The rise of electric sedans!

This video is 12 minutes long. Click the play button below to watch it.

Talking about the Changan Shenlan, you probably are not familiar with it. It is actually a brand new electric brand under Changan New Energy. Its main focus is on the mainstream price range of 150,000 to 300,000 yuan and will complement Changan’s high-end electric brand, Aura.

The first car launched by Changan Shenlan, called the Shenlan 03, is a medium-sized electric sedan with a body size of 4820 * 1890 * 1480 (mm) and a wheelbase of 2900mm, which is larger than the Tesla Model 3 in size.

The Shenlan 03 has many selling points, such as a rear-wheel drive layout and the fastest official zero to one hundred time of 5.9 seconds. It has the option of being a pure electric or a range-extended vehicle, with the former having a maximum range of 700km and the latter able to reach 1200km. It also features frameless doors and a lifting tailgate, which are uncommon in its class. Large dimensions and plenty of space, with very large front and rear trunks, make it an extremely practical car.

In addition, this car also has a series of novel technological features such as projector headlights, interactive lights, AR-HUD, and sunflower screens, which provide a fresh sensory experience. Regardless of whether you like its exterior design or not, it is undeniable that the design is unique.

Therefore, the Shenlan 03 is a car that is not lacking in unique features or selling points. After trying it out, I feel that the most valuable thing is that while everybody else is trying to raise their prices, Changan Shenlan has made a different and good car in the price range of around 200,000 yuan.

How do we define a good car? There are certainly many standards, but the standard among these standards is meeting the needs of the intended user.The target users of Shenlan 03 are very clear – young people or people with a young mindset who want their first electric car, and it could also be the only car in the family.

As for this positioning, Shenlan 03 couldn’t be made into a big toy that sacrificed practicality or be too conservative that lost its freshness. It found a good balance in the end.

What sets Shenlan 03 apart is not only the cool equipment, such as frameless doors and hatchback tailgate, but also its pursuit of driving pleasure.

Nowadays, many speak of handling, but few can truly achieve it. Indeed, this aspect has a very small impact on consumers’ car-buying decisions, which is why many manufacturers do not attach much importance or pretend to attach much importance to it. This time, however, Shenlan 03 takes it seriously, because its CEO Deng Chenghao is a senior engineer specializing in three-electric vehicle technology and is also passionate about driving.

This story sounds a bit like a version of Akio Toyoda’s tale, but at the test-drive event this time, Mr. Deng personally took to the road. I could feel his passion for driving and the affection he had for Shenlan 03, like a “beloved son”, which is hard to package with marketing means.

Overall, Shenlan 03 is a good car to drive with some driving pleasure in addition to good acceleration and braking performance.

It doesn’t have a double wishbone front suspension system, just a front-McPherson and rear-H arm multi-link structure, but with aluminum alloy material used in the rear swing arm. It has good steering, nimble turning, and good body tracking. When quickly turning, the chassis allows some slight sliding before approaching the limit, helping the driver to turn. If your driving skills are good enough, it can even perform some drifting maneuvers.

If you’re already interested in Shenlan 03 after reading this, the video at the beginning of the article will give you a more detailed interpretation of it, including strengths and weaknesses, and actual acceleration and braking data. Also, if you just want to “buy buy buy” quickly, this car won’t make you wait too long.

Shenlan 03 is expected to begin pre-order sales at the end of June and be delivered in the third quarter. Changan Shenlan is confident that it can ensure the delivery of large quantities by the end of the year and will also transform more than 600 existing channels’ stores to rapidly expand its sales and service network.Based on my understanding of Changan and my impression of the car after the past few days, I guess that the overall price of the Deep Blue 03 should be lower than that of the BYD Dolphin, with the price of the main model possibly being within 200,000 yuan.

Of course, when it comes to sports and mid-size cars, we can’t avoid talking about Tesla Model 3.

Deep Blue 03 definitely cannot be as hardcore as Tesla Model 3, and it still has more considerations in terms of comfort. However, if my guess about the selling price is correct, buying a car that is just as fun and far more practical for 100,000 yuan cheaper is also a great deal.

Not only can Deep Blue 03 be a substitute for Tesla Model 3, but it can also be a qualified family car, which is its strongest competitive advantage.

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.