Proton has announced its return to the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (APRC), after an absence of five years, with the introduction of the Proton R3 Malaysia Rally Team.
The team was introduced today at the premises of the Perdana Leadership Foundation, in a ceremony officiated by Proton advisor, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.

And with this, it’s all set to go …
The Proton R3 Malaysia Rally Team will be made up of former APRC champion Karamjit Singh and his regular co-driver Jagdev Singh, and the Satria Neo Super 2000 will be fielded for this return to competitive racing.
The car recently created news waves when it finished 4th overall at the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) in Russia, driven by two-times British rally champion Guy Wilks.

The Satria Neo Super 2000. In white for the APRC.
Proton managing director Datuk Haji Syed Zainal Abidin explained that “as a car maker, our re-entry into the rally scene is significant, as we strive to push forward our aspirations to be a global car manufacturer.
“Motorsports is an avenue for us to showcase our cars, their performance, technology and capabilities. What’s more important is the opportunity to learn and discover our cars’ capabilities in the extreme conditions of motorsports, which we will be able to then translate into product development and improvement,” he said.

Taking a closer look at the S2000
“As we move on to strengthen our presence in our export markets, our participation in the global rally scene will help to enhance our brand visibility internationally and help build confidence towards our cars and the brand generally,” he added.
The team’s participation in the APRC will see it competing in three rallies, beginning with the Malaysian round this weekend in Johor, followed by Rally Indonesia on Oct 3-4 and China Rally on Nov 14-15.