Sometime earlier today Proton revealed to the automotive media three images of the upcoming 2019 Proton Persona Facelift. This, is like the recent reveal of the Iriz Facelift, which is scheduled to be launched shortly. This is the first major facelift for the Persona and also the second car to receive a scheduled facelift since the Geely-Proton collaboration first started in 2017.
Lets go through what we can see from the images provided as well as what Proton has stated about them.
In terms of the exterior, we can see Proton’s new design cues on this Persona. At the front, the facelifted Persona gets a new grille with the “Ethereal Bow” design and the "Infinite Weave" pattern that debuted on the Proton X70. There are new front and rear bumpers too, as with most facelifts. The front bumpers sport new LED daytime running lamps (DRL) are housed over a honeycomb mesh backing while a bumper grille with horizontal trim bits fill up the middle.
At the rear, we see the 'PROTON' spelt out on the trunk lid trim. This is like the upcoming Iriz as well as how it was first seen on the X70 SUV. No more Proton 'Thundercats' logo there. The redesign at the rear features a new bumper with the black lower trim looking a little better styled than before. There is also a small bootlid spoiler too, which is a nice sporty touch to the compact sedan. The 'Persona' badge on the bootlid also receives a new bolder and more flowing typeface.
Proton has finished off the exterior styling with new 15-inch aluminium alloy wheel design and a shark fin antenna.
The B-Segment sedan gets the new Geely-Proton look in some ways. It still has that cabin-forward look and is still slightly ungainly in terms of its overall stance. Lots of space in terms of packaging but it does look awkward from certain angles. The front end seems a little more busy with the extra design cues and many intertwining lines. But this is much like the X70 and it somehow does make the car seem a little more classy.
As for the rear, the image provided does not show whether the redesign has made the compact sedan look less tall and narrow. The Persona when viewed from the back head on tends to have that tall, narrow look to it. The redesign seems to have not done much in terms of changing this impression I have of the rear but the car looks classier than before at the rear.
In terms of the alloy wheels, they look decent enough. I suppose in terms of a facelift, this is pretty extensive in terms of getting the Persona to look more in tandem with the X70. However, I do note that the upcoming Proton Iriz Facelift (above and below) does not have the 'Infinite Weave' pattern on its front grille, only the 'Bow'. That seems to have a cleaner looking front end as there are no honeycombs or weave patterns to go with the horizontal lined lower grille in the front bumper.
The rear of the Iriz with the PROTON name spelled out is pretty much similar to this Persona but looks nicer with the black thick strip instead of the body coloured one you see here. I suppose the Persona is targeted at a less youthful, more family oriented driver.
As for the interior, the image shows that the main change is the infotainment system. Proton has touted the Persona facelift as an intelligent family car. The Persona facelift will be equipped with a colour touch screen for access to connectivity options as well as voice command functions. This is a development of the system used on the Proton X70 and it was developed by PROTON and ECARX. According to Proton, the Persona will be the first B-segment family sedan to offer such an advanced system to Malaysian car buyers shopping for a new car in its price range.
More information on the infotainment system and the technical specifications of the Proton Persona will be released closer to the launch date.
As with the upcoming Iriz facelift, the interior changes are most likely limited to the infotainment system which will offer voice command functions. Proton intends to compete by making their cars well equipped in terms of connectivity.
Personally, what Proton are doing makes sense as the Persona and the Iriz are only halfway through their life-cycle. It is most cost effective to keep on using the current engine and transmission options as changing these components are expensive. Engine and transmissions require new crash testing and that would cost millions. So to make the best out of these current platforms, Proton has decided to upgrade its looks and also the most important item that will keep the occupants from being bored, the infotainment system.
I predict that this facelift will enable the Persona to soldier on for a good four years where there will be ample time for Geely, and Proton to rework an existing Geely sedan and hatchback to be the next B segment cars for Proton. It also makes sense as Proton will be pushing hard into the growing SUV market with their next new car said to be a compact SUV which will sit beneath the X70. With that coming in later, most likely in 2020 Proton still needs to ensure that their current line-up meets the expectation of their Malaysian customers.
You can read our test drive of the 2016 Proton Persona 1.6 HERE. We drove it during its media drive to Kuantan and found it to be quite a good handling car.
You can read our test drive of the 2016 Proton Persona 1.6 HERE. We drove it during its media drive to Kuantan and found it to be quite a good handling car.
The original 2nd Generation Persona...compare with the facelift below.
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