On the afternoon of August 18th, WM Motor held an online event with the theme “Consistency Across Polar Extremes” to release the new WM Motor M7 Extreme Performance and share its technology.
Apart from introducing the ADAS intelligent hardware and interior configurations of the WM Motor M7, the main focus of this event was to highlight a series of tests that the M7 underwent in various harsh environments to test its extreme performance. Let’s take a look at the important information points of this event.
First-Class ADAS Hardware
Since NIO released the ET7, high-performance auxiliary driving intelligent hardware such as high-computing chips and LiDAR has gradually been mounted on different car models. This year’s various new car models have completely “involved” LiDAR, and more and more models are equipped with 2, 3 or even 4 LiDARs. So what does WM Motor’s Living Pilot 5.0 FAD All-Scenarios Intelligent Driving offer?
First, let’s take a look at the 32 ADAS intelligent perception hardware mounted on the WM Motor M7:
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3 RoboSense latest-generation self-focusing solid-state LiDARs M1
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7 8-million-pixel high-definition cameras, with a far detection range exceeding 600 meters
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4 2-million-pixel panoramic cameras
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5 millimeter-wave radars
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12 ultrasonic radars
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1 independent high-precision positioning module
Just like the NIO ET7, the WM Motor M7 is also equipped with 4 NVIDIA Orin-X chips, with a total computing power of 1,016 Tops.
Judging from the hardware configuration alone, it is undeniable that the WM Motor M7 is on par with the flagship intelligent driving models of various car manufacturers, with “LiDAR, high-performance computing chips, and high-pixel cameras all included.”## Introduction
The WmAuto M7 is the first intelligent driving product that implements high-speed assisted driving and city navigation assisted driving based on “weak high-precision maps” and full-scene parking. Compared with products that rely heavily on high-precision maps, the WmAuto M7’s route is “primarily visual” with high-precision maps as secondary. In the event that the high-precision map does not match the actual road conditions, the vehicle can adjust itself in a timely manner based on the information it “sees”. We are also looking forward to conducting a full-assisted driving test on this vehicle at the 42 Mark test site.
5 Sense Intelligent Cockpit
WmAuto has named M7’s intelligent cockpit “Living Engine 4.0” customizable 5 sense intelligent cockpit. Let’s first talk about the most surprising design in the cockpit – the main driver’s steering wheel area.
WmAuto has removed all of the gears on the left and right sides of the steering wheel in the M7, and has not reserved the gear lever in the center console, but integrated the shifting and turn signal functions on the steering wheel.
Although this is not the first car to remove the shift lever, some sports cars have similar designs, but this is the first time for a family car. We have to say that WmAuto’s design this time is somewhat “radical”, even for the representative of the radical faction – Tesla, which integrates the instrument panel into the center control screen, has not made such an “advanced” design.
Although the official explanation for this design is to allow users to complete more operations without taking their hands off the steering wheel and simplify the user’s operation process. However, this change still changes the user’s usage habits, and I think whether it is handy or not in actual use still needs to wait until the test drive of this vehicle to draw a conclusion.
In front of the front passenger, there is a small screen called “i-Surf Technology Skin”. It can reflect a variety of lighting atmospheres and support users to customize the interface content, such as creating game-themed spaces, setting event reminders, etc. When a car approaches from the side, the i-Surf technology skin will also issue a collision warning in advance.
Above the “T”-shaped area on the center console, there is an “intelligent rotary knob” with a screen. WmAuto officially calls it “i-Rota intelligent wear”. The knob can be used to adjust the air conditioning temperature and media information, view weather, time and vehicle warning information. Moreover, it also has the function of displaying humanoid expressions similar to NIO’s “NOMI”, allowing passengers and drivers to perform visualized voice control, somewhat similar to adding an intelligent watch to the car.
In addition, WM Motor provides two high-definition entertainment screens for passengers in the M7’s rear seats, fully catering to the entertainment needs of rear passengers.
Outside the car, the WM M7 is equipped with external speakers, external microphones, and an intelligent light language system. Not only can it play greeting light language and voice messages before boarding, but also allows the owner to directly control the vehicle by voice outside the car, and even achieve intelligent voice parking and summoning outside the car. Imagine how cool that is.
“Crossing Both Poles” Performance
All of the above information was demonstrated by WM Motors at the Guangzhou Auto Show last year. Finally, let’s take a look at the focus of this sharing session – what kind of performance can the WM M7 achieve in extreme climates?
As early as January of this year, WM Motor conducted vehicle calibration and verification work in extreme cold weather in places like Yakutsk and Heihe. WM tested core items such as air conditioning, battery thermal management, low-temperature charging, and power performance in -30°C extreme cold conditions. Finally, the M7 achieved the excellent results of ascending to a comfortable temperature within 17 minutes of air conditioning, 17 kWh per 100 kilometers power consumption, and only 30 minutes needed to charge from 30% to 80% SOC in a -30°C environment.
Undoubtedly, these results demonstrate that WM Motors has put in a lot of effort in the M7’s TMS (thermal management system), motor control, battery management, and other aspects in extreme cold weather. It’s also worth mentioning that in extreme cold conditions, the M7’s active air intake grille will automatically close to reduce temperature loss. When the bottom battery pack needs to cool down or the system needs to perform heat exchange, it will automatically open to reduce the workload of the compressor and play a role in heat dissipation.
In July of this year, the WM M7 came to China’s “heat pole” Turpan for another round of vehicle calibration and verification work in extreme heat environment. After undergoing rigorous testing in eight major dimensions and 124 projects, the M7 once again achieved excellent results: power consumption of only 15.6 kWh per 100 kilometers, a drop in in-car temperature from 60°C to 26°C in just 9.5 minutes, and only 38.6 minutes needed to charge from 30% to 80%.
Also, the Weima M7 achieved an impressive braking distance of 34 meters per 100 kilometers and ranked among the top of its competitors.
Clearly, these technical advantages proved to be very effective even in extremely hot conditions. It is also worth noting that the Weima M7, despite its 2.8 square meter panoramic glass roof, is equipped with triple sun protection and heat insulation measures: nano-silver plating, PVB gray film, and Low-e coating, with a UV blocking rate of 99.99% and TTS (Total Solar Transmittance) of ≤15%, achieving perfect sun protection and heat insulation.
Conclusion
As Weima’s “sharp weapon” to compete in the high-end market, the Weima M7 already drew many consumers’ attention with its unique features when it debuted at the Guangzhou Auto Show.
Now, the results of this extreme weather vehicle test conducted by Weima further highlight that the car not only looks sophisticated but also performs like a high-end vehicle.
However, with the delivery of the ET7 this year, other car companies have also unveiled their flagship models. To compete in this domestic market and stay ahead, Weima M7 needs to quickly land its vehicles, allowing consumers to experience its strong product capabilities.
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.