Just dropped by COSE this afternoon and managed to get the issue resolved. First off, all mineral oil, semi-synthetic oil and full-synthetic oil can be used on the Preve Turbo. (Mach 5, Syntium 800 can be used).

Secondly, the air-cond service is optional and not necessary.

Looks like I have been taken for a ride by the particular service advisor. Coincidentally he was not at the service when I visited. Told them I wanted a refund and they agreed to reimburse only the air-cond service (RM166+) but they could not reimburse the Synthium 1000 engine oil since it was poured into the engine, which was comprehensible. So all in all, paid RM80+ extra for the Synthium 1000 instead of Synthium 800 (Synthium 1000 costs RM200, Synthium 800 costs RM117)

Another service advisor lady who was processing my refund said that the costlier Synthium 1000 is better for the engine. Yeah, right. Didn't feel any difference between Synthium 800 and 1000 but anyway at least I have tried the Synthium 1000 once and it's the first and last time I'm going to use this engine oil on the Preve Turbo.

The manager apologised for the incident. I told the manager to give his budak some "ceramah". It is really unthinkable that this fellow can cook up such stories that Synthium 800 cannot be used on the Preve Turbo, and that the air-cond service cannot be taken out. If he can lie in this circumstance, I guess he had the knack of lying for most parts of his life. I feel sorry for him actually.

Yes, mineral oil is just as good as full-synthetic. Only thing is the service interval is shorter at 5,000km. By the way, the manager had clarified that mineral oil's service interval is 5,000km and service interval of both semi and full-synthetic oils is 10,000km. I presume the Mach 5 is mineral oil, and if that is the case the service interval is 5,000km.

Not all CVTs are noisy. The Nissan Sylphy's CVT is one of the quietest I had experienced, and I had driven it for 5 years. There is virtually no sound from the CVT of the Nissan Sylphy during acceleration, and the sound from the engine is very low when compared to the engine sound of the Preve Turbo when the car is accelerating. Even if there is a CVT whine in the Nissan Sylphy, the sound is very soft and barely audible. In comparison, the Preve Turbo's CVT whine is audibly loud, like a blowing whistle coupled by the low frequency growl from the engine during acceleration when you step on the pedal at any given speed. With the Nissan Sylphy, you don't hear the sound of the engine at all(the sound from the engine is very soft) when you step on the pedal. Only when you step hard on the pedal as in hard acceleration you can hear the engine growl. If you step softly on the pedal of the car, you can barely hear any noise from the engine or the CVT. The Nissan Sylphy is just a quiet car.

But the same cannot be said with the Preve Turbo. Even if you step softly on the pedal of the car, you can hear the CVT or engine sound, other than the slight lag during acceleration which gives a "dragging" feel. If one has lived with the Preve Turbo for quite some time, he/she will get used to the characteristics of the car and it's not so much of an issue. However, if you compare or switch to other quieter cars, you will instantly feel the difference.

The Preve Turbo is not exactly a quiet car but it is generally acceptable in normal driving conditions. Though if one frequently does hard acceleration, then the Preve Turbo can be regarded to be quiet noisy. The sound from the car during hard acceleration is very unpleasant, when compared to other cars like the Nissan Sylphy or Ford Focus that I currently own. The sound from the Ford Focus' engine during hard acceleration is linear and robust in comparison to the loud and unpleasant roar of the Preve Turbo's engine during similar driving conditions. As if the Preve Turbo's engine is crying and begging the driver not to do hard acceleration so much.

I often switch between the Preve Turbo and Ford Focus as I own both cars.

The operation of the paddle shift of the Preve Turbo is crude and quite useless due to the gear ratios that are fixed too closely to each other. Nevertheless, I still use it in my everyday driving as I prefer the manual gear shifting than D in low speed acceleration.

It depends on what you mean by it's more "efficient" if the gear is left at D or S. Automatic transmissions are purely for convenience as you just step on the pedal and don't need to worry about upshifting or downshifting the gears, as in manual gear transmission. The only reason I use the paddle shifters instead of leaving the car in D is I don't like the throttle response of the car when accelerating from standstill or during low speed acceleration. There is this dragging or heavy feel of the car when accelerating from standstill or bumper to bumper crawl traffic jams. You need to step on the pedal more if you want the car to move forward, otherwise the car wont' move forward. This lag in the acceleration due to the throttle response coupled by the engine roar in D gives the heavy or dragging feel of the car.

When using manual gears, accelerating from gear 1 or 2 is more instantaneous. There is less drag or "heavy feel" during acceleration from standstill with the paddle shifters(manual gears), and the car feels lighter.

But in terms of performance as in quick acceleration off the blocks from 0 to 100km/h, the D is much better. YOu can feel the Turbo power kicking in if you accelerate the car in D. The car seems to accelerate slower if you use the manual gear shifters, as if the Turbo isn't working.

FWIW the paddle shifters are only practical for speeds of up to 80km/h. The RPMs are above 2000 at the highest gear 7 which isn't economical. I use the manual shifters all the time when the vehicle speed is 80km/h and below. I only switch from manual to D whenever the speed of my car is above 80km/h, or when I am on the mobile phone.

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Mar 4 2015, 01:41 PM

If you have driven the Honda City, then you would have an idea on the difference in throttle response between the City and Preve Turbo when accelerating from standstill. Although there is still a very slight delay in the City when accelerating from standstill, the responsiveness is better than the Preve Turbo. Just a light step on the accelerator the car will move forward. Unlike the Preve where you cannot lightly step on the car but put more force on the pedal before the car will move forward. Nevertheless, when it comes to acceleration power, handling and driving dynamics the City is no match for the Preve Turbo.

It is sometimes difficult to describe the experience in words unless one has driven other cars and compared the differences. The delay or lag in acceleration when accelerating from standstill may be minimal or not so much of an issue. It is the combination of this lag and the "heavy dragging feel". No doubt the car is accelerating well, but you feel some force is pulling the car back when the car is accelerating, which gives this "dragging feel". Perhaps it is the characteristics of the CVT gearbox in the Preve Turbo. The Nissan Sylphy's CVT does not behave the same way as the Preve Turbo although there is a lag in acceleration during standstill ie. accelerating from 0km/h. Although there is an approximately 0.5 seconds lag when you step on the pedal (before the car gets moving), you don't experience the dragging feel as in the Preve Turbo. The car just glides forward and it feels light.

No experience with the Suprima S though I have read it drives better than the Preve due to upgraded electronics and stuff.

Personally I think the biggest weakness of the Preve Turbo is in the transmission. If Proton can improve on this aspect it will be a much nicer car to drive especially when it is stuck in traffic jams. Don't get me wrong. THe car drives well as it is if someone does not compare it with other cars. Only when you drive other cars you will feel the difference. But at a price of between 65k to 69k, one cannot complain too much as the car is already considered to be a good value and unbeatable at its price point.

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Mar 5 2015, 08:43 AM

Does anybody have problems with the driver's seat whereby when you move your back against the seat there is sound from the seat. I have changed the whole seat once under warranty sometime last year, but the new seat shows the same problem again after several months.

Proton had ordered a new seat to replace the defective seat, but currently there is no stock for this seat. I had been waiting for the seat to arrive for 2 months now. Does anyone here have the seat on order if your current one is defective?

The sound is from the seat itself, somewhere in the middle where the backbone rests on the seat. The noise doesn't sound like it is coming from the base of the seat. When I press my back on the seat, there will be a "ngek ngek" sound from the seat as if there are air pockets inside the seat. The noise doesn't sound like it is caused by steel rubbing against steel.

Just lately, the suspension of the car is also producing some sound when going over speed bumps. A "ngek ngek" sound from the rear suspension. I tried to experiment where the sound is coming from, so one day when the car is parked at one spot with the engine switched off, I opened the rear door, and with one foot out of the door and my other knee resting on the seat, I began to bounce on the car up and down and I hear the suspension producing this "nyek nyek" sound. The sound is quite loud, and as I continue to bounce on the the car the "nyek nyek" sound from the suspension is consistent. I wonder if the rear suspension of the car is already starting to wear out.

Previously when going over road bumps the suspension doesn't produce this noise. Now it's beginning to crop up more often these days. Guess wear and tear is taking its toll.

Perhaps the sound from your seat is the same sound I am experiencing in my car. If you move your back politely you won't hear the sound. Only when you press your body more firmly onto the seat when you position your body then only you will hear the sound. Also, when your car goes over speed bumps and your body will tend to move and rub against the back seat, and you will then hear this sound.

I believe there are many complaints on this "defective" seat already as the last time I visited the Proton service centre in COSE, those guys over there knew about this seat that is producing "noises" when I mentioned defective seat. Even the manager. Also, the driver's seat is low on stock , probably due to large number of complaints on the defective seat and the new seats are on the waiting list to be installed onto the affected vehicles. It's almost 3 months already since the seat for my car was ordered but until now they have not called me to inform on the availability of the seat(so that I can go to the service centre to have the defective seat swapped out with a new one).

Drove the Preve Turbo up Genting Highlands earlier this week. This was the first time I drove up Genting Highlands using the Preve Turbo (drove up Genting Highlands twice previously with my other car, the Ford Focus).

After the toll along Karak highway, was pushing the car through the inclined roads and twisting bends. Car was pretty responsive though roar from the engine was intruding into the cabin as RPMs were above 4000.

When going up Genting Highlands, again I was testing the handling and power of the Preve. got warning from my other half not to "swing" the car too much as she was getting dizzy. So in the end, have to drive slow up to the top. From the Karak toll, up to Genting Highlands and then back to the toll, I think I used up almost half tank of fuel. Fuel consumption is pretty high if you floor the pedal.

Not sure if the sound is from the airbags but it does feel like there are air pockets inside the seat ie. there is air inside the seat.

Yes, guess the absorber is close to kaput already. Still bearable at the moment. Wait till the sound is more consistent ie. if it pops up everytime the car goes over speed bumps, then only I'll get them replaced.

You have changed your seat twice and your mileage is only 17,000km. And the 3rd seat also showed the same sound? Guess there is no end to this as we keep changing seats until the warranty expires. I have clocked 32,000km mileage on my vehicle and I'm still waiting for my 2nd seat replacement.

Loud noise is mainly from engine and CVT transmission when traveling at highway speeds >120km/h. Good that soundproofing managed to reduce the noise. I guess you must have spent quite a bit on soundproofing to reduce the noise, maybe more than RM1,000. If you spend a few hundred ringgit there won't be much difference.

Car may be struggling due to excess weight of 4 occupants plus luggage. I mostly drive the Preve Turbo alone and power is good up to 130km/h. If traveling at higher speeds, it is good up to 160km/h in which after this point it struggles to reach a higher speed. Yes, ideal speed is 120km/h and below. Slightly above 120km/h it gets uncomfortable (on a stock Preve Turbo). If you already installed soundproofing I guess you car will be quieter at higher speeds.

Just recently I tested the power and performance of the Preve Turbo on Karak highway(just before going up to Genting Highlands) and also LEKAS, and when going uphill, I noticed the car was maintaining the speed at 160km/h and couldn't go much higher up to 170km/h even though I was stepping on the accelerator. There are only 2 persons in the car with minimal luggage. The car's power is good on the straight leveled road but when going uphill it feels like it is struggling a bit. It's still a powerful car though, it's just on more demanding uphill roads with a sloping gradient, the car seems to be losing a bit of steam.

As usual you will have to set up an appointment with them to have them look at the seat before they place an order for it. They will not entertain telephone calls to place the order for the seat before they inspect the seat and confirm that it is defective.

For the Preve Turbo, acceleration power is okay up to around 150-160km/h. It only struggles after this speed.

The CVT of the car is a bit quirky. If you fully step on the pedal, the RPM will just shoot up high above 6000 but the car may not accelerate forward as quickly as you want it to be. You can try stepping on the pedal halfway through and not fully as the acceleration can sometimes be better.

FWIW I had tested the Preve Turbo on LEKAS highway where is a steep road just before the Seremban toll. With the Preve Turbo, the speed is stagnant at about 160km/h and wont' go higher even if I had fully stepped on the accelerator. The speed just maintained at 160km/h on the long stretch of slope. With the Ford Focus, on the same stretch of road the speed continued to climb from 160km/h up to 190km/h.

I didn't manage to test at the moment but I guess it should the same as what the other guys are getting.

You may want to have the car checked at the service centre. There shouldn't be any issue with the acceleration of the car being a Turbo-charged model, unless you are comparing with a significantly more powerful car.

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Apr 1 2015, 08:05 PM

I'm referring to the uphill road on LEKAS with a rather steep gradient just before the Seremban toll, not an almost levelled or slightly downhill road. On that stretch of road, the Preve Turbo's top speed is capped at 160km/h. Next time if you happen to want to drive to Seremban, you may want to use the LEKAS highway and test the performance of the car there.

I have no doubts the Preve Turbo can go above 200km/h. Managed to do 205km/h sometime last year. Though I am surprised you can achieve 210km/h with S and paddle shifters. The RPM is high with S, even when around 100km/h. Maybe you have used the paddle shifters to offset this.

Sorry to hear about the problem on your car. Did not experience any mechanical problem on the car such as jerking or engine shutting down in the middle of the road except for few occasions of engine shutting down when reversing the car, which the car can be restarted after that without any issues.

Don't think we need to wait for few seconds or minutes to shut down the engine. I usually don't turn off the air-cond and audio system before shutting down the engine. Sometimes I shut down the engine before switching off the lights. Mine is late 2013 model though.

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Apr 3 2015, 08:12 AM