Here’s another appearance of what appears
to be the forthcoming Proton X50, here seen partly in view behind the larger
X70 positioned in front of it. The forthcoming B-segment SUV will be based on
the Geely Binyue that was launched in China in 2018, and this latest teaser has
surfaced from the Facebook page of a Proton dealer in Bintulu.
Official confirmation has yet to come from
Proton, though it appears that the X50 is on track for launch in the third or
fourth quarter of this year. Last August, we reported that AmInvestment
indicated an October 2020 arrival for the X50, which has been tipped to come to
market as a CKD model.
While social media is a vast and often,
quick source of information, not everything that appears on one’s feed checks
out. Rumours have ranged from the upcoming compact SUV set for launch in July,
to a starting price from as low as RM 50,000, which was a sum derived from a
direct conversion of pricing for a base model sold in China. One has proven
false, while the other is still far-fetched.
Chatter is harmless until money starts
changing hands, at which point the security of your hard-earned is no longer
assured. Though some dealers and agents have been rumoured to have asked for
early booking fees for a guaranteed slot at the front of the customer queue, we
advise buyers not to put money down until an official announcement from Proton
itself has stated that the order books are, in fact, opened. They haven’t.
For example, the pre-launch campaign for
the X70 in 2018 saw the company make an official announcement for when the
order books would be open, and only then would any bookings be valid. The case
remains the same for this upcoming X50, and until it is official, there’s no
queue to beat.
