The Proton X50 is easily one of the most anticipated new cars in recent times, and with over 30,000 bookings placed for the B-segment SUV, the waiting time for the X50 is (unsurprisingly) very long. I myself have waited over six months for the Flagship model now, so after putting the SUV through its paces for a few days, is it really worth the wait?
Absolutely. If anything, I’m even more excited to take delivery of my X50 when – or if, at this point – it finally comes. Really, it’s simply a fantastic SUV for the money. Watch our review below if you’re not quite convinced!
In this video review, I take a look at the X50’s overall design, interior, and of course, driving experience. In these three regards, the X50 easily surpasses the standard set by other B-segment SUVs. In fact, it’s no exaggeration to say that the X50 can even rival C-segment cars in terms of refinement, ride quality, and even NVH.
That being said, the X50 does have its fair share of shortcomings. While its NVH is impressive, there’s a very noticeable wind noise coming from the A-pillars once I hit around 80kmph. The faster I go from this point onwards – especially at the national speed limit – it’s very hard to ignore the wind noise; you can hear for yourself in the video review.
Beyond that, there’s no denying that the X50 is a very fast SUV. This flagship unit is equipped with a 1.5L TGDi three-cylinder engine that outputs 177PS and 255Nm of torque. These are impressive figures, especially for a car at this price point (RM103,300 for the Flagship trim). Even when I’m going at about 90kmph, the X50 can still surge forward with quite a bit of pull if I floor the accelerator pedal.
Another feature of the X50 that I absolutely love is Intelligent Cruise Control (ICC), which is a part of the SUV’s Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS). With the feature activated, the X50 can steer itself, accelerate, and even apply the brakes as and when necessary. In fact, when I first got the SUV, I intentionally took a road with heavy traffic to see how the ICC would fare – suffice to say I was very impressed.
These are just some aspects of the Proton X50 that I discuss at length in the video review. I’ll be honest: it’s frustrating to wait so long for the SUV, but only because I cannot wait to get back in the driver’s seat of the X50. Hopefully, Proton will be able to deliver even more units of the highly anticipated SUV to eager customers soon, including myself.