Geely Philippines has added a sedan to its line-up with the launch of the fourth-generation Emgrand, which becomes the company’s fourth introduction after three SUVs, namely the Azkarra, Coolray and Okavango. The Emgrand (codenamed SS11) is available in two variants for now, including the mid-range Comfort that is priced at 798,000 Philippine pesos and the range-topping Premium at PHP 908,000. There’s also a base S variant coming in the future, but there’s no pricing for that just yet. The Geely sedan will compete against other offerings in the B-segment like the Toyota Vios and Honda City in the country.
In terms of dimensions, the Emgrand now
measures 4,638 mm long, 1,820 mm wide, 1,460 mm tall and has a wheelbase that
spans 2,650 mm. By comparison, the Honda City is 4,553 mm long (-85 mm), 1,748
mm wide (-72 mm), 1,467 mm tall (+7 mm), with a wheelbase of 2,600 (-50 mm).
The Vios is even smaller at 4,425 mm (-213 mm), 1,730 mm wide (-90 mm), 1,475
mm tall (+15 mm) and packing a wheelbase of 2,550 mm (-100 mm) – following
Philippine spec sheets.
The Emgrand’s bold look features a
“straight waterfall energy sound string” front grille with vertical slats,
which is reminiscent of what you’ll see on the latest Borui and Xingyue L.
Redesigned headlamps flank said grille, accompanied by triangular-shaped fog
lamp sections in the corners of the front bumper. The three-box profile is
uncomplicated with a single character line prominently seen running above the
door handles and linking the front and rear lighting units. For some visual
flair, the window line does kick up a little near the C-pillars. As for the rear,
it gets full-width taillights featuring a light bar and scripted time piece
linking the clusters, which themselves have a distinctive light signature. A
diffuser-like element occupies the lower apron and is joined by a long chrome
strip, faux outlets and slim reflectors.
Moving inside, you’ll find a rather
minimalistic dashboard with a slatted insert spanning its entire width and with
integrated air vents. This acts as a divider between the standard eight-inch
infotainment touchscreen screen and air-conditioning controls, while the centre
console houses the gear lever and electronic parking brake (Comfort and Premium
only). In terms of equipment, the S gets projected halogen headlamps, LED DRLs,
powered side mirrors, 15-inch steel wheels (with 195/65 profile tyres), a black
interior, two speakers, manually-operated front seats, fabric upholstery,
automatic air-conditioning with rear vents, a 3.5-inch multi-info instrument
display, traction and stability control, ABS with EBD, hill start assist, a tyre
pressure monitoring system and ISOFIX child seat anchors
The Comfort improves upon the S by gaining
17-inch alloy wheels (with 205/50 profile tyres), automatic projector LED
headlamps, two more speakers, more adjustability for the driver’s seat (still manual),
a reverse camera, rear parking sensors, cruise control and speed-sensing
automatic central locking. The range-topping Premium gets the same kit as the
Comfort, but adds on defroster function for the side mirrors, hands-free boot
release, a white and blue interior theme, two more speakers (for a total of
six), a six-way powered driver’s seat, leatherette and suede upholstery, a
sunroof, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, plus more airbags (side and
curtain).
Regardless of the variant chosen, the
Emgrand in the Philippines only comes with a JLC-4G15B 1.5 litre
naturally-aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine that has been detuned to make
102 PS at 5,600 rpm and 142 Nm of torque from 4,400 to 4,800 rpm. The
China-spec Emgrand serves up 114 PS and 147 Nm, by comparison. The
mill drives the front wheels through a five-speed manual in the S variant,
while the Comfort and Premium have a CVT with eight virtual speeds instead. The
top two options also have three drives modes available (Eco, Comfort and Sport)
as well as disc brakes (ventilated front, solid rear) all around – the S gets
front ventilated discs and rear drums. Front MacPherson struts and a rear
torsion beam are standard for all variants.
