Author: Wang Xuan
Since the launch of ORA Punk Cat FREE, people have been discussing its range-extender form and identifying it as a direct competitor to the ideal ONE, but we cannot ignore the fact that they both compete in the same fuel SUV market.
While everyone is talking about how the ideal ONE has a clear positioning and accurate user profile, ORA Punk Cat FREE has a stronger product power. What we can be sure of is that in the same segmented market, most consumers will still accept products with stronger product power. After all, there are not only ideal ONE but also many competitors from traditional car companies that compete with ORA Punk Cat FREE. Therefore, inaccurate user positioning is also a product differentiation from the ideal ONE.
In order to let more people see the strength of ORA Punk Cat FREE, they prepared a field test drive on May 22 that emphasized its performance power.
Conquering the Fuel SUV Market with “Traditional Luxury Thinking” and the Advantages of Electric Cars
Many friends may be curious why we are focusing on the range-extender when ORA Punk Cat FREE has both pure electric and range-extender versions. The first reason is that we interviewed several ORA Punk Cat potential owners two months ago, and all of them chose the range-extender version of ORA Punk Cat FREE.
The second reason is that, although range-extender electric cars are still considered fuel cars in some cities and are subject to license plate and road restriction policies, we cannot underestimate range-extender electric cars because of this. After all, according to the sales data in 2020, new energy cars only accounted for 5.7% of the market share, so the fuel car market still has an absolute and huge user base, and SUVs are a popular model in recent years. Therefore, ORA Punk Cat FREE with electric car characteristics is easy to identify target users in this market.
As a medium-to-large SUV with a curb weight of nearly 2.3 tons, ORA Punk Cat FREE has a dual motor with a maximum power of 510kW and a peak torque of 1040N·m, which can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h within 4 seconds and reach a maximum speed of 200 km/h. In addition to its acceleration performance, its braking performance is also stable. ORA Punk Cat FREE adopts the industry-leading Bosch iBooster 2.0 brake system and ESP 9.3Hev vehicle stability system, which has a shorter braking distance and faster response time. In the dynamic braking test, ORA Punk Cat FREE has a hundred-kilometer braking distance of only 35.9 meters, which is already very good for a medium-to-large SUV.
During the test drive, Voyah prepared multiple site experience projects, including elk test, 100-kilometer straight-line acceleration and braking, slalom, circular turn, figure eight turn, plank road, bumpy road, zigzag road, and S-shaped road, fully demonstrating the driving ability of Voyah FREE from all aspects.
There is nothing more to say about the 100-kilometer acceleration and braking data, and in terms of suspension performance, Voyah has achieved sufficient flexibility, and the data of 75 KM/h in elk test proves that the performance label of Voyah FREE is well-deserved. The three-stage adjustable air suspension can be adjusted up and down by 50 mm, and the total travel reaches 100 mm, in order to cope with rough roads and high-speed dynamics. In the figure eight turn project, Voyah FREE showed relatively accurate directionality in sport mode, but in the high-speed slalom test, Voyah FREE exhibited a common problem of dual-motor four-wheel drive electric vehicles, that is, torque distribution is too average, making it relatively easy to understeer in high-speed cornering.
In comfort mode, the performance of Voyah FREE, which is equipped with air suspension, is quite excellent when crossing the plank road and the bumpy road. From an external perspective, when Voyah FREE passes a slightly bumpy road, the cabin is almost stable, giving a feeling of hovering on the magic carpet.
The most interesting thing about this event is that the airport pickup car for the media is also Voyah FREE. When I saw the real car for the first time, I didn’t hesitate to sit in the back seat. The passenger experience in the back seat can be summarized in one word, “soft”. Not only is the performance of the suspension soft in comfort mode, but the seat cushions are also relatively soft, and the interior trim is covered with leather, so “soft” is also the most direct tactile feedback for passengers in the car.
Today, new energy vehicle companies are constantly exploring what luxury means in the age of intelligence, but user education and changes in consumer attitudes will take a long time. Therefore, it is justified for Voyah FREE to use the “traditional luxury concept” to compete for the market share of traditional luxury fuel SUVs at present.4905mm in length combined with a wheelbase of 2960mm makes the back seat spacious without any pressure. As a part of the product concept of Voyah FREE, not offering the six-seater and seven-seater version is to provide a better travel experience for the second-row passengers. As the saying goes, “you can’t have your cake and eat it too,” between functionality and luxury experience, Voyah chooses the latter.
Consumers need to determine their practical needs when buying a car, which can be divided into four major categories: functionality, space, face, and performance. While Voyah FREE is not a versatile product, it has an absolute advantage in face and performance in the 300,000 RMB SUV market. Of course, the space capacity of Voyah FREE is also completely satisfactory for some consumers’ needs.
Providing users with a sufficient sense of superiority during use is a compulsory course for luxury cars, and outstanding performance is an innate advantage of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. In the 300,000 RMB gasoline SUV market, no product dares to use performance as its label, while Voyah FREE has an absolute advantage in performance with its plug-in hybrid electric powertrain. Moreover, Voyah has already downgraded air suspension, night vision function, and other configurations that previously only appeared in million-dollar luxury cars to the 300,000 RMB market. Therefore, Voyah FREE’s future prospects are quite promising.
Intelligent experience with mixed results
It is regrettable that the car system of Voyah FREE is still in an incomplete state during this test drive experience. Although it is impossible to objectively evaluate the interaction experience of the car system, Voyah FREE currently has some mainstream voice and car ecosystem functions, as well as Huawei’s HiCar. At the same time, we can also see from the configuration of the theme mode and the one-piece lift-up three-screen that Voyah FREE has spent a lot of effort on expanding the use scenarios of the car system.There are a few issues with the in-car system that need to be addressed. Firstly, the tri-screen that can be raised and lowered. In the high-energy and sport modes of the Voyah FREE, the tri-screen will lower to provide a better view for the driver. As it descends, it will block part of the screen, so an alternative narrow-screen UI will be used during the descent. The process takes around 5 seconds, and when the driver switches back to comfort mode and the screen is raised, the UI will not change to a widescreen until after the screen has fully risen, which takes another 3-5 seconds. According to convention, when the screen rises, the shift from narrow to widescreen should occur.
Secondly, switching driving modes using the buttons on the Voyah FREE can cause the air suspension adjustment to trigger accidentally. The Voyah FREE offers two types of suspension adjustment: selection from the in-car system, and adjustment using buttons. When adjusted using the buttons, every press will move the adjustment to the next mode. Even if the driver presses the button too fast and skips the sport or off-road modes, the suspension will still be adjusted. When changing driving modes, it is recommended to leave about 3 seconds of buffer space to avoid triggering the hardware too quickly.
Thirdly, there is an underdeveloped touchpad. Currently, the Voyah FREE has a touchpad located next to the shift lever, specifically designed for the passenger. When the passenger is in a semi-reclined position watching the passenger screen, the left hand can easily adjust the video content with the touchpad, without having to get up to touch the screen, which is very user-friendly. However, the downside is that the touchpad currently only supports adjusting video and music volume, without tactile feedback. Voyah officials have stated that more functions will be developed for the touchpad in the future.
Although there are still some logical issues with the in-car system, the vehicles provided for our test drive are not the final version. Additionally, the Voyah FREE offers a comprehensive OTA function, which means that the connection between the system and the hardware can be resolved using OTA in the future. Of course, in the era of smart cars, Voyah is still a novice, and more time is needed to understand user needs and address user problems.Let’s talk about the ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance System) now. The L2 level ADAS system of the Voyah FREE is a solution from Bosch, which can currently achieve 20 intelligent driving assistance functions such as ACC, LKA, and LDW. Compared with the aggressive ADAS solutions with high-precision maps and high-speed navigation provided by new EV companies, the ADAS capabilities of Voyah FREE are relatively conservative. However, from our on-site experience, the overall feeling is still very stable, especially in urban road sections. Voyah FREE can follow the trajectory of the preceding vehicle when passing through intersections and quickly recognize the lane lines after entering the next lane.
Smart experience is currently the killer feature of new Chinese automakers in the market. After many new EV companies have laid the groundwork, the priority of smart experience in consumer car purchase needs is also gradually increasing. However, the performance of Voyah FREE in terms of intelligence is still unsatisfactory at this stage. But looking at the fuel SUV market, Voyah FREE still has strong competitiveness.
Conclusion
Range-extended electric vehicles are a very clever form of power. They have acceleration characteristics that fossil fuel cars cannot match, worry-free mileage that electric vehicles cannot achieve, and can achieve DC fast charging, which plug-in hybrid vehicles cannot do. They are both electric and hybrid, but their essence is still fossil fuel. However, fossil fuel is not necessarily a bad thing, just look at the market share of pure fossil fuel SUVs. Voyah really doesn’t need to be entangled in the competitive relationship between ideals anymore.
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.