malaysian company's new compact hatch, the Savvy.

Due to go on sale on April 1, the five-door Lotus-fettled small car was debuted in Melbourne by West Tigers NRL premiership players.

Proton's local sales and marketing boss Steven Thomas announced the new car would be priced from $13,990. He called the Savvy "the best priced five-door on the Australian market."

The Savvy weighs in a a svelte 953kg. It will debut with front airbags, power steering, power windows, remote central locking, CD player, rear park sensors, aircon and alloy wheels as standard equipment and will be offered in five-door form only.

It is powered by a 55kW/105Nm 1.2-litre engine with a five-speed manual transmission. A four-speed auto will be offered as an option ($1000).

"The design ideology from the start of the project was to produce a small car that offers practicality, fuel economy, generous space and great all-round performance,” said Thomas.

”It’s not a sports car nor does it look like a Lotus but its DNA is very clearly linked to the sports car maker whose ethos is performance through light weight,” he added.

Proton says achieving these goals involved engineering an all-new platform. Lotus input and the light kerb weight yields a vehicle that offers superior handling, balance and responsiveness with a strong power to weight ratio, it claimed.

Lotus' influence also prevailed in the interior with a "minimalist approach creating a practical and sporty cabin."

Savvy is also the first Malaysian made car to roll off the production line with full certification by internationally recognised compliance engineering, testing and quality registration group, TUV Rheinland. TUV has not only certified the overall vehicle, but also helped to control the quality of production processes and components from Proton vendors

Proton launched the GEN.2 early last year and is planning to launch a new Satria later in 2006. Keep an eye on CarPoint for the review test of the Savvy in mid March.

Savvy: at a glanceEngine: 1.2-litre 16-valve four cylinder
Maximum Output: 55kW at 5500rpm
Maximum Torque: 105Nm at 4250rpm
Fuel Consumption (combined): 5.3lt/100km (Manual)

Length: 3710mm
Width: 1643 mm
Height: 1480mm
Wheelbase: 2395mm

Fuel Capacity: 40lt
Kerb Weight: 953kg