It’s not Proton without a late-in-the-day press release, and so, here we are, with the national automaker announcing details on the dressed-up X70 sighted earlier on a transporter. As correctly identified, it’s the Proton X70 Sports Edition, and the SUV will be available for viewing – and booking – at selected showrooms this weekend ahead of the official price announcement for it on April 16. The live photos of the showroom example here are from the X70OCM (Proton X70 Owner Club Malaysia) Facebook page.
Limited to just 600 units and based on the Premium variant of the X70 MC3, the Sports Edition will be presented exclusively in Quartz Black. The colour has shaped up to be a regulation pick for the carmaker, what with the X50 (first in the Sports Edition, then the Black Edition, and now as a standard colour choice across the facelifted X50 range) and S70 MC1 (as standard) offering the shade.
Aside from the black dress, the SUV gets the expected accoutrements to give it a sportier disposition, and this means a specially-designed bodykit consisting of a front splitter, side skirts and rear spats, with the usual red contrast accents to be found. Black 19-inch alloy wheels and exclusive Sport Edition badging complete the exterior cosmetic job.
Inside, the sporty treatment continues with exclusive Sport Edition logos embroidered on the front seats, along with red contrast stitching on the seats, steering wheel and front armrest. Although it’s not exactly sporty, a boot tray is also bundled along with the edition. In all, the automaker says the total enhancements add an additional value of approximately RM6,000 to the vehicle.
No mechanical changes, and so you’ll find everything from the Premium version of the MC3 – which was introduced earlier this year – here, including the BHE15-EFZ 1.5 litre turbocharged and direct-injected four-pot that took over from the GEP3 three-cylinder unit. Like on the X50, the i-GT mill produces 181 PS at 5,500 rpm and 290 Nm of torque between 2,000 and 3,500 rpm.
All that remains to be revealed is the price of the Sports Edition. The X70 MC3 Premium was priced at RM112,800 when it was launched, that pricing inclusive of a RM7,000 launch rebate for it. As was the case with the X50 Sports Edition, this one should also be slightly pricier than the regulation variant it’s based on, but like the X50 SE, there should also be a rebate for it. We’ll find out next week.
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