Proton has confirmed that its first production EV, the Proton e.MAS 7 will be launched at the end of this year. In the meantime, the national automaker is busy putting the EV through its paces across the country and don’t be surprised if you encounter camouflaged test cars on the road just like what we experienced in Bukit Bintang last month.
As noted in our previous reports, Proton insists that the e.MAS 7 is not a mere rebadge of the Geely Galaxy E5. Even though both models came from the same development project, the company pointed out that e.MAS 7 is being tuned for Malaysian roads which is why the EV is undergoing extensive tests throughout Peninsular Malaysia.
In a rather interesting approach, Proton has shed some light on the tests that the e.MAS 7 is going through at the moment. The company has also revealed that six pre-production e.MAS 7 are involved in the local testing phase.
Proton e.MAS 7 is going through a long list of tests
Among the tests that the EV is facing at the moment are the Durability Adaptive Testing (DAT) simulations which replicated Malaysia’s road environment and traffic patterns. e.MAS 7’s Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) is also being put to the test in all sorts of scenarios including shopping mall parking lots, road forks, and elevated roads.
The list continues with Electrical Road Testing (ERT) which involves a total travel distance of 10,000km in order to evaluate the integration of all electronic functions within the new EV. There is also the 100,000km Quality Reliability Test (QRT) that is going to benchmark e.MAS 7’s acceleration, braking performances, and power consumption.
To test the EV’s connectivity, Proton has brought the e.MAS 7 through rural and mountainous routes as well as train stations. It will also soon be put through ASEAN NCAP accreditation as well.
Proton e.MAS 7 already edges Geely Galaxy E5 in flood test
In what seems to be another effort to further show the difference between both models, Proton said that the e.MAS 7 has an advantage over the Galaxy E5 when it comes to water-wading capability.
Back in July, the EV successfully went through water wading tests at a depth of 400mm (0.4m) that is meant to simulate flood. Despite the impressive claim, Proton did not provide any photos or videos of the test to the media though.
In case you are wondering what a 400mm water-wading test looks like, here’s a clip from India:
Interestingly enough, Proton mentioned in its press notes that it discovered one issue during e.MAS 7’s durability tests so far. The company didn’t provide any details but said the issue has since been rectified.
Enhancements and localisation efforts are ongoing as well
In addition to putting the e.MAS 7 through tonnes of tests, Proton is also in the midst of testing and fine-tuning the EV’s software. This includes making sure that Malaysian road maps are being shown accurately on the in-car navigation and optimising the frequency capture for local radio stations.
Key components of the e.MAS 7’s software is being localised as well. This includes the language for the Digital Head Unit (DHU) which will be in Malaysian English and follow local context instead of having generic translations.
Not to forget, Proton said that it has requested and implemented 49 additional processes and features from Geely with some of them being unique to e.MAS 7. With such extensive testing and fine-tuning, let’s see what the outcome is going to be like when e.MAS 7 is officially launched into the market this coming December.
