Embarking on a road trip is not only a good way to explore the world, but also a means to form a closer “bond” with your car. This morning, a group of Proton X70 owners began their journey from the Proton Centre of Excellence, but their trip won’t take them to Penang or Johor. Instead, they will drive over 13,000 km to Hangzhou, China, to the headquarters of the Zhejiang Geely Holding Group.
The entire round trip, which takes 33 days, will see the participants pass through 13 cities across four countries (Malaysia, Thailand, Laos and China), before ending at back where they started. The convoy, organised by the Borneo Automobile Leisure Touring Team and the Kunming Scenery-Customer International Travel, consists of nine X70s of different variants along with other vehicles.
All the X70s you see here are owned by the participants themselves, and they will be supported by Proton and its local partners in Thailand and Laos to provide maintenance work if required. Any other expenses will be borne by the members of the convoy themselves.
Based on the schedule posted on the group’s official website, the convoy is expected to reach Hangzhou by March 12, and will arrive at the Centre of Excellence on March 28. We wish them the best of luck on their journey.
“While this is a private initiative, PROTON is happy to offer its support as a sign of appreciation to its customers. The Proton X70 has been very well received by Malaysians and we hope that by showing regional car buyers its capabilities, we will be laying the groundwork for future export sales success,” said Datuk Radzaif Mohamed, deputy chief executive officer at Proton.
The X70 was launched in December last year, with four variants offered that are priced between RM99,800 and RM123,800. Powered by a 1.8 litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine (181 hp and 285 Nm of torque), the X70 features a six-speed automatic transmission, and on the top-spec variant, the Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) suite. The national carmaker’s first SUV is also the star in our Driven Web Series, where we pitted it against nameplates like the Honda CR-V and Subaru XV.
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So Aruz will do road and sea trip to Japan soon? Lols.
No. Cuz the 1.5 engine cannot tahan maaa
This trip is showing that Geely is taking over Proton and make it as Geely Premium Reseller to sell their game changing cars. Proton game over cars are going to thr museum.
U just shown the depth of ur pea brain. Ur job cybertrooping is it?
No, Aruz will make the trip to Indonesia instead, where Terios and Rush was born.
Still would be one heck of a journey if Aruz can drive across Selat Melaka.
Proton X70 wud survive 13K trip, piece of cake.
Wahliao..these dudes dont have to work,wor.They splash 100 grand plus on x70…like a toy car..for roadtrip to Tongsan.
People are selling rm 1 nasi lemak at the road side illegally,to put food on the table..these dudes showboating..
Wah,which boss will give u nonstop 33 days annual leave? These must be SELF EMPLOYED and quite rich…to have such long road trips.Dont forget there may be delays due to foreign road/weather conditions..may stretch 35 to 40 days..
What’s wrong with people enjoying life?
Furthermore,
Look at the group photo la dei… All old man and women, let them enjoy their retired life la EPF funds release want keep for grandchildren to use? Meh?
Going to China is not enjoying life
So you admit the SELF EMPLOYED and quite rich are going for Proton X70 in droves? What happened to your fallacy logic again?
Most of the members in this convoy are wealthy. I know one of the organising committee member is a doctor, with a fleet of cars.
That’s what’s wrong with the majority of Malaysian like u boss. U really think money rain from the sky on them ah? People work their buttt off while u r sleeping. Even if they got it from their parents, u think money rain on their parents ah? Be a responsible good person lah, don’t spin and spin everyday. The young people who follow u one day will be like u also spin and spin for a living while blaming everyone else who are better off than yourself.
Road trips are cool. And driving to China and back sounds exciting. They will have to service their cars at least once on the trip, judging by the expected distance.
Proton distributors in Thailand & Laos on standby already. Suspect they will provide repair & recovery vehicles to convoy in respective countries, not just as technical support but also as advertising. This indirectly will showcase the X70 that will be sold later on in those countries. Another PR goldmine.
Like those Paris to Kunming rally.
Hopefully they get free service from Proton since they are benefitting from the tour which is organised by a 3rd party group.
Copy paste: “they will be supported by Proton and its local partners in Thailand and Laos to provide maintenance work if required. Any other expenses will be borne by the members of the convoy themselves.”
P1 so confident on the quality and durability of X70. Well done!
yr x70 no RV. Probably unreliable also. Made in china ma! My hilux got high RV. also very reliable one!
Lets ask Proton to rename all the model will RV prefix, so it will have the RV sam loo sought after.
send the car over here…and then bring it back to china immediately? xD
Car deliver from China to Malaysia via Sea. Now, they drive all the way to China. Getting service and replace a few parts in China after that drive back to Malaysia.
using own car? try to avoid these cars in second hand market.
Nothing wrong with taking on big road trips as long as the car follows their scheduled maintenance. Heck, these long trips may be able to prove their reliability if they successfully made it to and fro.
Geely Boyue last year did an 18,000 km Xian to London roadtrip. Everything went smoothly, so expect the same smooth trip for these guys. Bon voyage & drive safe. Make Malaysia proud.
On side note, Proton should video document this trip & later come out with short videos to highlight the the reliability of the X70, how the X70 tackles different road conditions & weather, the human interest side (how the X70 helps our Malaysian interact with the locals they meet along the way) ….. There is soooo many stories they can tell from this trip alone. It’s a PR goldmine.
Include also the problems encountered by the car and how it was overcome.
how are there going to come back?
Round trip. They will drive back to Malaysia as well. Please read before comment next time.
Drive back lor.
Since servicing is every 10,0000km, will their warranty be voided servicing at unauthorised dealers along the way?
Read properly: supported by Proton and its local partners in Thailand and Laos. Once enter into China, Geely own dealerships will be on standby.
Service at Geely 4S in China. You think Proton dare to void ? Dr Li Chun-Rong will probably personally sign off on this warranty lah.
Haiyah ! Even a Honda cupcai can reach the peak of Himalaya road and have travelled to London. If you do at normal speed and no long high speed run, most vehicle can survive a long journey.Unless you’re stupid to floor the board in all times, even a Toyota will kaput and dies !
Toyota never die one lah. That’s why many them so high RV. This X70 is the first time Proton use Geely tech in Malaysia. So reliability status still unknown yet until we give a few years.
Then you don’t get the point of these long voyages. It’s not to test capability, it’s to test durability.
Durability is if your car can clock 500,000km like a Toyota
Very cool. I wish the participants a safe and pleasant journey. 33 days is no small feat !
This is a chance to prove how reliable and tough the X70 really is. This could become a major marketing tool for Proton.
Recall that when the original Saga launched in 1985, Proton organised a nationwide tour ( Sagarama ) to show off the Saga’s reliability and toughness. The convoy climbed the highlands, penetrated thick jungles and survived extreme heat. ( Bear in mind, this was 1985, and Malaysia felt more like Vietnam back then. ) The Saga tour was a huge marketing success for Proton.
There’s also the story of the lone Satria GTi with the ‘Jalur Gemilang II’ number plate, which was driven all the way to Europe via South India and the Middle East. This happened in the early 2000s if I’m not mistaken.
Personally, I’ve always wanted to drive long-distance… but my car is too old and tired. The furthest I’ve ever driven is from KL to KLIA. hahaha
I would have jumped without hesitation if I owned an X70. It is very difficult to make arrangements to pass through all countries plus the logistics of the trip if I were to go on my own.
It would be a once of a lifetime trip for the participants. Enjoy it!
Heard each participant paid out of own pocket RM20k per person for the entire trip. Husband & wife already RM40k. On top of that, buy that X70.
Few maruah tercabar keyboard warriors kutuk “kenapa pi China? Kenapa tak jelajah Malaysia?” Halo, Proton tak sponsor, ni duit orang sendiri, suka hati dia lah.
interesting programme.. would love to join such event if organized by my car manufacturer
Susah la nak refund duit deposit pon lama…byak alasan pihak cawangan dengan hq tak sama…asik janji shj rrfund rm1000 jewe pon…dah la call hq masturah tk pernah nk dingkat kalau angkat call pon da nk pukul 4 nk blik la katakan…ambil tindakan la susah nk berurusan
not another kaki bodek in the making please….
Nothing better to do?