I refer to the letters on Proton's woes.

Proton's problems are not just because of some perceptual distortion that Malaysians have about the cars it makes. The truth of the matter is that every car manufacturer in the world will have some cars that under-perform, or are defective or are simply duds. It does not really matter if the car is some upmarket brand or a lowly Lada. However, it would appear that the Proton has a much higher rate of duds.

Years ago, I bought a Proton Wira. The car drove well - until it reached 80 km/h. At that point, the dash board (or something in the car) would rattle rather loudly. It was a most frustrating experience trying to get it rectified. Proton's service people took the car in for testing no less than eight times but to no avail. In addition to the rattle, the car's alarm system had a mind of its own, going off at odd times. Other Proton owners that I personally knew have recounted countless tales of sloppy workmanship, water leaks, faulty alarms, inefficient air-conditioning, wobbles, rattles and shakes. I tolerated the car for 10 months and then traded it in for an import.

The Wira was, at that point in time, my fifth car. Up to then I had driven the Ford, Nissan, Toyota and the Volvo and since the Wira, I have had cars of other makes. Apart from extremely minor problems with the other makes, I have never experienced anything like the one in the Wira.

It isn't about patriotism. I do believe that if most Malaysian could afford it, they would buy imported cars, not because they lacked a sense of patriotism towards the national car but because they would prefer to save themselves from the hassle of having to drive a defective car everyday. Traffic conditions are bad enough in the country; we do not have to add to the frustrations generated by the situation on the road with the frustrations generated by our own cars.

I do believe that the problem is one of Proton's own making. In its early years, Proton should have committed themselves to delivering a quality car. I have spoken to them about it a number of times and I am sure that others have as well.

Muzammil Haji Daud suggests that Proton will have it bad because Malaysians resist a paradigm shift on the Proton - that Malaysians are inherently biased against local products. I am sure that there is that inherent bias but I wonder as to the cause of that bias. He suggested that Malaysian will need a mindset change or a paradigm shift and be proud of local products.

May I suggest that it is Proton that will need a paradigm shift? For too long Proton was protected and had a price advantage that was unfair to the other car manufacturers and importers. That being so, Proton could possibly have felt that it was too strong, too well-placed, too invincible and so became callous in their approach towards long-term marketing.

Instead of using quality to build future and long-term goodwill, Proton developed a laissez faire attitude. Instead of building quality into their products, Proton relied only on its price differential. Are all Proton cars bad? Surely not. Many actually find the car visually appealing. However, visual appeal cannot compensate for physical frustration when driving many of Proton's vehicles.

I fear that this same malaise will afflict many other local business sectors in addition to Proton. Just take a look at the national banks and see how they work. I think that the word is lackadaisical. A service transaction that needs only 10 minutes can take two hours! Citibank and the other foreign banks will have much to show Malaysians what they can do once the industry is fully deregulated.

Muzammil Haji Daud says that Malaysians must have a mindset change and be proud of local products. I agree with that for it is a problem. However, this mindset change cannot be driven from the consumers' end. Consumers will not part with their hard-earned money just to so that they can be proud of some local products which are defective. How many people have you heard going around telling others of how proud they are of having bought a local product which was defective?

I do believe that the mindset change must come - but that it will have to be driven by local industry in Malaysia. Local manufacturers must be proud of the quality of the goods that they sell; they will need to be committed not only to customer satisfaction but to customer delight. When that happens, another mindset shift, that of the consumer, will then evolve.