Done & dusted. Malaysia to China and back in the Proton X70



About a month ago, 9 Proton X70 owners Led by Borneo Automobile Leisure Touring Team and the Kunming Scenery-Customer International Travel Co. China, embarked on a 13,000 km trip taking them from Proton Centre of Excellence in Shah Alam, Malaysia to Geely’s HQ in Hangzhou, China.

 Throughout the 33-day journey, the entourage crossed four countries and 13 cities through Malaysia, Thailand, Laos and China. It took them five days to get to the border of China where the participants were required to apply for a temporary road tax and driving license to allow them to legally drive in China.

We joined the convoy on the first leg from KL to Hatyai

The cars were subjected to an inspection by the traffic police in Mengla but with over 600,000 of the Boyue sold in China (the X70’s donor car), it didn’t take long for the authorities to welcome the convoy of X70s into the country.

Participants were also treated to a tour of the Geely Experience Centre where the participants were shown the rapid developments Geely underwent since the company obtained its manufacturing license from the Chinese Government in 2001. Guests were also shown a range of new Geely products that may bear the Proton badge in the near future such as the Geely Bin Yue compact crossover and Jia Ji MPV.

The group then took a leisure drive back to Malaysia, stopping by and visiting the ancient cities of China along the way. On average, the convoy covered roughly 400 km daily in their X70s and their longest route throughout the trip took them from Lampang to Cha’am on the return leg covering 775 km in a single day.

This Proton X70 Malaysia-China Amazing Trip 2019 is not a challenge to subject cars to gruesome long-haul tests but a journey of exploration to understand their vehicles in different driving conditions and promote overland tourism from and to Malaysia.

The owners were pleased to report that their X70 performed exceptionally in a variety of conditions – steep hills, wet weather and rough terrains. The 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder TGD-i engine with 183 hp and 285 Nm of torque also performed reliably despite the varying fuel quality and extensive driving.


IMAGE GALLERY

Proton X70 Malaysia-China Amazing Trip 2019