This year, I finally got a license plate for an electric car in Beijing. After receiving the quota, I began to pay attention to electric cars. My daily commuting distance is 80 kilometers, so I need to charge once a week. The range should be above 500 kilometers, and my budget is 150,000 to 200,000 yuan.
What cars have I looked at?
Firstly, without considering new brands, the new cars in this price range from new brands don’t seem reliable. In the first half of the year, there were not many cars that met these conditions, including AION S, IA5, Qin PRO, and AION V. After the pandemic improved in July, I started visiting 4S stores to see and test drive the cars.
Qin PRO EV
The appearance is good, and the driving experience is also good, but the seats are uncomfortable, especially the rear seats, which are like sitting on a small stool. In addition, the middle of the seat is too high, and my wife is very dissatisfied, PASS.
GAC Aion S
AION S is a pure electric platform, with more comfortable seats, but the actual range is reported to be low on the internet, and GAC has had some accidents this year, PASS. IA5 and AION S are actually the same car, PASS.
GAC Aion V
AION V is the latest pure electric platform from GAC, with an amazing rear space and comfortable seats. The test drive experience is also good, and my wife is quite satisfied. However, the battery uses AVIC and Funeng, and the manufacturer does not indicate the fast charging time. It is said that the fast charging power is limited. Considering the several fire accidents of GAC this year, I didn’t dare to make a decision.
Roewe ER6
By August, the Roewe ER6 and Geometry C were launched one after another. The appearance of Roewe ER6 is also good, and the range is 620 kilometers. It has a similar marketing model to new brands with online ordering and convenient offline delivery. The trunk is very large, with a slight bump in the middle of the rear seat, which does not affect the ride. But due to the curve of the rear ceiling, the head is suppressed, and it is a bit sun-drenched. After consulting with sales, I learned that an additional purchase could be discounted by 10,000 yuan. The market price of the middle configuration meets my expectations. I planned to order this car after the test drive car arrived. However, the test drive car at Dongzhimen Experience Center didn’t come.
Geometry C
I also paid attention to Geometry C online before, but the central control instrument panel and steering wheel were too small, and it was said to be a rebranded GSE car, so it was not on my list. There happened to be a Geometry 4S store near my company at Wufang Bridge, so I thought since there were no suitable alternative cars recently, I would just go take a look.
Indeed, Geometry C looks better in person than in the online photos. The interior materials are said to be environmentally friendly, and there is basically no pungent smell in the car. I am more concerned about the comfort of the seats. Geometry C’s seats are moderately soft and hard and well-wrapped. The driver’s seat is easy to adjust to a comfortable position, and the height of the rear seat is appropriate. In addition, the middle seat has a headrest, and does not feel like a pure electric sedan’s rear seat, which is like sitting on a small stool.
The test drive was on a road near the 4S dealership with relatively few cars. I tried the sport mode and floored the gas pedal. The acceleration was powerful with a strong back-push feeling. The tires slightly slipped, but the overall noise was good and the car drove smoothly over speed bumps. In terms of budget, range, and comfort, I felt that the Geometry C fully met my expectations, so I decided to buy it. Later, I brought my wife to see the car, paid the deposit, and picked it up.
I ordered the Pure White C++ version with a range of 550 km. It came with a free optional heat pump air conditioning, a gift of an electric card, and a 10,000 RMB discount for additional purchases. The dealership also provided free foot pads, film, and license plates. The insurance was about 5,500 RMB. The final price was approximately 155,000 RMB, which was within my budget.
I have to say that the sales and service at Wufangqiao dealership were really good. After I got the temporary license plate, they fully charged the car and delivered it to the foot of my office building.
After work, I drove the car back home myself. Since I was not familiar with the other features, I decided to test the range first. Beijing’s rush hour traffic was quite congested that day. When I left my office, the range showed 524 km. I adjusted the air conditioning to automatic mode at 24 degrees Celsius and turned on the ECO mode.
After driving 37 km, including about 15 km on the highway, and encountering frequent stop-and-go traffic on other urban roads, the average speed was about 20 km/h, and I arrived home with a range of 490 km remaining.
A week later, the sales representative told me that the car could be registered. I woke up early and queued at the testing center in Shunyi to get my license plates.
One Week of Use
First, let’s talk about the range. In the past few days, since I did not drive to work, I only traveled 188 km, including roughly half on the highway and half on congested urban roads. The actual mileage and remaining range decreased at a ratio of 1:0.96. It seems that the advertised real range of the Geometry C is indeed reliable. However, it might be because of the cool weather in Beijing in September. I will test the range again in the winter to see how energy-efficient the heat pump air conditioning is.
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- The appearance and interior of the car are lower than the average SUV, but the lines are very dynamic, and the pure white body looks very eye-catching on the street. The operation of the central control screen in the interior is relatively simple. The air conditioning buttons are physical buttons, making it convenient to adjust the air conditioning while driving. The previously unattractive instrument panel now appears acceptable, with moderate brightness on the instrument screen, making it visible even in direct sunlight at noon.
The car is equipped with a driving recorder, but there is no camera at the rearview mirror. Only the four cameras at the front, parking place, and rearview mirror can be used, but the angles of photographing are not perfect. I plan to install a separate driving recorder, after all, there are many rear-end collisions on the road.
- The storage space and trunk space is average, but it is enough for me. The cup holder and seat storage bag in the rear row are also reasonably designed. However, I want to complain about the armrest box in the front row and the storage box at the lower left of the steering wheel. Firstly, the armrest box is too small and shallow, and the irregularly shaped storage space in front of the armrest box can only hold a bottle of mineral water, and the car key cannot be put well. Secondly, the storage box at the lower left of the steering wheel cannot even fit the driving manual.
- The driving experience is relatively noisy on the highway, mainly due to tire noise. It is much quieter than my previous car, the Amcora. However, in quiet nights, you can still hear the sound of the motor and the current. Although the steering wheel is small, it is relatively accurate. After all, the car is a rigid suspension, so it will be very uncomfortable when passing speed bumps. The overall driving experience is more comfortable than a gasoline-powered car.
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.