On December 18th, at the Shenzhen Universiade center, the Voyah brand’s first product, the Voyah FREE, was officially unveiled.
Since the brand strategy was released in July this year, many people have been anticipating what kind of Voyah the Dongfeng Motor, which has gone through fifty years of history and stands at the node of change, will paint. Will this new departure showcase the team’s “new car-making strength”?
Voyah FREE provides some answers.
As a “zero anxiety, mid-size intelligent electric SUV,” let’s first briefly review Voyah FREE’s important product information:
Dimensions: Length/Width/Height 4905mm * 1950 mm * 1690 mm, wheelbase 2955mm;
Endurance: Extended-range version 860km, pure electric version NEDC 500km;
Energy supply: 11kW home charging, DC fast charging, and refueling three forms of energy supply;
Performance: Extended-range version 0-100km/h acceleration in 4.6s, pure electric model 0-100km/h acceleration in 4.8s;
Power: front and rear dual motors, a comprehensive maximum power of 500kW, and a peak torque of 1000N·m;
Extended-range: “1.5T + four-cylinder” engine, matched with a generator with a maximum power of 80kW.
I learned on-site that the specific price of Voyah FREE will be announced at the Shanghai Auto Show next year, and it will not exceed 400,000 yuan ($61,635 USD). In the third quarter of 2021, Voyah FREE will begin mass production.
Moving on to the main content, let us take a quick look.
Starting from User Needs
Two days before the press conference, I had the opportunity to see the Voyah FREE car in person.
At the time, when discussing with some friends who also looked at the car, their feedback was relatively consistent: this is a very good-looking car, and it is also a very meaningful intelligent electric SUV.
As Voyah’s team put it, because the product positioning is mainly for the “new backbone,” highlighting the sense of quality and taste becomes more important. Therefore, the design language of Voyah FREE follows three principles: “modern luxury, warm technology, simplicity and not simpleness,” including some yacht elements in both exterior and interior designs.
It’s worth noting that the Voyah FREE’s drag coefficient is only 0.28. You can look at the picture to feel it.
In my opinion, what’s more important than design is that the Voyah FREE provides users with two power solutions: extended-range version and pure electric version.
According to the product information released by Voyah, the NEDC comprehensive range of the Voyah FREE extended-range version is 860km with an acceleration of 0-100km/h in 4.6 seconds. It supports three forms of energy replenishment: 11kW household charging, DC fast charging and gasoline; the NEDC comprehensive range of the pure electric version is 500km with an acceleration of 0-100km/h in 4.8 seconds, also supporting household charging and fast charging.
This operation is very user-oriented. The pure electric version and the extended-range version of the Voyah FREE correspond to two types of users:
The first type: having a parking space at home, able to install a charging pile, and mainly active in urban areas without the need for frequent long-distance travel. Alternatively, having a gasoline vehicle at home and wanting to experience the driving experience of an electric vehicle, then the Voyah FREE pure electric version is undoubtedly the preferred choice.
The second type: the only or main family vehicle without a fixed parking space to install a charging pile, living in the north, still having some anxiety about the range and charging experience of pure electric vehicles, then the extended-range version of the Voyah FREE is a more suitable choice.
In my opinion, considering the actual user usage scenarios at the current stage, the extended-range version of the Voyah FREE will probably become the sharp edge of breakthrough.
It is worth noting that after nearly a year of controversy, the extended-range technology, which is a power system that generates electricity through the engine burning fuel and then drives the vehicle through the motor, is gradually being recognized by the market. Just a few hours before the release of the Voyah FREE, as the current representative model of the extended-range products, more than 30,000 units of the Ideal ONE have been delivered, and users are voting with their feet.
Why is this so? From a user’s perspective, the answer is very clear.Although the range-extended electric vehicle has an extra engine compared to pure electric vehicles and an additional 20-30 degrees of battery compared to plug-in hybrids, the complexity and weight of the vehicle are of little concern to consumers. What they truly value is the experience this technology brings.
So, why not buy a pure electric vehicle? Range anxiety is the main issue. Why not purchase a gasoline-powered car instead? Well, the driving experience of a range-extended electric vehicle is more similar to that of a pure electric vehicle, with faster acceleration and relatively quiet operation. If you desire a gasoline-powered car with a similar driving experience, you will need to double your budget. In addition, range-extended electric vehicles, as new energy vehicles, are eligible for a green license plate and enjoy the same rights as pure electric vehicles on the road in restricted cities such as Shanghai.
It is worth noting that the LanTu FREE is especially strong in several core configurations, such as the range extender using a “1.5T + four-cylinder” engine.
In order to achieve better performance in a balanced state of charge, the LanTu range extender team conducted nearly 10 rounds of program review and improvement on the original plan, increasing the maximum power generation to 80 kW and achieving a 10% increase in power generation on the basis of the original plan. At the same time, the VCU and testing and validation departments carried out a large amount of debugging work, including bench calibration, consistency testing, and emission verification, further reducing fuel consumption by 2% on the basis of the original plan.
The LanTu FREE also has front double wishbone independent suspension and rear multi-link independent suspension, as well as air suspension. According to official information, the LanTu FREE’s chassis lateral stability and shock absorption performance exceed that of the Audi Q5L by 30%.
In addition, the LanTu FREE is equipped with high-end Denon audio, intelligent adjustable panoramic sunroof, 12-way electric memory adjustment, and seat ventilation, heating, and massage functions. The inclusion of these features ensures a comfortable user experience.
The highly ceremonial lifting three-screen setup
From a design innovation perspective, the most interesting aspect of the LanTu FREE is the vehicle’s “integrated lifting three-screen setup.”
This integrated lifting three-screen setup is a global debut, and it slowly rises and lights up with ambient lighting as soon as the user enters the vehicle and starts it up, which is highly ceremonial. According to the LanTu team, this lifting three-screen setup uses a magnesium-aluminum alloy lifting mechanism, and the overall design is 30% more expensive compared to a separated three-screen setup.
It is worth noting that, in order to create this adjustable triple-screen, the Voyah team discussed and verified more than 100 times in 16 schemes for layout, structure, and material selection. Finally, they chose to use LTPS+In-cell full lamination, achieving two goals:
Firstly, Beauty: It has better contrast, narrower borders, and visual aesthetics;
Secondly, Reliability: This screen can guarantee at least 30,000 lifting experiences.
Besides, the three screens not only rationally assign navigation, music, entertainment, and vehicle control functions but also can cooperate with the entire vehicle status to “transform.”
For example, Voyah FREE provides four driving modes: VOYAH Moment, VOYAH Performance, VOYAH Attention, and VOYAH Care. When the vehicle is in VOYAH Performance mode, the integrated adjustable triple-screen automatically lowers, and the air suspension adapts to lower the vehicle’s posture with a sense of sports. Voyah FREE can be called “the most ceremonial intelligent electric SUV.”
I communicated with the engineers of Voyah, and the interactive mode of Voyah FREE supports four-zone voice interaction and can also achieve four types of gesture interaction. However, the current UI design is not the final release status, so I cannot share in detail this time, looking forward to future experiences.
In addition to the intelligent onboard experience, intelligent assisted driving is also essential for current intelligent electric vehicle products.
From the perspective of hardware configuration, Voyah FREE fully integrates an advanced intelligent driving assistance system in all models, with a total of 24 intelligent sensors on the vehicle, including three millimeter-wave radars, nine cameras, and 12 ultrasonic radars. In comparison to the similar products, this hardware configuration is still very advanced, and it provides a hardware foundation for subsequent OTA upgrades in the field of assisted driving.
It is reported that the Voyah FREE advanced intelligent driving assistance system can achieve 20 intelligent driving assistance functions, including ACC full-speed range adaptive cruise control, LKA lane keeping assistance, AEB automatic braking, 360° panoramic imaging, BSD blind spot monitoring and fatigue driving monitoring and warning.
In addition, based on the SOA central computing platform electrical architecture, the VOYAH Attention awakening mode mentioned earlier can provide mild, moderate, and severe fatigue driving warnings by judging the user’s fatigue level. It offers six kinds of warm reminders: sound, image, air conditioning, fragrance, service area navigation, and instrument indicator lights, intelligently, proactively and three-dimensionally relieving the driver’s fatigue.
For children, the Voyah FREE also provides the VOYAH Care child care mode. After getting into the car, the in-car camera automatically recognizes the child, and the child lock automatically locks and matches the appropriate temperature and volume. When the adult leaves the car, it ensures the safety of the child.
Another noteworthy point is that the Voyah FREE is equipped with the world’s first vehicle standard 5G T-BOX and is configured with HiCar/HiLink, which brings higher-definition, faster, and richer application interaction for Voyah FREE. It only takes a few minutes to complete OTA software updates, which only takes an hour to download on 4G vehicle machines. In addition, Voyah FREE also supports smart home connectivity, allowing remote control of smart homes from inside the car.
Establishing a Direct Sales System
As we all know, in the new stage of user demand, having a well-made product is not enough to obtain a satisfactory user experience score. Matching services are also crucial.
Here, “online + direct sales” becomes the core keyword.According to the plan, Voyah will create a One ID unified digital account, linking online and offline experiences and services. On the online side, the app, official website, and WeChat will all be implemented, and users can directly order and purchase vehicles in the app. On the offline channel side, a “direct sales first, multi-dimensional integration channel layout” will be adopted.
There are several key points here:
First, the “national unified delivery price”. Users no longer need to compete with dealers like before.
Second, “customized production + transparent orders”. After users place an order on the app, they can see the entire process of the vehicle from order production, matching, production and manufacturing, logistics, to delivery, achieving transparent order delivery.
Third, “transparent delivery”. There will be no poor experience in delivery, including financial products, license plate registration, and bundle of high-quality products.
I learned from the Voyah official that the Voyah app will go online in January 2021. By the end of 2021, Voyah will establish 40 experience centers nationwide.
Final Words
In recent months, many people have asked me how I view the Voyah brand.
The most common feedback I heard was: they are coming too late.
On the surface, it seems to be true. Whether it is a new car company or a traditional automaker, whether it is autonomous or imported, has completed the initial layout of the smart electric vehicle field in the past two to three years, and most of them have produced relatively mature products. Overnight, the blue ocean has turned into a red ocean.
But in fact, from the perspective of consumers, the market for quality products that are available for selection is still very limited, and the window period for smart electric vehicles has just opened. The vision of the recently launched “New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Plan (2021-2035)” shows that by 2025, the sales of new energy vehicles will account for around 20% of the total sales of new cars.
Voyah, as the first high-end intelligent electric vehicle brand among the top three state-owned automakers, its significance and opportunities are self-explanatory.
If we have to summarize an advantage, Voyah’s advantage lies in both the determination to move away from tradition and the confidence of relying on tradition.
To give the simplest example, safety issues are of great concern to users when it comes to electric vehicles. The Voyah team uses a five-layer structure reinforcement design in the cell, module, and PACK levels for Voyah FREE, and has conducted over 100 safety tests, including collisions and water immersion, on the battery pack.In addition, the white body of the Voyah FREE adopts TRB+Patch composite structure hot forming technology for the A-pillar and TRB aluminum-silicon coated hot forming material for the B-pillar. The car door anti-collision beam also uses aluminum-silicon coated material with a strength of 2000MPa for the first time. According to official data, high-strength steel accounts for 75% of the white body, with the proportion of hot-formed steel above 1500MPa reaching 31%.
Different from many new brands that need to consider a series of keywords such as “quality, safety, manufacturing, supply chain, technology, funds, qualifications, and sustainability,” relying on Dongfeng’s 50 years of car-making experience and the endorsement of a Fortune 500 company, after analyzing each of these keywords one by one, we find that most of these invisible thresholds have been solved in a logical way in Voyah.
Currently, Voyah FREE has already started pre-orders. As of the time of publication, the number of reservations has exceeded 20,000.
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.