Global sales of the Geely Boyue hit one million units

The Geely Boyue has collectively sold over one million units globally since its introduction in late 2016, the Chinese carmaker formally announced recently. Nicknamed “the most beautiful SUV” by Chinese media and consumers when it was first introduced, the Boyue has since been launched in over 17 countries across the world, including Russia, as well as markets in Eastern Europe, South America, Africa and Southeast Asia.

In some of these markets, the Boyue is also known as the Atlas, Emgrand X7 Sport or Azkarra, but for us here in Malaysia, we know it as the Proton X70. Suffice to say, the SUV has been a hit with car buyers here since its launch back in December 2018, contributing to the Boyue’s global sales figure. Since then, the X70 has transitioned from being a fully-imported (CBU) model to becoming a locally-assembled (CKD) one, with the national carmaker’s Tanjung Malim plant responsible for assembly.

According to Geely, the Boyue was one of the first models in China to be equipped with intelligent connectivity features, allowing owners to interact remotely with the model and also prompt it with questions and commands using the activation phrase “Nihao Boyue.”

This feature was adapted for the Malaysian X70 following the signed collaboration between Geely and Proton in 2017, with the phrase “Hi Proton” being adopted. This is said to help Proton transform itself into becoming a technology and value-driven brand in Malaysia as well as the wider ASEAN market, the latter seeing exports of the model to countries such as Brunei and Indonesia.

Sales of the Boyue averaged 20,000 units per month for the past three and a half years since its debut, and in that time, the Boyue would be updated in 2019 to create the Boyue Pro (also known as the Azkarra), which added on a 48-volt mild hybrid system in conjunction with a 1.5 litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine. There’s even a pick-up version of the Boyue, known as the Farizon FX.

Earlier this year in August, the company celebrate the million-unit milestone by introduced a special edition Boyue that wore the Infinite Weave grille designed by Proton in place of the “expanding cosmos” grille.

Geely also noted that while the Boyue may have been born a domestic Chinese SUV, its success outside of China has made it a global powerhouse and the company is expecting great things for the future.

GALLERY: Geely Boyue one-million unit celebratory model

The post Global sales of the Geely Boyue hit one million units appeared first on Paul Tan's Automotive News.

from Paul Tan's Automotive News
Read The Rest:paultan...