Proton Persona (CM)

The Proton Persona (CM) is a 4-door saloon from Proton, built from 2007 to 2016, in the decade of stability control, dual-clutch gearboxes and the first serious hybrids. Under the bonnet: 1.5 L 4G15 I4. Damian Chia / Azlan Othman drew it.

The story

The second-generation Proton Persona (CM) is a C-segment saloon produced by the Malaysian automobile manufacturer Proton. The CM series represents the second generation in the Proton Persona lineage, and the first Proton model to use the 'Persona' nameplate in its home market. It was unveiled on 15 August 2007 as the successor to the Proton Wira in Malaysia, and the C90 Persona in its export markets. The CM Persona is based on an extended Proton GEN•2 platform, and was sold as a saloon complement to the GEN•2 hatchback.

The CM Persona was succeeded by the C-segment Proton Prevé in 2012. However, Proton continued to produce the Persona as a low-cost alternative to the more sophisticated Prevé. The CM Persona was later decisively succeeded by the B-segment BH Persona in August 2016. The CM series was also sold as the Proton GEN•2 Persona in some export markets, and it is one of two Proton models that were rebadged and manufactured by the Youngman company in China. Over 250,000 CM Personas were sold over the course of nine years.

What is underneath

Power comes from 1.5 L 4G15 I4; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. It weighs 1170 –. It shifts through a 5-speed manual / 4-speed automatic. The layout matters: the engine drives the front wheels, the packaging choice that gives a small car a big cabin. The wheelbase is 2600 mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.

Its place in the line

Its family tree is legible: it took over from the Proton Persona (C90) / Proton Wira saloon; its successor was the Proton Prevé (spiritual) / Proton Persona (BH) (de facto); assembly was at Proton City. Its contemporaries in the catalogue — the Nissan GT-R, the Volkswagen Tiguan, the Hyundai i30 — show what else the money bought that year. Nearby in the Proton catalogue sit the Proton Perdana and the Proton Arena.