The Geely Binyue – donor car of the Proton X50 – gets updated with a PHEV system.
It’s hard to fault the Proton X50 as a package, and there’s really no glaring feature that it’s missing at its awesome price point. But what if there was potential for even more at around the same price?
That’s what’s being shown with its donor car, the Geely Binyue. The latest 2022 revision comes as the Binyue 1.5T ePro in China, which indicates that it is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle with both a 1.5L three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine and an electric motor. If we’re not mistaken, this will be a similar system to what’s found on the Volvo XC40 T5 Recharge PHEV.
It’s still the same 1.5L engine that’s found under the hood of the current Proton X50, but both the power output and fuel efficiency have been enhanced greatly thanks to the presence of the PHEV system. Power goes from the present 177hp to 255hp and torque goes up from the current 255Nm to 415Nm! Moreover, Geely claims that this Binyue’s fuel consumption is as low as 83km/l! The Binyue ePro can be driven on pure electric power for up to 85km when the conditions are right. The charging port is located on the front left fender, but it is not shown in the rendered images.
The same Volvo-derived 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is still present here, sending power to the front wheels. Just as before, the rear suspension still uses a torsion beam set-up.
On the outside, it essentially looks like the recently facelifted Binyue save for the addition of a “PHEV” badge at the rear. This new look distinguishes it from the current Proton X50 by quite a bit. It has some new colour options called Storm Blue, Hot Flame Red and Lightning White, as well as a sporty, 2-tone paint finish, plenty of contrasting black panels, a huge spoiler and large 18″ alloys.
Inside, the PHEV version will have some unique animations on its digital instrument cluster but will otherwise be quite similar to the standard petrol model in full spec. Expect power-adjustable driver seat (6-way), a PM2.5 air purification system with a negative ion generator and mixed leather-fabric upholstery. Just like other facelifted Binyue models, a 12.3″ infotainment screen is present with the latest version of GKUI. A full 3D camera, DVR, and all the latest Advanced Driver Assist systems will be present as they currently are.
