The Geely Preface sedan has been collecting accolades in its home market of China, the latest being the prestigious 2021 China Car of the Year title at the 2020 Guangzhou Auto Show that was held recently.
In addition to that, Preface’s first FOTA (Firmware Over the Air) update was showcased to the public for the first time.
This is an industry first for an internal combustion engine (ICE) powered vehicle, as FOTA allows the Preface to be constantly improved remotely with incremental updates to its in-car software, vehicle power, driving dynamics, assisted driving features, and other integrated systems.
Through FOTA updates, users can enjoy the benefit of having the ‘new car experience’ every time they open the car door.
The award, which was presided over by 41 distinguished automotive journalists and experts who make up the jury of the Chinese automotive industry’s “fairest and most authoritative annual car award”, announced that the Geely Preface has been selected to be the best new model overall to be launched in China over the course of 2020.
That being said, it is worth noting that the yet-to-be-launched Maserati MC20 sports car has also bagged an award in the performance car category of this award. So make of that what you will about the results.
Along with the most ‘Car of the Year’ award, the panel voted on a total of six different awards including SUV of the year, Green Car of the year, Performance Car of the year, Design of the year, and Corporate CSR.
This Preface is the first CMA-based sedan from Geely Auto, which was first unveiled as a concept in 2019 at the Shanghai Auto Show. Following that, the production model was launched in late 2020 after the Beijing Auto Show.
The Preface sedan marks Geely Auto’s entry into its Innovative Geely 4.0 era, whereby all fourth-generation Geely vehicles are based on advanced modular architectures that allow for leading levels of connectivity, intelligence, and quality that includes safety as a standard.
The vehicle has begun sales across China in October 2020 with global sales planned for a future date.
Here in Malaysia, however, some are already hoping to see a rebadged version of the Preface arrive in Proton dealerships as the all-new Proton Perdana.
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