Geely Boyue X Debuts in China Featuring Energy Storm Design

There is no doubt that Geely is out to push the way they design cars forward. They’re paving the way for Chinese automakers in the same manner that Kia Motors successfully revamped the image of Korean cars. Instead of producing cars that are cheaper, they want to build cars that customers actually want to be seen in.

If the latest design to come out of Hangzhou -the new version of the Boyue- is anything to go by, then that’s exactly where Geely is headed. Geely has just revealed the Boyue X, but what has us picking up our jaws from the floor is the front end. Instead of the Expanding Cosmos look that Geely has been using in their vehicles, the Boyue X is using a new “Energy Storm” design language that we first saw in the Geely Vision Starburst concept car a few months ago.

The new-look is fronted by that drastically altered front aero bumper that uses a starbust grille in black. Instead of chrome, the rectangular grille is flanked by gray trim pieces that follow the outline of the foglamp cutouts. If anything, the new look is quite bold and somewhat reminiscent of the Dynamic Shield from Mitsubishi Motors.

The interior has likewise been revised, but more on using new color combinations rather than a full redesign of sorts. Black and light gray seem to be the order of the day for the Boyue X.

As for engines, the Boyue Pro is still available with a 1.8 litre turbocharged and direct-injected four-cylinder petrol engine (China National 6B emissions compliant), making 184 PS and 300 Nm of torque. A smaller 1.5 litre three-cylinder powerplant (shared with the Binyue) is available as well, delivering 174 hp and 255 Nm. A seven-speed wet dual-clutch transmission is standard for the 1.8L, while the three-pot gets an Aisin-sourced six-speed automatic instead.

The reveal is significant because the Boyue is effectively the Chinese market name for the Azkarra, a model that has been in the Philippine market since early 2020. In Malaysia, the Azkarra/Boyue is marketed as the Proton X70 because Geely owns Proton.

What we’re unsure of right now is whether the look of the Boyue X will be carried over to the Azkarra as the next facelift of the vehicle. It is possible that this is just a special model that is meant to be the sport variant of the range with an exclusive look in the same way that, say, the Nissan Navara has the Pro 4X model.

But what we can be certain of is that Geely is aiming to push customer expectations when it comes to design, just like Kia.