Proton is producing cars with are on par with other marques unlike before, said Dr Mahathir Mohamad in exhorting Malaysians to have more confidence in the national carmaker.

The former premier and Proton chairperson said despite having rectified the shortcomings in its previous models, he is still hearing complaints about faulty power windows.

"Our (Proton) windows go up nicely and come down nicely. Now our car is as good as any imported car but people are still not driving it.

"Believe me, Malaysian engineers have learnt a lot.

“Our engineers are just as qualified and as skilful as engineers from other countries," he told a press conference at the Proton Centre of Excellence in Subang Jaya today.

He had earlier witnessed the first firing of Proton's latest range of engines via live teleconferencing from the testing facilities in England.

Mahathir said personally, he enjoys driving the Proton Iriz and Suprima S during the weekends.

"If you buy the cars, you will find out (that Proton has improved).

"Our problem is not the cars. Our problem is the people's perception that Proton does not produce good cars," he said.

During the presentation session, Proton chief technical officer Abdul Rashid Musa briefed Mahathir and all guests present on details of the new engines.

Musa heads a team of 20 local engineers who are involved in developing the engines together with British firm Ricardo and Proton-owned Lotus.

Notably, Musa said Proton's six new engine models will meet even the most stringent European emission standards aside from offering up to 25 percent more fuel efficiency compared to the current models on the road.

Proton CEO Abdul Harith Abdullah, meanwhile, said the development of the new engines would expand the company's opportunity to enter new markets due to future abilities to meet varying demands for cars.

'Proton has reservations on TPPA'

Asked on the impact of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) on Proton, Abdul Harith said the company was still in the midst of discussions with the government.

"We are still talking to the government at the moment. We do have our reservations but we need to sit down and clarify them with the government.

"We have not completed that series of in-depth discussions so I will not be able to reveal further details," he said.

Prime Minister Najib Razak is set to table the TPPA bill for debate in Parliament during a special two-day session on Jan 26 and Jan 27.

If passed, the agreement is set to be signed in New Zealand next month.