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By now, I hope you’ve read our review of the new Proton S70 sedan – if you haven’t, you can do so here – and it’s safe to say the car has earned Gerard’s seal of approval. But there’s a lingering question as the national carmaker continues to lean on its C-segment-sedan-at-B-segment-prices messaging, and that’s the use of a relatively rudimentary torsion beam for its rear suspension.
You see, the line between the B- and C-segments is pretty blur as it stands, particular as cars in the former camp grow in both size and sophistication. The key delineation has always been the rear suspension, with the larger car tending to make use of an independent multilink setup – most notably the local sales leaders, the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla.
So why doesn’t the so-called “C-segment” S70 have it? According to product specialist Gary Lee at the S70 media drive Q&A session, the answer is as always down to cost. “If the base car [uses a] torsion beam, and we change it due to a market request, is there any additional volume or price premium we can get, because we have to invest some money to change the body? Sad to say, this is always the question,” he said.
The former R3 man was quick to praise the company’s prowess in ride and handling tuning – this, and not the basic suspension layout, is what he believes will make the difference in the way the S70 drives. “From the parameters provided by the base car, it did meet our requir..

Setakat ini kita sudah tahu Perodua sedang membangunkan Bezza generasi kedua dan ramai yang tidak sabar untuk mengetahui bagaimana rupanya. Setakat ini masih belum ada gambar rasmi daripada Perodua tetapi orang luar sudah mula membuat […]
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Ever since Proton and Geely inked a strategic partnership back in 2017, the company’s range of all-new models have all been SUVs derived from existing Geely models. In keeping with the SUV trend, first came the X70, then the X50 and X90, all of which have helped the carmaker pad its bottom line with strong sales figures and shake up the market by putting established nameplates on notice.
For Proton’s next trick to shake things up, it launched the S70 in November 2023, which is significant as the carmaker announces its return to the C-segment sedan space. The value proposition is an attractive one. With a price range from RM73,800 to RM94,800 (OTR without insurance) across four variants, the S70 slightly undercuts popular cars such as the Honda City and Toyota Vios while promising a similar or greater feature set.
Does the S70 deliver enough to make sedan buyers with a budget of under RM100,000 want to consider it? Judging by the number of bookings Proton have received since its launch, this certainly appears to be case, even if deliveries are only now trickling out.
So, should you join the bandwagon? Well, if you’re still uncertain and want to know more about the S70, here’s our first impressions after a short trip to Penang with the top-of-the-line Flagship X variant. A separate review where we have more time with the car is coming soon, but for now, here’s what we think of Proton’s all-new sedan.
Size and segment confusion
The whole debate on whe..

Proton telah mengumumkan rekod jualan bagi Januari 2024 mencecah 12,822 unit, menjadikannya ia sebagai bulan permulaan terbaik sejak tahun 2013. Angka berkenaan mewakili 1.3% kenaikan berbanding jualan pada Disember 2023 dan naik 10.3% dari tempoh […]
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Proton mendedahkan pada bulan pertama 2024 ini, 1,442 unit S70 telah diserahkan kepada pelanggan. Tempahan pula kini mencecah lebih 8,000 unit, dan menurut Proton, ia “menunjukkan maklum balas kuat dan positif daripada pelanggan.” Jumlah ini […]
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Proton has announced that it sold 12,882 units (domestic and export) in January, making last month its best start to a year since 2013. The numbers represent a 1.3% improvement in volume from that of December 2023 and a 10.3% increase from the same period last year.
The numbers are good enough to maintain its second-place ranking in overall sales. As for market share, the company calculates it to be at 19.5%, which is 3.3% higher compared to the previous month, despite the total-industry-volume (TIV) for January – estimated at 66,134 units – being 15.6% lower than December.
In terms of model specific numbers, it is again no surprise to find the Saga leading the way for the national automaker, with the 6,129 units sold making for almost half the total accomplished by the company in January. The second-best seller was the X50, which shifted to the tune of 2,002 units, continuing its run as the top-selling B-segment SUV locally.
The third-best performer for Proton last month was the Persona, with 1,846 units sold. Meanwhile, the new S70 sedan took fourth spot, with 1,442 units shifted in January as series production deliveries got underway. With 8,000 orders, expect it to continue climbing up the internal rankings in the next few months. The model also made its way to its first export market last month, with 15 units delivered to Brunei ahead of the car’s official launch there sometime this month.
Elsewhere, sales of the Iriz increased by 7% compared to the previous ..

Proton has revealed that it delivered 1,442 units of the S70 sedan in January 2024. The new release has an order book of over 8,000 names now, which Proton says “reflects the strong and positive response it has received from eager customers”.
The total also includes 15 units exported to Brunei, which once again will be the first export market for a new Proton. The first batch was delivered ahead of the S70’s official launch in the kingdom later this month.
The S70 was launched on November 28 last year, but so far, we’ve hardly seen any on the road. Indeed, Proton’s 2023 sales performance announcement revealed that only 109 units of the S70 were registered in 2023, presumably as test drive units for dealerships. It looks like customer deliveries are truly starting now.
We posed this ‘lag’ question to Proton at the recent S70 media drive and deputy CEO Roslan Abdullah revealed two reasons in the delay of customer deliveries. One is to ensure quality, two is to have the cars registered in 2024 for resale value reasons. There are two aspects to the former – parts and process.

“Production is not slow, but what we’re maintaining is ensuring the quality, because this is a new model for us, and we have to ensure parts quality maturity, as well as our process – assembly maturity. The stock is being produced, but we’re checking thoroughly to ensure that we don’t face the similar problems as when we were so eager to deliver the car ..

Menjadi persoalan yang sentiasa akan membayangi produk baru Proton adalah: “Bila ciri Apple CarPlay dan Android Auto (AACP) akan dihadirkan untuk kereta mereka?” Sebelum ini, memang ada pengesahan bahawa ciri berkenaan akan diperkenalkan, tetapi bila? […]
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