*This article was reproduced from the Autocarweekly WeChat public account.
Author: Jing San
Who is buying the Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5 after three months on the market?
It’s hard to summarize it in one sentence:
There are young couples from Shanghai who drove it for their wedding; there are young friends from Tianjin who drove it with their father to Tibet; there is a captain from Chengdu who overcame the tradition of only buying pure imported cars and drove it; and there is a foreign trade boss from Harbin who brought his own driver to test drive it in Heihe and fully paid for it, becoming the first owner of the Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5 in Heilongjiang.
They are active, sunny, and upward-minded, even with a bit of “enthusiasm”. Although they are of different ages, they are all adults who have light and pursuit in their hearts and an adolescent spirit. Naturally, these people have different styles of driving. This inevitably makes people wonder why they would choose the Seres brand and its models?
Super long endurance and powerful performance
In the field of new energy vehicles, which is half taken up by “Tesla”, the “low-key” Seres has always taken two paths to create pure electric and range-extender vehicles, but it is now focusing on range-extender models.
Range-extender models can use both gasoline and electricity, and do not rely on charging infrastructure. Pure electric is the future, but many layouts are still in the process of improvement, requiring consumer tolerance. In comparison, range-extender electric vehicles are more independent and free, and can go wherever gasoline vehicles can go.
At the same time, it is emotionally stable. For example, in the winter in the north, battery degradation is very random, and the outstanding capacity and technology of batteries can only mitigate the experience, but cannot completely solve this problem. Range-extender vehicles also have batteries, but the battery packs are much smaller, and do not need to be limited by the characteristics of pure electric endurance, so range-extender models have the power to choose comfortably.
On the Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5, this kind of comfortable driving is even greater. On the one hand, its range is wider. Under full fuel and full electric conditions, the NEDC comprehensive endurance can exceed 1000 km, and the pure electric condition can also achieve an endurance of 180 km. This range is a “sufficient” standard practiced by the industry, such as the popular Wuling Hongguang Mini EV, which has an endurance of 120/170 km, indicating that the daily commuting needs of most people are only within this range, and pure electric driving for commuting in urban areas has zero fuel consumption and extremely low vehicle operating costs.
The excellent endurance of the Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5 comes from the “Camel” intelligent range-extender system. The system integrates the HUAWEI DriveONE three-in-one electric drive system, as well as Seres’ self-developed SEP200 AC asynchronous motor, efficient range extender, battery system, vehicle controller, and charging system.
In addition to the driving motor, several core components such as the engine and generator in the range extender have also been comprehensively improved in efficiency, directly reducing overall energy consumption. At the same time, Seres’ self-developed software control strategy has focused on systematic tuning and optimization in power generation strategies, start-stop strategies, and front and rear drive motor coordination.
Seres believes that generator power generation is more than just assembling excellent components. Procurement plus integration is a crude approach at a level of 1.0, which lacks unified R&D management and often cannot achieve the level of 1+1. They conducted more than 7,000 tests on the product with the Huawei team before completing the conversion to rear-wheel drive and verifying performance and reliability. Even when the range extender works full-time, the Camel intelligent range-extender system’s energy consumption is reduced by 30%-35% compared to the same level of fuel vehicles and plug-in hybrid models. The progress is also significant on the product side. When the range extender is started and the oil-electric balance state is fully used, the Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5 has a fuel consumption of less than 6.3L per 100 kilometers. It eats less, and it’s not picky. 92 octane gasoline will do.
Super sports car experience a step ahead
In addition to endurance, with the characteristics of electric drive, the Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5 also has performance that is beyond the reach of similarly classed fuel vehicles. With the support of the industry’s only 1.5T four-cylinder range extender, its parameter capacity reaches 405 kW and 820 N·m, and can achieve 0-100 km/h acceleration in 4.68 seconds, easily entering the four-second club and achieving acceleration comparable to performance cars such as BMW M and Mercedes-Benz AMG.
In comparison, similarly level decent fuel/plug-in hybrid models are already impressive when they achieve half the output, and performance is often a lower priority item in the comprehensive considerations for this type of car. A family car that is a bit slower is still acceptable. The Seres Huawei Smart Selection SF5 provides a dual choice that allows you to have the best of both worlds. It can achieve 4-second level acceleration, enabling you to travel with your family or challenge the wind alone.This is about product strength and technology. Despite the contradictory data of low energy consumption and strong power, the SF5, the Huawei Smart Selection of Seres, not only achieves balance but also pursues the ultimate. In addition, it uses a supercar-grade lightweight aluminum alloy chassis with front double-wishbone and rear trapezoidal multi-link independent suspension, and undergoes track-level chassis tuning, which matches the power and achieves a million-dollar sports car-level handling.
Outdoor Life is Simple and Easy
The owners of the SF5 are interesting, such as some who are retired cadres living in the outskirts of Shanghai. During the weekends, they will drive to nearby suburbs for fishing, outing, and taichi practice. In addition to family, they will also bring a house trailer with camping equipment, making the SF5 very practical.
The SF5 has a reverse discharge function, namely the V2L camping power supply mode, which outputs 3.3 kW, 220V AC power, supporting various small household appliances such as electric ovens, projectors and electric kettles. You can park anywhere you like, enjoy the peaceful life and not be bound by the power outlet pretending to camp in the planned campsite. The car itself is a mobile power source that allows you to stay connected with modern life wherever you go.
In addition, the SF5 can also achieve V2V and rescue other parked pure electric cars on the road. To put it more subtly, it serves as a flexible energy supplement unit in the large transportation system without hesitation for public good. This advantage of new energy vehicles is something many manufacturers have, but currently, some pure electric cars make people hesitate to buy it. Although the battery capacity is marked at 500 kilometers, it is probably impossible to reach it in actual use. How to balance these issues is what makes the SF5 a reliable choice for adults who enjoy the outdoors.
Be the Choice of the Majority
In summary, we have been emphasizing the power of choice.
In the current status where charging infrastructure building still needs efforts from all parties, range-extended electric vehicles have a stronger universality than pure electric ones. No matter where you live or in which city and at what latitude and longitude, as long as you have a range-extended electric car, you don’t have to worry about where to go or how far you can go. At the same time, you also have the high-performance experience of electric cars.
More and more companies seem to see the potential of this market and are launching or planning to launch extended range products. In addition to IDEAL, the market is becoming increasingly lively with competitors like Voyah, Skyline, LINGPAO, and so on. As the “first-mover” in the extended range market, Seres Huawei’s iNEXT SF5 combines long range and high performance, and is gaining more and more recognition and choice with its unique label, gradually emerging and occupying a place.
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.