You want a small, efficient, inexpensive truck in America? That’s funny, because it looks like the Malaysians wish they could have our big boorish sand-jumping monsters. Why not mash these ideas together?
This pickup is the latest artistic endeavor by Proton, a Malaysian automaker that rose to mediocrity rebadging Nissans and now has its own bonafide presence in the industry, complete with crazy showpiece concepts that they’ll never build.
Malaysian car site Paultan says we’re looking at a front-wheel-drive unibody Proton Exora MPV that’s been hacked up to have a pickup bed, and then fitted with a big face and butt that make it look like the result of a coital union between a Ford Raptor and a Ram Rebel. With a dash of minivan inherited somehow.
Proton (Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Sendirian Berhad) (or roughly “National Automobile Company Private Limited” in English) trotted this vehicle out at a promotional event and now has it parked in one of their design studios.
Production seems unlikely, but I’m personally disturbed by how much I’m digging the design. Maybe there’s a market for a mean-muggin’ Ridgeline?
Contact the author at andrew@jalopnik.com.