2024 Geely GX3 Pro Comfort Review | Philkotse Philippines

The subcompact crossover segment in the Philippines is continuously growing its popularity. A testament to this is the success shown by the Toyota Raize, which took the segment by storm as it clinched the seventh spot in the best-selling vehicles in the Philippines last 2022. The Raize’s sales performance is notable as it managed to be among the top-selling cars in the local market in just 10 months.

Geely GX3 Pro - A Viable Alternative Subcompact Crossover? | Philkotse Reviews

This showed that there’s a demand for a five-seater subcompact crossover in the country, and Geely Philippines is among the car brands that want to take advantage of it. Enter the GX3 Pro, which is Geely’s challenger up against the likes of the Raize, MG ZS, Kia Stonic, and Volkswagen T-Cross, among others.

That said, does the GX3 Pro have what it takes to take on its segment rivals? We tested the top-spec GX3 Pro Comfort variant to answer that question. Here’s Philkotse’s 2024 Geely GX3 Pro Comfort review.

The GX3 Pro’s exterior doesn’t look like the usual Geely cars that the local market has grown accustomed to. It looks simpler and a bit outdated as compared to the design language seen on other Geely cars in the Philippines such as the Coolray, Emgrand, Okavango, and Azkarra.

Despite that, the GX3 Pro is not that dull even though it has a tad less swag compared to its Geely siblings. The way I see it, the GX3 Pro’s exterior is not pretentious and it’s a subcompact crossover that prefers to give a lowkey demeanor.

The GX3 Pro comes with a simple exterior

The front end comes with a distinctive appeal but I think that Geely could have done a better job in regards to the vehicle’s overall styling. The GX3 Pro’s fascia is like a design mashup of the Emgrand and the Azkarra. The grille is taken from the Emgrand while the moustache-like trim seen on the bumper seems to be taken from the Azkarra.

The sweptback headlights look nice but I wish that it already comes in LED. Aside from providing better illumination at night, the GX3 Pro’s rival, the Toyota Raize, is equipped with LED headlights. The black grille with chrome trim gives a nice accent to the GX3 Pro’s front end while the bumper adds a bit of a muscular look to the vehicle.

The 16-inch alloy wheels finished in gunmetal color look nice

Turning to the side, the GX3 Pro still gives a simple and lowkey demeanor. But I do like that it has prominent character lines, especially above the wheel arches as it makes the vehicle look bigger. The addition of black cladding is also notable and I appreciate that it does not come with an exaggerated finish. Although, the faux carbon fiber trim on top of the black cladding is not my cup of tea.

The Geely GX3 Pro comes with power adjust side mirrors but it’s not power folding, which is not a problem. It also comes with roof rails a set of 16-inch alloy wheels in gunmetal finish.

It has distinctive taillights

The rear comes with a more modern-looking design as compared to the GX3 Pro’s fascia. But despite having a more modern finish, the GX3 Pro’s rear is still not as flashy as compared to the subcompact crossovers from the Chinese and Japanese brands in the Philippines.

It comes with large taillights and a roof spoiler. The rear bumper adds texture to the vehicle’s overall design, and it extends a bit rearward due to its shape. It aims to give the vehicle added style points but I find the rear bumper design to be a bit confusing. A simpler bumper could complement the black cladding better. But that’s just me.

The Geely GX3 Pro has a dark interior theme along with splashes of flat silver accents and red stitching. The use of hard plastic materials is also evident throughout the cabin, which is expected considering the price point of the vehicle.

Seamless dashboard layout

Despite the use of hard plastics, I like how Geely designed the GX3 Pro’s dashboard as it looks seamless and straightforward with the right amount of texture. Moreover, the overall layout of the front cabin has less clutter, which makes it easy on the eyes.

However, I’m not a fan of the gold color contrast seen on the dashboard as it reminds me of my old iPhone 6S. I understand that Geely opted to do that to break the monotone black interior color but a plain black or a dark silver trim could be better.

The Geely GX3 Pro comes with a flat-bottom leather-wrapped steering wheel with a tilt-only function, which is once again expected for a vehicle at this price point. Besides, it didn’t bother me that much to find my preferred driving position despite having a tilt-only adjustment for the steering wheel.

The GX3 Pro Comfort comes with cruise control

The steering wheel is also mounted with several vehicle controls such as buttons for the audio and cruise control (exclusive to the top-spec Comfort variant). Yes, this car comes with cruise control despite having an Php 878,000 price tag, a feature you usually wouldn’t find in cars at this price point. To put things in perspective, the Toyota Raize, even its top-spec trim, doesn’t have cruise control.

Sunroof

Geely’s subcompact crossover has a sunroof, which adds to the GX3 Pro’s notable features. And I appreciate that the controls for the sunroof have a dedicated button wherein you don’t need to toggle within the touchscreen anymore as is the case with the Geely Emgrand.

Rear seats of the Geely GX3 Pro

The GX3 Pro’s rear seats can accommodate up to three passengers but two individuals seated at the back is the way to go for maximum comfort. The leg- and head-room are enough for my 5’5” build with room to spare. And oh, the rear seats can also be folded in 60:40 fashion.

The GX3 Pro does not have rear aircon vents but the airflow from the vehicle’s main aircon vent is enough to cool down the cabin. But, Geely placed a USB port in exchange for the rear aircon vents.

You can easily load an assortment of items

Geely’s subcompact crossover can also haul stuff as its cargo area can easily accommodate a week’s supply of groceries.

The Geely GX3 Pro Comfort is equipped with an eight-inch infotainment touchscreen with Screen Mirroring. Of note, the said infotainment still doesn’t come with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which has always been the case with Geely vehicles. I do wish that it already had the said smartphone integration systems for easier and more seamless use of apps such as Waze and Spotify.

The GX3 Pro’s instrument cluster has an analog gauge, which is fair to its price point. Slotted in between the circular analog gauges is a 3.5-inch screen that shows essential vehicle information such as fuel level, temperature level, and distance traveled, among others.

Reverse camera with dynamic guidelines

Despite being the entry-level Geely vehicle in the Philippines, the 2024 GX3 Pro comes with a reverse camera as well as rear parking sensors. These two features could help a lot in assisting you when backing up into a parking space.

The GX3 Pro also has the usual safety features you can expect from a modern car. It has driver and passenger airbags, an anti-lock braking system (ABS), electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD) with brake assist, and a low tire pressure warning.

Exclusive to the top-of-the-line GX3 Pro Comfort trim are the following safety features: traction control, hill start assist, hill descent control, and cruise control.

In terms of fuel economy, the Geely GX3 Pro returned 9.5 km/l while driving around the city at an average speed of 15 km/h. On the open highway, it posted 14.3 km/l while driving at an average speed of 80 km/h.

The top-spec Toyota Raize, equipped with a 1.0-liter turbocharged engine, delivered better fuel eco numbers. In the city, it yielded 12 km/l at an average speed of 20 km/h. On the open highway, it posted 22 km/l at an average speed of 90 km/h.

Priced at Php 878,000, the Geely GX3 Pro Comfort has enough arsenal to slug it out with its segment rivals. But, it’s not going to be easy since other vehicles in its class come with features not present in the GX3 Pro.

Among those are the LED headlights, a more striking exterior design, a relatively more fuel-efficient engine, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. But in return, the Geely GX3 Pro comes with cruise control and a clutter-free interior layout, which could be enough to sway car buyers who are not fond of the smartphone integration and flashy exterior design. And from the looks of it, the Geely GX3 Pro is doing well in the local market as it managed to clinch the number two spot in the top-spelling subcompact crossover in the Philippines last October 2023.