Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is surely the oldest practicing car guy in Malaysia? The fourth and seventh prime minister’s love for automobiles and driving himself is well documented, and he’s still doing it today, at 99 years old. Yes, the man will be a century old next year and he’s still sharp. Here, the ‘father of Proton’ is pictured driving the marque’s latest sedan, the S70.
What also caught our eye is the spec of this S70, which doesn’t match any of the four variants available in showrooms – Executive, Premium, Flagship and Flagship X. Based on the leatherette upholstery, 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system and analogue meter panel, this ought to be the Premium.
However, the car also comes with a sunroof, which is exclusive to the Flagship X. The range-topping X is basically the Flagship with the addition of a sunroof and front dashcam. Is this a one-of-a-kind S70 custom made for Tun? Not surprising, as the statesman is the founder of Proton and was the carmaker’s chairman until 2016.
Flagship cabin on the left, smaller screen/analogue meter of the Premium on the right
Launched in November last year, the S70 is based on the Geely Emgrand, which shares the X50’s BMA platform. It’s a touch larger than the B-segment Honda City, but Proton calls the S70 a C-segment sedan and has given it a 1.5-litre turbo engine.
That’s the 1.5-litre port-injected three-cylinder engine that powers the X50 Standard to Premium (not the 177 PS/255 Nm 1.5L TGDi unit in the X50 Flagship and X70 MC). The 150 PS/226 Nm 1.5L MPI unit is paired to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic – so the difference between the RM74k Executive and the RM95k Flagship X boils down to kit – and you can compare the specs here.
Also check out our comprehensive review of the S70 below, as well as galleries of all the variants.
GALLERY: Proton S70 1.5T Flagship X
GALLERY: Proton S70 1.5T Flagship
GALLERY: Proton S70 1.5T Premium
GALLERY: Proton S70 1.5T Executive
The post Tun Dr Mahathir drives a Proton S70 with unique specs, custom made for the 99-year old ‘car guy’? appeared first on Paul Tan’s Automotive News.
