Geely finally pulled the sheets off the Azkarra crossover, the second model in its campaign to capture the Philippine market, building on the strong showing of the Coolray compact crossover.
2020 Geely Azkarra Luxury Mild Hybrid Crossover | In the Metal
The Azkarra comes in with guns blazing to take on the fiercely competitive compact crossover segment. Its top-spec Luxury trim fields high-tech features such as a 48-volt mild hybrid system, all-wheel drivetrain, and a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission to challenge its rivals, all for Php 1,598,000.
The Azkarra in Premium trim is no less of a value proposition than the upper-spec Luxury variant
That’s not to say, however, that the lower Premium trim should be ignored. Priced Php 160,000 cheaper, the base variant does away with some of the Luxury’s toys, but nevertheless offers solid value for the price.
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Geely Azkarra Premium: Exterior
The Azkarra Premium is identical to its Luxury sibling, coming equipped with long-range automatic LED headlamps on both sides of the enlarged Expanding Cosmos grille. The Euro-inspired styling is elegant, and sports body-color door handles with chrome accents.
Strakes give the Azkarra's hood a muscular presence
A sharkfin antenna up top complements the vehicle’s sleek silhouette, while the dual tailpipes flanking the rear diffuser hint at the Geely Azkarra’s sporty intentions.
Turn signal and puddle lamps are mounted on the power-folding side mirrors. A set of eye-catching 18-inch aluminum alloy wheels complete the Azkarra Premium’s roadgoing stance.
Geely Azkarra Premium: Interior
There’s plenty to look forward to in the Azkarra Premium’s cabin, starting with 6-way power-adjustable seats for the driver and front passenger.
In lieu of leather, seating for five is rendered in non-porous PVC material, making it easier to maintain. There’s no onboard wireless charging, but a ventilated console storage lets you keep your favorite beverages cool on long journeys.
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A large 12.3-inch touchscreen delivers communications and entertainment
The massive 12.3-inch touchscreen head unit lets you stay connected wherever you go, hooked up to an 8-speaker system that surrounds the cabin in a remarkable aural experience.
And with everyone stressing out over COVID-19, the Azkarra Premium comes with a CN95 cabin filter to keep dust, bacteria and other airborne undesirables at bay.
Geely Azkarra Premium: Powertrain
The Premium shares the 1.5L 3-cylinder turbo gas engine found on the Geely Coolray, sans the fancy mild hybrid tech found on the more indulgent Luxury variant.
Nevertheless, the power plant is still good for 177 hp and 255 Nm of torque, despite the Azkarra’s 200-kg. handicap over the Coolray. Instead of the Luxury’s 7-speed dual-clutch transmission and all-wheel drivetrain, the Premium shifts power to the front wheels via a 6-speed torque converter automatic - a less complicated setup.
Electric power steering makes the Azkarra Premium agile on curves and corners, and cruise control is standard to make extended journeys a breeze.
Geely Azkarra Premium: Safety
Every safety feature the Azkarra Luxury has can also be found on the Premium trim: 6 airbags, antilock brakes with electronic brakeforce distribution, traction control, stability control, hill start assist, and hill descent control.
A 360-degree surrond camera system is offered as standard on the Azkarra Premium
The vehicle’s exterior is littered with sensors, and the Premium even offers the same 360-degree surround external camera array as the Luxury, eliminating blind spots for maneuvers such as swerving and parking.
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Conclusion
The Azkarra in Premium trim still presents tremendous value for its price, even though it’s just a few steps behind the Luxury trim in terms of fanciness.
Retaining most of the top-spec’s features still enables the Premium to live up to Geely’s promise of a refined ride. The Geely Azkarra is now available for pre-order, with both the Premium and Luxury variants dangling a Php 100,000 discount for reservations made until July 31, 2020.