Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton

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Thu 27 May 2021 22:40
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Metchy

Apologies if this post is in the wrong place as it's in part a technical question, but mostly its asking for advice on what to do with my car as I think it needs replacing.

I got my first car in 2017, an 07 Proton Gen2, bought off a friend for £300. I'm only just thinking I'm going to have to sell it and I'm gutted. The engine has started stalling sometimes when putting the clutch down after braking from 30+mph, (either to change gear or come to a stop). Often there is a hill involved when this happens.

The revs drop and while the clutch would usually stop the revs dropping and bounce them back up, sometimes it doesnt and thats when it stalls.

The engine light has been on and off for at least 2 years - internal speed sensor is what the diagnostic always points to. A couple of garages told me it wouldnt be an issue, and it tbf wasn't until last summer when the stalling started. I got the part replaced and it was ok for 6 months, but the light has come back on and now it has stalled again.

I hope this description makes sense, I'm not especially knowledgeable about cars.

I wonder if anyone has any ideas for what might be the issue? (considering it has recurred with a new internal speed sensor) TBH I'm thinking its the end game for the car, its just a shame as I'm fond of it, and its still only got 75000 on the clock.

If I'm going to have to replace it I'm wondering if anyone knows if there's any point me trying to find a buyer, or if its destined for scrap? Like is there a niche market out there for these cars as they're pretty uncommon or is this just dreamland from me?

Thanks!

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Thu 27 May 2021 23:28
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - S40 Man

There are 4 in autotrader ranging from £650 to £1500

Car prices are a bit silly right now by all accounts, so it might be worth more than the £300 you paid for it.

The other side of that coin is that a replacement will also cost more.

You don't mention a budget so it's hard to suggest what to do.

Is the stalling annoying or dangerous, if not you could soldier on with it. Not sure how it passed not with AC warning light but hey ho. Otherwise get it fixed. If it's a good car overall despite that then get it fixed. Otherwise if it's getting a bit old (14 yes) then scrap it.

Only you will know if it's time is up.

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Fri 28 May 2021 03:03
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - NowWheels

£300 for car that gives you 4 years motoring is a great bargain. Fine bangernomics.

How much does it cost you to replace this sensor? Is new sensor-every-6-months a big cost?

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Fri 28 May 2021 03:39
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Lee Power

A car like this would also make a good runabout for a local / small garage - the mechanics always need something to nip out to fetch parts & other errands.

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Thu 3 Jun 2021 16:28
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Metchy

Thanks for the replies and suggestions guys. I'm going to try once more to see if a garage can fix it, and if not time to move on.

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Fri 28 May 2021 08:35
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - edlithgow

My Lada did this because the carbon cores in the ignition leads were powdery and rendered the spark sensitive to deceleration loads, cutting the ignition.

Fancy “racing” silicone leads cured it, though I rather missed being the first kid on the block (by about 20 years?) with stop-start.

Other (perhaps more likely) possibilities include

Idle speed set too low – probably not that but worth adjusting in case

Vacuum leak – Gets my vote, mostly because I’ve had that problem on the Skywing (a much simpler vehicle) and suspect I had it on earlier bangers too but was then younger and even more clueless so didn’t work it out.

Higher Tech Stuff I have limited experience with

EGR valve stuck, so engine chokes itself at idle – Check operation (depends. I’ve only done this on a Honda Accord which was electric. Some of them are pneumatic) hit it with a hammer, clean it, blank it off (temporarily/diagnostically/permanently?), and only AS A LAST RESORT IF YOU KNOW ITS BUST and a problem, replace it

If you can figure or find out how to activate your EGR valve, assuming you have one (on the Accord IIRC it just needed jumpered to 12V supply) and fully opening it doesn't stall the engine at idle, then it probably isn't that.

Faulty Idle Air Control valve (IAC) – look it up. No experience with these. But see video below.

Dirty intake path (including MAF/MAP sensor etc where present) – CLEAN, using smelly organic solvents.

Edited by edlithgow on 29/05/2021 at 02:52

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Sat 29 May 2021 03:13
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - edlithgow

Bit more on vacuum leaks. They can be VERY hard to find.

On the Skywing, which was intermittently running like carp (for reference, carp run badly, being challenged in the leg department, and fat.) I never found a leak, but assume that is what it was because it got better after painting multiple coats of sunflower oil over the carb and inlet manifold.

Sunflower oil slowly polymerises in air to form a plastic-like coating. I use it combined with aluminium as an effective rust treatment.

However, I now know, because of an "accidental experiment", that sunflower oil on its own, kept in the dark, can de-polymerise/liquify on long timescales (maybe a year or more) and later re-polymerise. I dunno the chemistry involved, (though there is some related literature on oil painting conservation) but it is probably rather complex.

The carb-coating seems to have semi-re-liquified but with no resumption of symptoms so far. If it gets to be a problem I'll try combining the oil with aluminium/aluminium oxide, or using something else.

PVA, lacquer, electrical varnish or an alkyd resin might work.

Edited by edlithgow on 29/05/2021 at 08:31

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Thu 3 Jun 2021 16:31
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Metchy

Many thanks for the detailed response Edlithgow - I'm going to try the garage again with some of your suggestions and see how we go.

I'm no way near car savvy enough to be able to have a go at any of this stuff myself sadly.

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Fri 4 Jun 2021 00:53
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - edlithgow

Many thanks for the detailed response Edlithgow - I'm going to try the garage again with some of your suggestions and see how we go.

I'm no way near car savvy enough to be able to have a go at any of this stuff myself sadly.

Well, you know your own comfort zone best, of course.

But cleaning stuff is fairly low skill as these things go, and doesn't generally require much in the way of special tools, though unless you just spray stuff into the intake, (which might work to some extent), you might have to be able to take things apart.

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Fri 28 May 2021 11:20
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - SLO76
I used to flog Protons back in the 90’s and good cars they were too at the time. Sadly though quality went through the floor when the link with Mitsubishi was lost and cars like the Gen-2 were cheaply made and made little sense new. Sales crashed and cars became rarer and thus aftermarket parts supply dropped off and most things became dealer only.

The high point was the late 90’s when they were essentially building rebadged Mitsubishi’s. The Compact was a Colt and the Persona a Lancer, both were well made and utterly dependable. They were better cars than the equivalent Hyundai or Kia offerings of the time except possibly the Lantra. High points were the Compact GTi, Persona 2.0 TDi and the Persona 1.8 SE. Sadly though the importer got too greedy and prices were pushed too far and too close to mainstream brands and sales died.

I spoke with the then UK sales manager in 1996 and fired off a few suggestions such as targeting the taxi trade with the Persona TDi and reintroducing the non-turbo SDi at a lower price with incentives to get them onto taxi fleets across the country but I was told that they “didn’t want to cheapen the brand.” Skoda stepped in with the similar sized octavia and cleaned up. It was a great way to get bums on seats and Skoda’s sales soared as a result. Instead no one bought or even sat in the Persona.

I suggested they built a Persona estate since Mitsubishi had done away with the Lancer estate and hadn’t built a Carisma estate. This would’ve made a great workhorse but again they idea was that it would somehow cheapen the brand.

I suggested a GTi replica based on the Compact 1.5 but again was shot down. Done right it could’ve been a way to introduce younger people to the brand who couldn’t insure the GTi.

Today Proton is no more in the UK and their final products weren’t worthy of buying anyway, while Skoda are thriving.

Edited by SLO76 on 28/05/2021 at 11:29

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Fri 28 May 2021 11:38
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - John F

Assuming the electrics are OK (if they aren't, it wouldn't run), if the engine stalls at idle it's probably not getting enough fuel, i.e. the fuel air mixture is too weak. I'd go with edlithgow's 'look for leaks' suggestion first. Too much air being sucked into the inlet manifold sounds most likely. Inspect all the rubbery bits between the air filter and the inlet manifold.

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Fri 28 May 2021 12:38
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - edlithgow

Or too little air. Here's South Main Auto on the interaction of the IAC valve with a dirty throttle body

192.192.199.92/smsauth/9/pc.php?params=pwd&orgi

As he says, be careful what you clean with, since both coated metal and plastic components can be damaged by the wrong solvent.

I use old brake fluid followed by soapy water for that sort of thing. OBF is a very effective cleaner but of course isn't designed for the job at all so I wont be able to sue anybody.

If it makes you nervous soapy water alone (maybe liquid laundry detergent) and a toothbrush should be fairly safe.

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Fri 28 May 2021 21:24
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - daveyK_UK
If your selling it, please let us know.
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Thu 3 Jun 2021 16:33
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Metchy
If your selling it, please let us know.

I'll give you a shout if this is hows it looking - cheers

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Sat 12 Jun 2021 12:51
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Metchy
If your selling it, please let us know.

Hi daveyK - I think I'm going to sell it. I can't find a way to DM on here, so do you want to reply with your email address and I'll send you the low down.

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Sat 12 Jun 2021 12:59
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Xileno

Moderators can facilitate the exchange of emails if DaveyK is still interested. I would not recommend putting an email on the public forums.

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Thu 3 Jun 2021 16:32
Proton GEN-2 - What to do with an old Proton - Metchy

Thanks for the replies everyone.

The throttle body video was useful, some of the other symptoms tracks with what the engine sometimes does while idling. I'll mention this to the garage.

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