Photo of Proton “right-hand drive” Geely Boyue is fake

Photo of Proton “right-hand drive” Geely Boyue is fake

Photos of the Geely Boyue at Proton service centres and dealer conferences have surfaced on a Facebook page recently. This hints at the fact that not only is development of the national carmaker’s first ever SUV – set to go on sale by the end of the year – well underway, but the company is also already hard at work preparing its sales and service network in anticipation.

One of those photos allegedly shows a finished right-hand drive prototype, something that was picked up by a few news outlets. However, all is not what it seems – look closely and you’ll see that the “P-R-N-D” gear selector layout display is back-to-front, as are the buttons. This, then, is a flipped image.

That’s not surprising, given that a previous report stated that a right-hand drive version of the Boyue will only be ready for testing in October, once both the conversion and the certification from the necessary authorities are completed. The process, which includes getting approval from both ASEAN NCAP and the Scientific and Industrial Research Institute of Malaysia (SIRIM), is expected to take at least a year.

Fake “right-hand drive” Geely Boyue (left), original left-hand drive model (right)

In any case, converting a left-hand drive car to a right-hand drive one isn’t as simple as moving the steering wheel and pedals to the correct side. Aside from a completely new dashboard, switchgear, power window buttons and even the front seats, there would also need to be changes to the mechanicals as well.

Often, the engine and gearbox of a left-hand drive car is in the way of where the steering column would be on a right-hand drive one, so things would need to be moved around to fit. As a result, developing a right-hand drive version of a car originally designed for left-hand drive use takes a lot of time and effort, as the last thing you’d want is a bad conversion.

Forget the aftermarket kits used on American cars, such as the CKD Ford F-150 sold by Hamawangsa Kredit, or French cars with the bonnet release and fuse box (resulting in a tiny glovebox) on the wrong side – even a company with the industrial might of Mercedes-Benz can be guilty of subpar right-hand drive conversions, with off-centre steering wheels and cramped footwells.

To recap, the Geely Boyue is a five-seater midsize SUV designed to compete with the likes of the Honda CR-V and Mazda CX-5. Depending on the market, it is available with either a 2.0 litre naturally-aspirated engine, a 2.4 litre one or a 1.8 litre turbo, but the latter – which makes 181 hp and 285 Nm when paired to a six-speed torque converter automatic transmission – is the most likely candidate for our market.

It’s also available with a whole host of gadgets including a digital instrument display, an eight-inch infotainment touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, voice control, adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning, among others. Read our first impressions review here.

GALLERY: Geely Boyue

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Jonathan Lee

After trying to pursue a career in product design, Jonathan Lee decided to make the sideways jump into the world of car journalism instead. He therefore appreciates the aesthetic appeal of a car, but for him, the driving experience is still second to none.

 

Comments

  • komarad on Jan 12, 2018 at 9:21 am

    in social media era so many fake news, fake pics being relayed by fakers and ……

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 13 Thumb down 2
    • Raja Celup on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:12 am

      Don’t worry the sales will still tidak laku as usual like Accordana. Better wait after 1 year for clear stock discount RM15K. LoL.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 38
      • Davidson on Jan 12, 2018 at 12:06 pm

        Using Euro6 compliant engine, Proton Bayu can export to 114 right-hand drive countries

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 18 Thumb down 2
    • Ahmad Mustafa on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:14 am

      who says you have to change the engine and gearbox layout when changing RHD to LHD or vice versa?

      you change only the steering box (the rack & pinion) and relocate the brake servo to follow the driver. that is all!!

      proton has 1 unit LHD on display at HQ COE (the one that was driven on the north pole…or south pole? whatever) and you can clearly see the engine and gearbox is all the same. reverse the dashboard and change the headlamp focus (also reverse).

      you see, toyota and honda develop new models every 4 years (look at vios, city, civic, corolla, camry, accord). the whole engineering part is actually half of that, the rest include R&D tests, and assembly engineering. and for marketing and planning team to work.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 22
      • Older cars have larger roomier engine bays. Deswai it wasnt so difficult to covert older P1s. Have u seen Boyue engine bay? See above image 28. And Boyue have to fit a 2.5L engine as well.

        So do read up what PT has written above on a LHD to RHD conversion. Its NOT a piece of cake!

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 21 Thumb down 3
        • Bernard on Jan 12, 2018 at 2:43 pm

          Companies in malaysia like NAZA has done LHD to RHD conversions quicker than this. Models like NAZA Sutera and Peugeot 408 have RHD versions only in Malaysia.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 7
          • Someone forgot to read the article but let me quote PT on this: “Forget the …. French cars with the bonnet release and fuse box (resulting in a tiny glovebox) on the wrong side”.

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 16 Thumb down 0
          • Hahaha on Jan 12, 2018 at 3:31 pm

            And look at the placement of the bonnet release handle and the size of glovebox (e.g Pug 408). The conversion are not done properly.. Heck even Pug 308 (previous gen) is having this problem.

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 0
        • rightwinger on Jan 12, 2018 at 3:27 pm

          armchair engineer expert hard at work….

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 1
        • john is otak batu on Jan 12, 2018 at 3:33 pm

          look again. the boyue engine is so tiny but the engine bay is huge. dont be fooled by your eyes perception.

          steering box sits low behind.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 3
          • Did u forget the transmission sits beside the engine? Both combined to span the engine bay. To shift steering box mounts, the entire chassis has to be reengineered to fit it.
            Just admit it take the wisdom from unker PT, a properly LHD to RHD (& vice versa) conversion is not an easy task. Dun belip me just as Elon.

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 1
      • James on Jan 12, 2018 at 12:04 pm

        I, a cashier, also think like that. Just sack the engineer. Anybody can do the conversion. Redesign, relocate and reengineer?? pfftt…

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 1
      • (Like) Proton Boyue.
        (Dislike) Toyota CH-R

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 37 Thumb down 1
    • mitlanevo on Jan 12, 2018 at 11:25 am

      Boyue rhd too much hassle. Just rebadge outlander….

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 11
  • HukAloh on Jan 12, 2018 at 9:24 am

    Hate aside. The interior looks really nice .. flipeed image or not

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 19 Thumb down 0
    • Raja Celup on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:15 am

      Maybe the fanboys trying to tell Bao Teng that black colour interior is better and preferred mostly by car buyers. Avoid white, beige, brown interior colours or risk low sales tidak laku later.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 8
  • Sidek Kamiso on Jan 12, 2018 at 9:26 am

    This is all the Proton fanboys and even Proton themselves trying to hype and syiok the rakyat.

    The biggest question is this….where is Proton going to get their money to pay their workers from now till end of 2018 when Geely Boyue is expected to launch???

    Duit datang dari mana?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 78
    • Eyesore on Jan 12, 2018 at 9:48 am

      Let PROTON and Geely worry about that…bukan mintak duit nko pun…prfft!!!

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 24 Thumb down 76
      • Jaguh Kampung on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:08 am

        Every year rakyat paid around RM9 billion car excise duties.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 11
        • Speck on Jan 12, 2018 at 12:09 pm

          Deswaii carmakers remove so many safety features. Sigh…

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 2
        • Eyesore on Jan 12, 2018 at 12:23 pm

          Excise duty you pay to Govt la brah… bukan PROTON…apakah…?

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 3
          • Marhaen on Jan 12, 2018 at 1:21 pm

            Every rakyat rather pay more for better & safer car teknoloji than car excise duties.

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
        • That car excise duties oso pays for P2. Why u no hentam P2?

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 1
    • What?? on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:15 am

      Don’t blame the company, blame the people on Facebook trying to gather publicity at any cost.

      Some people called Proton desperate for the whole Bitcoin thing but they were quick to shut the dealer down for something they actually have no knowledge of.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 13 Thumb down 0
    • Only a fool wu belip a flipped image. And yes, im looking at u.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 13 Thumb down 0
    • Vincent on Jan 12, 2018 at 11:23 am

      Not to worry on this. When Geely take over Volvo, they are in very bad financial financial situation. But Geely also managed to fun $$$$ to pay them and turn around Volvo.

      So, the dragon power cannot be under estimate..hihihii

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 0
  • Much ado about nothing.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 4
    • Graduan Bijak on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:17 am

      Those can afford Honda CRV surely won’t touch it, let alone to buy it.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 6
    • Only haters get themselves in a twisted knot over this.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0
  • Firdaus on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:23 am

    ‘the last thing you’d want is a bad conversion’

    I can forsee the outcome of this conversion, good luck proton fanboys and to all those buyers who would book this car even before actually sitting in one!!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 9
    • What?? on Jan 12, 2018 at 12:03 pm

      Geely is keeping a close eye on it I’m sure. It is their product after all so I doubt any bad practices would be tolerated by them. This is not cincai only like the Accordana.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
  • C.P. MOHAN on Jan 12, 2018 at 10:45 am

    Do not know about others but for me based on engine performance, it seems OUTDATED when compared to Honda CR-V.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 8
  • 2017 is a boring year for Proton. No new Jatco gearbox or Gdi engine found in the new Persona & Saga & Iriz. Suprima & Preve & Exora still no update yet. Where the 2.0 Turbo engine for Perdana promised earlier? Can’t really see the prospect of Proton.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 6
    • U must have just came out. 2017 was the most monumental year for P1 when it got taken under the wings of Geely.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 1
  • No proton no basher on Jan 12, 2018 at 1:01 pm

    This is gov official car lah….
    Majority Malaysian buy proton model that are price less than 60k
    Anything above 60k , they go buy Honda and Toyota model
    So in the end, baoteng will go back to tongkat sakti for help

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 10
  • tokmoh. on Jan 12, 2018 at 3:42 pm

    Janji Boyue > all

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
  • Aero (Member) on Jan 12, 2018 at 9:48 pm

    Lately, there’s been too much bogus news regarding Proton.

    There’s the questionable Proton sales reports, there’s the questionable dealer who gambled with Bitcoin (who is now suspended), and now, there’s actual ‘fake news’ from so-called ‘insiders’.

    Whether or not these parties did what they did with good intentions in mind, or in good faith, it matters little. Because it has only created even more trust issues and unwanted problems for Proton, who already has a ton of work on their hands.

    I worry that in the future, less and less people will take Proton news seriously, because as we’ve come to observe lately, it’s all just smoke and mirrors. It is the HYPE which has, time and time again, done the most damage to Proton’s reputation and legitimacy. Tesla is also facing the same problem now, too much hype, especially for the Model 3.

    The less hype, the better. The Boyue-based Proton SUV will be a great car, I’m sure. But I’m worried that the hype (i.e. ‘game changer’) might kill it before it even launches. It will be the Prevé all over again. And this time, it will be our fault… the fanboys, ‘insiders’, media, government, politicians, syiok sendiri ‘concept artists’, stock market speculators and whatnot… Not Proton/Geely.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
    • Bro. Its not just P1. When haters got nuthin betta to do, the internet is their venthole.
      Put ur trust in mainstream media and site with verifiable sources (like PT). Anything else is just for laffs.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • Kuinosan on Jan 13, 2018 at 12:01 am

    If Proton wants to launch this Boyue, then just launch la. What’s with all the overly secret and overkill of rumours about the vehicle in social media? At this rate, before it is officially launch, potential buyers would have been JEMU AND JELAT with it.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 2
    • Another case of someone skipping to READ the article and went for the bash.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
    • topkek on Jan 13, 2018 at 4:59 pm

      Use your brain, this pic is not even published by p1, later you hentam p1 pulak

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • practically it is a chinese car brand, designed and produced by the chinese, will be marketed in malaysia. Proton only eats commissions and servicing profits, acting like another car distributors. Of course will compete with chinese Haval.
    Another colourful chinese auto industry created in malaysia.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 1
 

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