On April 26, 2021, under the Minpu Bridge, as a Xiaoding user, I participated in the last test drive event of the GYON brand in Shanghai.
There are many doubts about GYON online, but I personally think that the reason for the booing is mainly due to the misunderstanding of its pricing and the lack of awareness of its ultra-luxury product positioning. In my opinion, there are three factors that make GYON HiPhi X a luxury car:
- Super large body size
- Exaggerated door design
- Truly luxurious configuration
There are not many cars that can add so many tags with an acceleration of 3.9 seconds for 0-100 km/h. A 6-seater SUV (which I think looks more like an MPV) with a length of 5,200mm and a wheelbase of 3,150mm, with a turning diameter smaller than that of Model 3, not to mention the visual effect of the all-electric opening and closing of the butterfly doors and the third pair of “NT” (No Touch) exhibition wings that GYON claims, is indeed cool.
When I entered the car, what greeted me was not the pungent smell of formaldehyde and VOC, but the advanced scent brought by Nappa leather. The configuration inside the car was also impressive. The co-pilot’s screen is even larger than Ideal ONE, and it supports mobile phone projection. As for the flamboyant seagull wing door, its actual value lies in offsetting the inconvenience brought by the relatively low body and providing an elegant solution for entry into the second and third rows.
The 2.6-ton body weight actually brings the driving quality that meets its positioning, which is also thanks to the Pilot Sport EV special tire developed in cooperation with Michelin. The brake pedal feel and driving mode brought by the Brembo four-piston caliper and Bosch iBooster are also interlinked, which is very rare in the current market. In comfort mode, it feels like an American old car, while in standard mode it feels like a Japanese car. In sports mode, it feels like a German performance car. The difference in pedal feel is very obvious. Similar to the creep of automatic transmission fuel vehicles, it cannot be resolved at this stage.
Thanks to the rear-wheel steering and the low center of gravity brought by the electric platform, the HiPhi X is far more flexible than expected. Neither the U-shaped bend nor the slalom experience on site made me feel that the size was a burden. Speaking of which, the windshield glass inclination and the low front end considered for cool styling and reduced wind resistance result in a relatively flat A-pillar and a certain blind spot at a further distance. Therefore, confidence in grasping the vehicle width needs to be reestablished in this car.
Some may think that the gull-wing door is inconvenient to open every time, but in fact, Gaohe has considered all kinds of situations. The rear door opening and closing button on the B-pillar, short press opens the upper and lower two doors, while long press only opens the conventional door. When it’s raining, the system will also recognize it automatically, and short press will only open the lower door.
Interesting enough, as an electric vehicle, the HiPhi X also has shift paddles. The shift paddles can adjust the intensity of energy recovery, and pulling both sides at the same time can switch to the mode selection. HiPhi X’s vehicle system is driven by Snapdragon 820A, but the display delay of the instrument panel is quite long in actual operation of these functions. And the plastic shift paddles have a relatively cheap feel.
In terms of assisted driving, HiPhi currently supports adaptive cruise control and lane keeping functions equivalent to L2 level, but lane change assistance and functions such as highway entrance and exit have not been enabled. The modeling of surrounding vehicles has a serious aliasing problem, and the UI logic on the central control screen is also relatively outdated. It is hoped that these issues have entered into Gaohe’s product requirements list.
There are also two small problems that need to be pointed out. One is that the armrests on the door panel are not suitable for single-handed driving, and the other is that there is no transition strategy when switching to sports mode during travel, which will cause obvious bumping and affect safety.
Looking back at the overall event, it is indeed a relatively cost-effective activity compared to other brands. Even the tea break table was covered with real green plants, which was pleasing to the eye and innovative. Is Gaohe luxurious? Indeed it is luxurious. Many thoughtful details are worthy of praise, but there are also many details that need more time to be polished.Considering the options of domestic luxury MPVs, either the outdated GL8 or the crazily price-hiked Toyota Alphard and Lexus LM 300h, or the luxurious but already discontinued Mercedes-Benz R-Class. The HiPhi X, perfectly positioned in this segment, may be a good choice among business elites. The next challenge will be how to reach out to them.
Source: Gaohe user test drive.
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.