Aside from the new eMas 7 Premium Plus and CKD locally-assembled eMas 5, Proton has also showcased its FutureMotion HEV hybrid technology at the Kuala Lumpur International Mobility Show (KLIMS). This is a version of Geely’s i-HEV powertrain, which debuted in China earlier this year.
The setup is essentially that of the eMas 7 PHEV, except shorn of its large 18.4/29.8 kWh Aegis short blade LFP battery. This is led by a 1.5 litre BHE15 four-cylinder engine, with the one shown here being the naturally-aspirated version.
Proton calls this a dedicated hybrid engine (DHE), closer in design to the eMas 7 PHEV’s mill instead of the i-GT engine used in the turbo X50 and NA Saga. It uses a slightly modified block and runs on an Atkinson cycle full-time, rather than only in certain conditions as per the other cars, and is fitted with single instead of dual VVT.
The engine also adopts an electrically-powered alternator and air-con compressor, joining the electric water pump the Saga already comes with and eliminating the auxiliary belt. The exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) system is different from one in the i-GT mills as well.
The only model currently on sale with this powertrain is the Geely Preface i-HEV, which uses a 111 PS/136 Nm version of the engine – with a record thermal efficiency of 48.41% – and a 190 PS/240 Nm motor housed within the 11-in-1, single-speed dedicated hybrid transmission (DHT).
As the eMas 7 PHEV proved, however, this DHT could easily be mated to the less powerful 99 PS/125 Nm BHE15-DFN mill, which has a thermal efficiency of just 46.5%. The electric motor is also available in a less powerful 163 PS/210 Nm tune, as used in the Geely Galaxy Starshine 6/Emgrand EM-i.
This is important because Proton has already confirmed that it will use a “DHT120” for a yet-to-be-launched SUV, with the number standing for the motor’s output in kW – this conveniently converts to 163 PS. The company’s deputy CEO Abdul Rashid Musa said during his KLIMS presentation that the powertrain is slated to debut in a new model very soon, with the engine and DHT set to be assembled in house in Tanjung Malim.
We can think of two separate possible models. The first is a rebadged version of the fifth-generation Geely Emgrand, which will soon receive the i-HEV powertrain in China. We don’t expect this to arrive here within the next couple of years, however, as such a vehicle would at least partially replace the S70 – and given that the sedan has only recently been refreshed, it will likely soldier on for a while yet.
The much more likely option would be the second model built on the Advanced Modular Architecture (AMA02), expected to be a Perodua Ativa-rivalling A-segment SUV. The car, widely tipped to be called the Saga Cross, will enter production at the end of the year. Excited? Let us know in the comments.
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