The Proton X50 has just been given an update in Malaysia for 2024, but no, it’s not the facelift some of you might have guessed. Instead, it’s a minor spec bump with some new features and equipment that the national carmaker said has been heavily requested by their customers.
Like before, the Proton X50 will continue to be offered in four variants, and are priced unchanged from before as follows (on-the-road, without insurance):
- Proton X50 1.5T Standard – RM86,300
- Proton X50 1.5T Executive – RM93,300
- Proton X50 1.5T Premium – RM101,800
- Proton X50 1.5TGDi Flagship – RM113,300
Most of the upgrades on the Proton X50 are found on the inside, with the most notable one being the 10.3-inch infotainment display that is now standard across all variants. That’s right – even the base variant will now get the same infotainment system as the flagship variant, replete with built-in connectivity features such as the Proton Link mobile app for remote vehicle control (Executive and higher), as well as built-in Spotify music streaming.
In addition to the new screen, the infotainment unit itself has also been upgraded with a new “dual quad-core processing unit” inside, with 2GB of RAM and 64GB of storage capacity, which Proton says provides up to 3.3x more computing performance, resulting in a 33% faster boot up time, and 55% faster loading time.
Unfortunately, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity is still not available here just yet, but Proton assures that it is their “number one priority” for its customers, and reaffirms that it will be coming soon after they sort out some final licencing steps. We presume that the Proton X50 will be one of the first few models to be updated with the feature, although we are still awaiting confirmation from the national carmaker.
For the Premium and flagship variants, the 360-degree surround view monitor has also been upgraded with higher-quality cameras (3.3x more pixels, proton says), as well as a new 3D view, which worked pretty smoothly in our brief hands-on session. Additionally, the new cameras also provide a new blind-spot view monitor when the turn indicators are activated while driving.
The Standard and Executive variants are still only equipped with a reverse camera, despite their now bigger screens.
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Other upgrades to the Proton X50 come in the form of a powered tailgate, which is now standard equipment for the Premium and Flagship variants (previously sold as an additional accessory).
The NVH performance of the Proton X50 has also been upgraded, with “more than 20” improvements that have resulted in significantly lower wind noise from the A-pillars in our brief testing.
Otherwise, the rest of the 2024 Proton X50 remains largely identical to the outgoing model, including the powertrain, with the lower three variants continued to be powered by the port-injected 1.5-litre turbocharged inline-three engine, making 150 hp and 226 Nm. Exclusive to the flagship variant is the 1.5-litre TGDi turbocharged inline-three mill with direct injection, offering higher performance outputs at 177 hp and 255 Nm.
Both engines are mated to the same seven-speed dual-clutch transmission as before, but a Proton engineer mentioned that the gear ratios have been slightly altered on the 2024 model, although primarily for improved NVH performance only.
The rest of the equipment list also remains unchanged. LED headlights and tail lights are standard across the board, with the Executive variant and above gaining automatic headlight functionality; wheel sizes and designs are also unchanged, measuring 17 inches in diametre for the first two variants, and 18 for the Premium and Flagship.
Safety wise, the Standard variant gets four airbags, rising up to six for the Executive and higher variants. The 2024 Proton X50 1.5T Premium gains an additional tyre pressure monitoring system, but advanced driver assistance features are limited to just the Flagship, and includes features such as autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control with stop-go functionality, lane keeping assist, and an auto parking assist feature.
The new 2024 Proton X50 is covered by a five-year unlimited-mileage warranty as before, and includes a 1GB/month data package for the first five years of ownership, alongside a service package with six-times free labour.
As part of its early bird promo on the first 5,000 bookings, Proton will also be offering an additional RM7,000 cash discount, alongside a RM1,500 trade in “overtrade support”, plus RM6,000 “value added features”. The vehicles have to be registered by 31 July 2024 to qualify for the promotion.
GALLERY
