Review: Proton Gen-2 EcoLogic

Malaysian car maker Proton is one of only a handful of manufacturers supplying new cars in the UK that are fully converted and ready to run on LPG.

Although LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas) is not a renewable fuel, it does produce less carbon monoxide, fewer particulates and oxides of nitrogen, and lower levels of CO2 than petrol or diesel. Proponents of LPG also state that the energy required to produce and transport the fuel is lower than for its two more common rivals.

LPG is also significantly cheaper to buy than petrol or diesel, at roughly half the price per litre, due mainly to lower taxation. In this month's Budget it was confirmed that the duty differential will remain until at least March 2014. On top of this there are road tax, congestion charge and company car tax benefits that make LPG motoring financially beneficial in many instances, although the two per cent benefit-in-kind discount will be phased out in 2011.

LPG is a by-product of oil production, and is a gas rather than a liquid at normal temperatures. It is stored and transported in lightly pressurised tanks in liquid form, much like the liquefied fuel canisters used in camping gas stoves, and is sometimes referred to as autogas.

But despite these numerous environmental and cost benefits, the fuel comes with several caveats. First, there is the cost of installing the LPG system, which for most cars means you only break even after several years of motoring. And secondly, it is relatively hard to find filling stations that stock LPG. For this reason, LPG cars are typically dual-fuel capable, able to run on petrol or LPG and with separate tanks for the two fuels.

With its Gen-2 EcoLogic, Proton has tackled the payback question very directly – it has absorbed the cost of the LPG equipment, selling the car for the same price as its conventional petrol equivalent. There is not much Proton can do to expand the UK's network of 1,400 LPG filling stations, but with a 60-litre petrol tank and 66-litre LPG tank, the Gen-2 boasts a combined range of around 1,000 miles between stops.

One further drawback is that the bulky LPG tank has to fit somewhere within the car. In the Proton Gen-2, the squat LPG cylinder occupies the spare-wheel well in the boot, while the spare wheel itself is replaced with a can of get-you-home gunk. The small, circular LPG filling nozzle is neatly fitted on the car’s offside rear wing, helpfully next to the petrol filler flap.

The tank raises the Gen-2’s boot floor by 13cm, robbing the car of some practicality. In its raised position the lift-out boot floor no longer fits snugly against the boot walls, leaving a noticeable gap into which small items might easily drop. Also, the rear deck is no longer flush with the folded rear seat backs when carrying long objects.

Fitting the tank requires new holes for mounting bolts in the chassis floor, which might compromise long-term rust-proofing. As a factory-fit option, however, the six-year body warranty would cover problems in this area.

In our tests we found the LPG system, supplied by Dutch firm XLR8, very simple to operate. The Gen-2 EcoLogic starts with petrol and automatically switches to LPG after about 20 seconds.

A small inch-square button mounted next to the handbrake allows the driver to switch the LGP system on and off, and also houses a row of small LEDs used to indicate how full the tank is.

LPG combustion produces less power than petrol, but we found it very hard to detect the difference. Around town and on the motorway, the Gen-2 feels reasonably fast and eager for a 1.6-litre small family car.

Proton is a budget brand, selling for markedly less than mainstream rivals such as Vauxhall or Renault, and even undercutting fellow value brands such as Kia and Hyundai. The Gen-2 Persona EcoLogic saloon we tested costs £10,795 on the road and provides a very reasonable package for the price, including a three year/60,000 mile warranty and three years' RAC breakdown cover.

The interior is well equipped and spacious and, aside from some dated velour seat fabrics, is attractive, comfortable and modern.

Ride quality is good and the controls are easy to use, although they could be better laid out – we found the low-mounted air-conditioning and ventilation controls hard to reach, and the busy speedometer a little difficult to read at a glance.

We also found it simple to find a comfortable driving position, although the thin-rimmed steering wheel adjusts only for rake and not for reach. In our test car the steering wheel also highlighted some below-par quality control, being affixed slightly askew with respect to the front wheels.

The rest of the driving experience was not without its faults: the brakes feel numb and lack initial bite, although they stop the car well enough. The door mirrors are poorly shaped and the driver-side mirror provides an unhelpful magnified view, worsening the car's offside blind-spot and making motorway lane-changing harder to judge. Wind and tyre noise is well controlled, but cabin rattles, engine-induced vibration and engine noise can be intrusive at times.

While the LPG system proved seamless, we would have preferred to see the control and display button mounted on the dashboard, within easy view of the driver, rather than low-down on the transmission tunnel.

And while LPG offers some green benefits, the petrol economy of the Gen-2 is unremarkable, with CO2 emissions of 157g/km or 172g/km, depending on the variant, putting the car in VED bands G or I under the new expanded taxation scheme. With the £20 bi-fuel discount, road tax will cost £130 and £155 respectively this year, rising to £135 and £180 next April as the tax differential for more polluting cars increases. All variants come under insurance group 7.

Overall, we felt the Proton Gen-2 EcoLogic offered a very reasonable package for its low purchase price, and should be considered carefully by business buyers travelling high mileages on tight budgets.