Geely’s SUV is the best thing to drive amidst Coronavirus pandemic

KUALA LUMPUR: The Coronavirus outbreak has gripped and attacked the whole world and every industry including the auto industry is badly hit. It has led millions of people getting quarantined and secluded, worldwide. We have seen a lot of events and auto shows being cancelled on government orders to avoid any social gatherings.

People are also being utterly cautious and taking every measure to prevent themselves from the grip of this deadly infection. As a common practice, people have started driving vehicles wearing masks, as the germs could enter the car cabin through air vents also. As a proactive approach to this problem, the Chinese carmaker Geely, who are also owners of Volvo, have been very quick to develop a new N95-certified, built-in air purifier system for its new Icon SUV. Geely claims that this air filtration system is capable to preventing bacteria and viruses like Covid-19 from entering the car cabin.

In a press release, Geely made a statement that “in response to the new Coronavirus epidemic, Geely automakers developed a new and Intelligent Air Purification System that is N95 certified. This air purification system works as a squad with the Icon car’s air conditioner to eradicate harmful bacteria and viruses”.

N95 rating means that the filtration technology can block up to 95 percent of particles, that measures 0.3 micrometers in diameter. This filtration system is very similar to what is incorporated in Tesla’s Model S and Model X. However, the COVID-19 virus is actually much smaller and measures between 0.06 to 0.14 micrometers in diameter.

Though neither Tesla’s nor Geely’s system can prove to be 100 percent effective against bacteria and viruses, they are surely of great help. This innovation can prove to be a major breakthrough for the auto industry keeping in line with current health epidemic scenario, prevailing worldwide.

Nowadays, most of the built-in purifiers in modern cars are designed in such a way, that they can prevent harmful dust particles. Part of this wagon of cars with built-in air purifiers are Kia Seltos, Hyundai Venue, MG ZS EV, and the new Hyundai Creta. But a purifying system which is capable of dealing with bacteria and viruses require a different level of technology.

Icon SUV was launched in China in February and Geely claims that it received 30,000 pre-orders before the official launch. Geely’s ICON is a compact SUV is offered in petrol and hybrid set-ups.

At its heart lied the 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine which comes in pair with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system. It can ignite a total output of 190PS and 300Nm with a 7-speed transmission.

Obviously, not all of us can have this cutting-edge technology for our car cabin. So as a measure of precaution you can use a sanitizer to wipe clean all major touchpoints like the steering wheel, door handles, driver controls and the central console.

Also Read: Malaysia Autoshow 2020 postponed to July