Speaking during a dialogue at the 24th Nikkei Conference on the Future of Asia on Monday, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the government hopes to possibly start a new national car project, perhaps with help from Southeast Asia, as Proton, owned by Chinese automaker Geely, is no longer considered a national car. <br />Proton was founded in 1983 during an industrialisation push in Mahathir's first term. Its domestic market share peaked at 74% a decade later but Geely bought 49.9% stake last year.
