It’s no understatement that the Proton X50 is the most hyped up new car in Malaysia since perhaps the original Proton Saga itself. Question is, can it live up to all that hype? The short answer is, no. It’s far from perfect, with more than its fair share of issues and flaws.
So here’s our full, comprehensive review of the X50, covering all that’s good and bad on the hot B-segment SUV. Be warned, however, that this video is 60 minutes long. This being a Proton, naturally the public eye is on it like a hawk, wanting to know every single detail, every single fault, so we are going to be extra critical of it.
If you’ve been following this channel long enough, you’ll remember that we did the exact same thing with the current Perodua Myvi when it first came out three years ago. It’s just what we do here at paultan.org. That review, by the way, has garnered over 2.7 million views over three languages, so thank you again Malaysians for all the support.
We also have a shorter version of this review (25 minutes long) below, which is easier to digest – meant for casual viewers, it still covers all the necessary details. If you’re seriously looking to buy the X50, however, I’d recommend you take the time to watch the full version above, as it details the X50’s pros and (a lot of) cons more extensively.
I’d also like to personally apologise for being late with this review. It was my decision to hold off all car reviews on paultan.org during the CMCO, as I felt that us driving around through the travel restrictions went against the spirit of the CMCO. Car reviews can wait, I decided, and I wanted our team to set a good example of staying home, minimising driving out.
Now that all travel restrictions have been lifted, we can finally continue doing reviews again. I’m sorry again for the delays, and the team and I will do our very best to catch up with all the latest car reviews. Thanks for sticking with us, we’ll all get through this, together.
Do enjoy the video above, and let me know what you think of it and the Proton X50 in general in the comments section below. Thank you for watching, and Merry Christmas and happy holidays, everyone.
Congrats on your new ride, bro Friz! well i do have the same grievances with the super loud wind noise above 80kmh..
Slow is better than never. Well-done Hafiz bro
Regret buying civic turbo
Will you call yourself Civic ketam if you are the owner?
Is China car Halal ? Jakim must certify its type of leather and production process
Against the spirit of the CMCO? That kind of virtue signalling is just pretentious…..
Sure.
Gr8 review Haf bro, none of the advertisement spiel like bashers throw at u, with both pros and cons.
Kinda feel like the cons are just somethings inferior vs X70 and not really vs equal SUV peers, except the boot space. When talking about them it looks like alwiz 1 class above them. Bashers wun like that.
Being responsible, setting a good example and choosing to do so while foregoing potential revenue is never pretentious. Choosing to judge others is.
The pretension comes from the language used and it clearly shows they were trying to show that they are being responsible instead of just being responsible.
Cheapest compact SUV for daily Grab driver? Bring it on
Meanwhile there are other Grabs that using Inspira, Accord, Camry, HR-V, Vios, City..
As long as its comfortable and practical to meet Grab’s Passenger’s expectation.
Myvi too slow no power got to change to d3 after traffic light
10km/L now, if got PHEV like XC40 1.5TGDI -PHEV, maybe it’s Grab-Better.
There is a Geely Binyue PHEV anyway, incoming X50 PHEV..
Welcome China Cars.
1 China Continental, 1 International Standard
Game Changer for a Proton.
No more Proton Suprima, now a Proton X50.
Changed.
I saw 2 on the road on 2 separate occasions. The looks was good and it’s acceleration was really fast.
However, I saw white smoke coming out of the exhaust on one them. Has any other owners experienced this?
Morning? That is condensation in the exhaust system. It is normal.
Its from exhaust system noise insulation material. The smoke is quite clear when you floor the throttle pedal hard. The smoke will dissappear when your car reached 1000 KM and yes it is normal
Its just typical wear and tear aging, dont worry.
Saw silver X50, sorry to say so ugly
One glaring potential point that I noticed;
So you want to sell your mercedes?
Dude hafriz.. Mind to share your real experience on your benz coupe?
Only saving grace of that benz coupe… is fuel saving 1.5-litre enjin..sama Myvi 1.5 roadtax rm60 murahh giler.
Picking your X50 over the Merz coupe? That is one big confidence in the X50 there.
The driver side mirror issue is a critical problem. Not being able to adjust it all the way as per SAE recommendation is an actual hazard to other road users, especially on our roads where there are plenty drivers/riders that just love to weave in and out traffic carelessly.
Hope more is done to highlight this as a serious issue, it is NOT a minor problem. Proton must take steps into seriously remediating this problem.
SAE doesn’t have such a rule. Regardless our country follows UNECE and it too doesn’t have such a rule, or else most tour buses on the road are guilty of not able to adjust all the way. While it is an annoyance, it certainly isn’t a deal breaker nor a major issue.
If you are paranoid about it, you can still go for Flagship variant with lane monitoring capability.
Did you even Google it? Links from other car forums and sites are not allowed here, so can’t post any of it here. If you are not lazy, Google “SAE recommendation side mirror”, to educate yourself on the topic.
The blind spot monitoring and side cameras are no substitute as they can’t be adjusted to give you the visibility that is required from your side mirrors. So please don’t give stupid advice. Thanks.
RKG,
Your engish must be Pimary level anly bcoz you cud anly half understand wat was written about SAE and side mirrors.
SAE write a suggestion on how side mirrors can be adjusted.
It’s NOT a law in ANY country! I D I O T
Compact suv typical problem.
Buy X70 then kaodim
Even bro Hafriz Shah also didn’t managed to secure a x50 from Proton what other options or complaints we peasants have? Good review nicely Balanced the Bad and the good…
the main cons….the x70 isnt much more expensive, but vastly better in most aspects
Very good & through review. This’s what we need as a consumer. 1 hr is really not that long if we’re paying attention to your comments.
Video is excellent.
There are other simple and straightforward review too:
1. Tabulation of pros and cons
2. Pros – given by supporter, give chance
3. Cons – . Commented by critical antagonist, give chance
the judge is the potential buyer. Different buyer have different conclusion.
No need 1 sided influence.
Not a good review. Tha cons is only comparison between each model and not with its competitors. Maybe he purchased a flagship model. It seem that all spec all good.
Sorry to say this. The x50 look great on picture, website. But on actual it kinda lose out wow factor. Its quite an opposite of its brother, x70
Agree, the X70 has better road presence out there in the real world, while the X50 is so-so only.
Probably due to the bigger size and taller stance of the X70.
Proportion wise, the X70 appears more masculine and serious proper SUV, while the X50 looks more like a jacked up B-segment hatchback, evident in the tiny boot space.
I saw X50 on the road several times unfortunately the rear design is bored thought I find the front design handsome. Hope when it comes to FL Proton will redesign the rear lamp and also the chrome lining can be slimmer.
In fact this is really a nice car but overwhelming advertising makes people put extremely high hope but when in real some people like me feel disappointed. I like the design of X70 compare to X50. I believe after the launched of X50 the sales of X70 is not affected much as Proton target different taste of customers for both variants.
Should the Malaysian get Proton X70 1.5TGDI like Pakistani too?
X70 1.8TGDi 300Nm – RM89k/RM94k 2021 tax price
X70 1.5TGDi 255Nm – RM79k/RM84k 2021 tax price
Welcome 1.5TGDi Proton X70
Game Changer
It is better to retain 1.8TGDI for X70. The Pakistan version is because of the local rule is more benefit to have 1.5TGDI. The 1.8TGDI is not an old tech engine, only thing is X70 is considered heavy that cause the high fuel consumption but with DCT the improvement of fuel saving quite appearing compare to 6AT CBU version.
Hope next time Geely can comes with lighter weight chassis like Toyota TNGA, VW MQB platform which using high strength steel meanwhile reduce the weight. X70 is similar size like Tiguan but X70 was 200kg heavier. If reduce at least 100kg it will helps on power and fuel saving.
First time seeing Paul Tan review beat the heck out of Autogefuhl’s average 45 mins car reviews.
Great review btw Bro Hafriz…
Did you even Google it? Links from other car forums and sites are not allowed here, so can’t post any of it here. If you are not lazy, Google “SAE recommendation side mirror”, to educate yourself on the topic.
The blind spot monitoring and side cameras are no substitute as they can’t be adjusted to give you the visibility that is required from your side mirrors. So please don’t give stupid advice. Thanks.
The flimsy door handle here looks the same but is different from the one in the x70?
I like your honest review bro. Bravo. How proton engineer can miss out the flaws after thousands hours of test. Sunroof or moonroof not needed but they can give power tail gate as standard.
I believe they noticed the flaws but it’s not an easy fix. Wind noise issue might have to change side mirror and/or A-pillar design. It’s a design issue. It might be similar for other flaws too.
Thank you for mentioning the wind noise. It was unbearable.
Look wise x50 very gaya, but too many fancy features rather than a practical car. Nope not a suitable car to drive grab in kv, fuel consumption + maintenance can’t balance the revenue.
I am hoping for a compact SUV comparison review really, regardless of price point. We probably have been told the nth time that the Proton beats the current king of the hill Honda hands down, but it is a crowded field out there. Would love to, for example see how the Proton fares against say the new GLA or X1/Countryman (wasn’t that included in the Sepang preview) as well as its Japanese/Korean rivals.
poton x lima kupang
i noticed quite abit of engine vibration with noise as well, looking at the engine while idling with bonnet opened .One motoring journalist voiced his concern regarding the durability of the engine mount given the level of engine vibration ( 3 cyclinder ?) .
Has anyone read of long term test results eg China Geely’s ?
Price plays a very big role for Proton X50. With such affordable price and so many good product features. It is value for money.
Price plays a very big role for Proton X50. With such affordable price and so many good product features. It is value for money.
Dear Paul
Thank you for your detailed and timely review (as I am about to make a decision to buy X50). Your review has now persuaded me to buy a unit
I would like to ask one question though that has been brought to my attention i.e. that the X50 consumes a lot of engine oil ? Would U happen to know if this is true please ? Appreciate if U can share
kind regards
Philip