Proton S70

The Proton S70 is a C-segment compact sedan produced by Malaysia's automotive company Proton in collaboration with Geely Auto. The vehicle was previewed on 20 November 2023, as it is marked the first sedan car produced by Proton following the 49.9% share acquisition by Geely in 2017. The S70 is marked as a successor to the Proton Prevé.

Design and engineering

Set to be the first sedan from Proton and Geely partnership, the S70 is based on 4th-generation Geely Emgrand. It was developed on B-Segment Modular Architecture (BMA) platform developed by Geely. Proton has re-engineered the Emgrand with 260,000 man-hours R&D design engineer and has developed 453 new parts with the involvement of 283 local suppliers for the S70. The S70 has 145 knocked down (KD) parts and 24 in-house Proton developed parts.

Design

The exterior design is similar from the donor car. It has coefficient drag of 0.27 cd, making it one of the lowest drag coefficient in Malaysia's c-segment market. The most striking element is the introduction of LED rear taillight-bar on its back which extend to the width of the car. Its rhythmic rear tail light bar for an attractive futuristic look and appear to be naturally ‘smoked’ even in daylight. One notable difference is the S70's front grille, which combines the ‘Infinite Weave’ and ‘Ethereal Bow’ with Proton's new round tiger badge in the middle of the grille. It also comes with 17-inch two-tone alloys wheel unlike the Emgrand (for Flagship and Flagship X variants), while 16-inch two-tone alloys wheel were offered for the Executive and Premium variant.

The S70 has leatherette seat tailored for comfort (for Premium, Flagship and Flagship X variants), while fabric seats are offered for the Executive variant. The Flagship and Flagship X variants cockpit has dual screen setup (10.3-inch meter, 12.3-inch infotainment with Hi Proton), wireless charger, powered driver's seat and rear air vent, while Executive and Premium variant cockpit offers 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment unit and standard analog meter panel.

Engine

The engine is based on Volvo's GEP3 engine which is similar to Proton X70, X90 and X50. Proton's manufactured GEP3 engine in Tanjung Malim plant is used as the main powerhouse and tuned into 1.5-litre port-injected turbocharged engine paired with 7-speed dual clutch transmission, producing 150 PS (110kW; 148hp) @ 5,500 rpm.

Launch

The first generation Proton S70 was unveiled at Proton's Tanjong Malim, Perak plant and began production on 1 November 2023. The S70 was launched on 28 November 2023, with four variants are offered in Executive, Premium, Flagship and Flagship X. At launch, the S70 was publicly benchmarked against the Honda City and Toyota Vios, suggesting the S70 price range in B-Segment car price.

Etymology

The "-70" suffix is correlated to it being a C-segment vehicle, similar to the Proton X70 despite being based on a B-segment Modular Architecture (BMA) platform which would entail a "-50" suffix. The Proton S70 was thought to be named S50 several months before being unveiled due to it being based after the B-segment Geely Emgrand.

Powertrain

The S70 comes with 1.5-litre port-injected three-cylinder unit with turbocharger coded JLH-3G15T paired with a 7-speed DCT, it is the same engine used on the Proton X50. In comparison, the fourth generation Geely Emgrand which the S70 is based on, only uses a 1.5-litre four-cylinder naturally aspirated engine unit coded JLC-4G15B paired with a CVT or a 5-speed manual transmission.

Safety

Unlike the Emgrand, the S70 has 6 SRS airbags, 13 active safety system paired with 12 sensors. The comprehensive ADAS suite, which are offered in the Flagship and Flagship X variant, includes Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Forward Collision Warning (FCW), Rear Collision Warning (RCW), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Stop & Go, Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Lane Departure Prevention (LDP), Lane Centering Control, Traffic Sign Information (TSI), Intelligent High Beam Control (IHBC), Lane Change Assist (LCA), Door Opening Warning and Rear Cross Traffic Alert. The Flagship and Flagship X variant also comes with Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) and 360-degree camera with 3D display.

The Premium and Executive variant offers only Rear Collision Warning, Lane Change Assist, Door Opening Warning and Rear Cross Traffic Alert as standard ADAS.

Proton S70 has been awarded a 5-star safety rating by ASEAN NCAP in October 2023.

Sales

References

{{Proton vehicles

Proton vehicles
Cars introduced in 2023
Sedans
Compact cars