Comparison between Skywell ME5 and BYD Song Pro DM-i

In September 2020, Dr. Stephan Wöllenstein, CEO of Volkswagen Group China, criticized the extended-range electric vehicle route as “the worst solution” from a national and global perspective, even though he acknowledged some value of the technology from a single-vehicle perspective. Another industry insider, Li Ruifeng, CEO of WEY, shares a similar view that “it’s an industry consensus that extended-range hybrid technology is lagging behind, no matter how big the talk is.” This has sparked discussions on whether extended-range electric vehicles are products of outdated technology.

Although many industry insiders believe that extended-range products are at the bottom of the industry hierarchy, brands such as Skywell ME5, Huawei, Voyah and Ideal have launched their own versions. Even WEY has launched the DHT-PHEV model under the label of “the world’s best hybrid car”. These moves indicate that extended-range technology is not just a transitional phase from fuel-powered to new energy cars, but rather a new form of development for new energy vehicles.

In fact, for consumers, what matters is whether the product meets their needs, rather than whether it is advanced or not. Today, we will compare the Skywell ME5 with the BYD Song Pro DM-i to see how they differ. We chose these two models because they are sold at similar prices, ranging from 138,800 to 163,800 yuan for the BYD Song Pro DM-i and 159,900 to 169,900 yuan for the Skywell ME5.

Differences in Interior, Exterior and Configuration

In terms of exterior design, the Skywell ME5 was designed by Hakan Saracoglu, who also designed the Porsche 911&918, maintaining the German quality. The BYD Song Pro DM-i is designed with the aesthetic of the Song Dynasty and uses BYD’s classic Dragon Face design language.

Regarding interior design, the Skywell ME5 has adopted the hand-wrapped craftmanship and PVC leather to showcase its high-end and environmentally friendly design ideas. In contrast, the BYD Song Pro DM-i has a soft material with a textured surface and piano baking paint style dashboard. It comes with both white and brown schemes that provide a comfortable texture.

“Technology” is a topic that intelligent cars cannot avoid, as only powerful software and hardware can empower technology. The Skywell ME5 boasts powerful hardware configurations that enable it to be a leader in the new energy vehicle market.

The Skywell ME5 is equipped with a super-powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 820A Prem main chip with double mainframe configuration. This powerful hardware enables it to run faster, reduce the risk of car-machine jams and black screen, and ensure intelligence and safety.The Skyworth ME5 is equipped with a 14.8-inch HD display, combining 2K ultra-high resolution with practicality, using Hallo ME inspiration interactive lighting, Logo through design, and equipped with digital keys, Face ME face recognition system, and other configurations.

The Face ME face recognition system of the Skyworth ME5 has a recognition rate of up to 99% and a recognition time of less than 0.5S. It supports seamless connection between mobile phones and car machines, and can achieve file sharing, video casting, and other functions.

In addition, the intelligent cabin of the Skyworth ME5 can achieve L2+ intelligent assisted driving, supporting 3D visualization of scene reconstruction, super 360° multi-angle panoramic imaging, remote parking, and other configurations.

However, it is a pity that the OTA of Skyworth ME5 only supports the FOTA operation of the car system update in the intelligent driving domain, power domain, and body domain.

To enhance the quietness of the Skyworth ME5, it adopts a flywheel rotor integrated range extender design, with smooth switching and no sense of starting and stopping. The popular appearance design and rear-wheel drive design further reduce noise, and the car is equipped with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV high-grade, low-noise tires, EPDM+PUR high-grade sound insulation materials, giving users excellent overall vehicle sealing performance beyond the same level.

The interior of the BYD Song Pro DM-i is mainly for home use. The control area of the vehicle is still equipped with a 12.8-inch rotatable Pad. The car machine is built-in with the DiLink 4.0 intelligent network system, which supports third-party APPs such as iQiyi, Douyin, and WeChat. In actual use, the operation and voice response of the BYD car system are very user-friendly.

The air conditioning area of the BYD Song Pro DM-i is placed at the bottom of the central control screen, with a fast cooling mode above. In addition, it has PM2.5 filtering device and air purifier, further ensuring the air quality in the car. In terms of comfort, the BYD Song Pro DM-i supports opening panoramic sunroof, and the front seats supports two-level seat heating and ventilation functions.In terms of safety configuration, the BYD Song Pro DM-i is equipped with the DiPilot intelligent driving assistance system, which includes high-tech safety features such as ACC adaptive cruise control, predictive emergency braking system, TSR excellent pass identification recognition and other systems, as well as lane departure warning, lane keeping assist, active braking, transparent chassis, front/rear parking radar and 360-degree holographic imaging. The vehicle body uses a large amount of high-strength steel, with a proportion as high as 64%, which can provide better collision safety. The lithium iron phosphate blade battery adopts a fully aluminum package design, and the bottom of the battery pack is protected by wrapped glass fiber board to prevent bottom scratches.

Key Differences of the Mechanical Qualities:

The Skyrizon ME5 is positioned as an A+ level extended-range electric SUV, in the highly competitive compact SUV market, and to stand out, it needs a remarkable advantage – the extended-range system.

Academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) have claimed that the extended-range system is the future of the automobile industry. The development path of automobiles in recent years has been from traditional vehicles to hybrid vehicles and then to extended-range and pure electric vehicles.

Compared to traditional vehicles, the biggest advantage of the extended-range system is that it is more reliable and has no mileage worries when compared to purely electric cars. There are many extended-range cars now available, such as the Li ONE, WEN JIE M5, LanTu FREE, and the Skyrizon ME5, and it is not hard to notice that their comprehensive fuel consumption is lower than traditional vehicles, but slightly higher than fuel cars only in high-speed driving conditions.

In a sense, the extended-range system belongs to the category of hybrid, but it is different from traditional hybrid cars. Gasoline engines in hybrid cars are used to generate electricity and drive the gearbox and wheels, while the engine in an extended-range system only generates electricity. Thus, the extended-range system is a simplified and more reliable version of hybrid technology, and it is a form of technology between hybrid and pure electric vehicles.

Advantages of the extended-range system:

1. The driving form is all electric, and with the rechargeable lithium-ion battery, it has the handling advantages and simple maintenance compared to gasoline cars, which pure electric cars lack.

2. The lithium-ion battery in the extended-range system is smaller than that in a pure electric car, and the overall weight of the car is lower with better off-road passability.

3. The extended-range system has a faster recharge function and no mileage worries, so it can continue to run by generating electricity with gasoline: compared to traditional and hybrid vehicles, it reduces the trouble and cost of maintenance and repair.

4. The structure is simple, and there is no complex gearbox like hybrid cars.

The Skyrizon ME5 adopts its self-developed iMES intelligent extended-range system and a 1.5L naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine, which won the “Top Ten New Energy Power with Chinese Characteristics” award, a battery pack of 30.6 degrees, and a pure electric mileage of 155km according to the NEDC calculation method. The comprehensive mileage can reach 1012km, and the comprehensive fuel consumption is 4.9L/100km. The motor is rear-mounted and rear-wheel drive, with a maximum power of 150kW, a maximum torque of 310N.m, and a zero to 100km/h acceleration time of 8.9s, which is slightly over 8s in actual testing.In addition, it adopts Atkinson cycle and high compression ratio to improve thermal efficiency, reduces mechanical loss and improves fuel economy through DLC coating technology, and improves the overall emissions of the engine through mid-position intake and exhaust DVVT, external EGR, and other technologies. Equipped with an efficient permanent magnet motor and optimized calibration, the iMES intelligent range extender system developed independently by BYD is a cross-domain electronic and electrical architecture that integrates the whole vehicle controller and battery management system.

In BYD’s electrification development path, the DM-i super hybrid has become a “gold signature”, not only reducing the average cost of BYD’s new energy vehicle battery pack by 30%, but also balancing the power and fuel economy of the vehicle.

Those who have followed BYD’s blade battery may find that its structure is very simple, mainly divided into four parts:

1. The bottom guard plate, which protects the battery pack and can withstand minor collisions without causing huge impact on the battery pack’s body, and can be replaced independently.

2. The honeycomb structure battery pack tray, which has strong self-absorption energy and impact resistance, is not easily damaged in collision, and thus avoids the need to replace the battery pack.

3. The sealed pressure plate.

4. The battery cells.

However, the recent frequent incidents of BYD’s new energy vehicles catching fire have made us rethink the safety of BYD’s blade battery.

The BYD Song Pro DM-i is equipped with the latest DM-i super hybrid system independently developed by BYD, which is composed of a 1.5L engine and an electric motor. The maximum power of the engine is 81 kW, the peak torque is 135 N.m, the thermal efficiency reaches 43.04%, the electric motor provides two versions with a total power of 132 kW and 145 kW, and a total torque of 316 N.m and 325 N.m respectively. It is equipped with a lithium iron phosphate blade battery pack, and the NEDC pure electric range is 51 km and 110 km, respectively.

Regarding the DM-i system, when the vehicle has sufficient power, the driving is more like a pure electric vehicle, with a faster starting speed than the same level, and a 0-100 acceleration time of only 7.9 seconds. There are also three driving modes: economy, normal, and sports. When the power is insufficient, the system will control the oil-electric balance according to different working conditions. Under city driving conditions, the DM-i can achieve more than 80% pure electric driving with power recovery. When the engine is only involved in 20% of the working conditions, with the increase of the average driving speed, the proportion of engine series-parallel hybrid system in DM-i system will gradually increase. Under high-speed driving conditions, the engine will be directly driven to intervene. If it is not in a state of serious power shortage, there is no need to feel the intervention of the engine.For chassis maintenance, from the initial development of Skywell ME5, it has benchmarked against the German Three Luxury brands and utilized the following five measures to strengthen the toughness of the chassis and to protect the protection plates from impact:

1. All-aluminum alloy rear suspension structure: Accurate control of vehicle positioning parameters ensures excellent dynamic performance of the chassis. With a weight reduction of about 38% compared to cast iron material, the weight under the spring is greatly reduced, ensuring responsive handling and driving comfort +++.

2. H-arm multi-link independent rear suspension: occupying less space in both the lateral and longitudinal directions, the design implements lateral and longitudinal stiffness decoupling, reduces road impact, and improves vibration filtering and NVH performance while perfectly balancing handling and comfort.

3. HRS high-performance hydraulic cushion shock absorber: achieves precise control of damping segmentation. When the ME5 crosses an obstacle at 50kph, the vertical bounce of the body is reduced from 43mm to 30mm, reducing the body’s bounce amplitude by 30%, with flexible damping.

4. A-grade unique multi-mode speed-dependent resistance steering system \DP-EPS: adopts the leading global Bosch Dual Pinion Gear-type electric power steering system (DP-EPS), with better torque response, direct and precise, linear and excellent steering feel, and dynamic performance. Supports three steering feel modes: Comfort, Standard, and Sport.

5. The industry-leading minimum turning radius of 10.9m: by optimizing the front suspension mounting point and steering system parameters while balancing comfort and handling, the industry’s leading minimum turning radius of 10.9m is achieved.

Skywell ME5 has undergone the most stringent safety standards in North America and Europe and has strong market competitiveness among its peers.

Since its self-development, Skywell ME5 has formulated the development goals of “3G” and “Five Stars” based on the C-IASI and C-NCAP dual-standard system, carrying out over one million hours of CAE simulation analysis and optimization, and conducting over 60 complete vehicle development and verifying collision tests as well as over 20 bench tests for two-wheel vehicles. This ensures the reliability of collision safety ECU, structure, and restraint systems, and it has several major advantages:

Strong enough: high-strength steel accounts for up to 80% of the vehicle, with a tensile strength of more than 1500Mpa, and hot-forming accounts for up to 22%, while more than 34% is ultra-high-strength steel with a strength of more than 800Mpa. With the “rigid-flexible coexisting” safety technology, the 5OMPDB SD value under authority compatibility evaluation is only 43, leading the industry. To take care of the safety of traffic accident personnel, Skywell ME5 comes with standard dual pretensioners and dynamic lock tongues for the driver and front passenger seats, and in addition to meeting the performance requirements of ECER21, C-NCAP, and C-IASI, the passenger airbag also adds a limit-pulling belt, effectively reducing the risk of being slapped in the face when the airbag deploys.

Stability: The ME5 Skywell features a multi-ring structure made up of hot-formed door rings and a hot-formed front floor, forming an ultra-strong cabin that deformed only slightly during a 25% small offset crash test. In addition, with excellent A/B pillar cross-sectional dimensions, the ME5 was able to withstand 4.9 times its own weight pressure in a top crush test, with deformation of less than 127mm. Even in the event of a rollover, passengers’ heads can be well protected.

Safety: Based on the strict C-NCAP-2021 side pillar impact standard, the Skywell internal safety standard implements a full-size threshold protection of 10mm from the edge margin, ensuring that the battery cell survives with a high survival space of 180mm in a C-IASI side ultra-high barrier collision, which exceeds the excellent goal of 125mm by far.

Complete Protection: The ME5 employs a 360-degree stereo protection power battery to ensure high-voltage safety during collisions and prevent fires after collisions. Considering various complex road conditions and misuse of reverse driving, the chassis protection meets FMSS301 80kph high-voltage safety, ensuring comprehensive battery safety.

Overall, although plug-in hybrid models are fuel-efficient, their structures are very complex. For example, the BYD DM-i seven-in-one drive assembly box is equipped with dual motors, electronic control, clutch, single-speed reducer, and cooling system. Compared to the pure mechanical transmission of gasoline and range-extended electric vehicles, it is much more complex and its maturity remains to be seen. The biggest disadvantage is that theoretically, the more complex power failures may occur, leading to higher maintenance costs.

In conclusion:

Whether it is range-extended technology or plug-in hybrid technology, the ultimate goal is to improve consumers’ driving experience while achieving energy-saving and emission reduction. As for “technological advancement,” there is no unified standard at present, as long as the technology is recognized by consumers, it is considered successful.

As the second card Skywell has launched, the ME5 Skywell’s price positioning avoids direct competition with the IDEAL ONE, Voyah Free, and WEY M5 range-extended electric vehicle models in the market, positioning itself in a market space without any competitors, making it a highly cost-effective new energy vehicle.

The BYD Song Pro DM-i vs. the Skywell ME5

The BYD Song Pro DM-i is built upon the advantages of fuel economy, smoothness, and quietness, and is aimed primarily at mainstream joint venture fuel vehicle models, such as the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Nissan X-Trail, and more.

When compared to the Skywell ME5, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, it is clear that the BYD Song Pro DM-i does not have an obvious advantage in terms of power data. The Skywell ME5 solves range anxiety in pure electric vehicles, and is more efficient at speeds under 80 kph, making it suitable for users who seek a pure electric driving experience in the city with occasional long-distance travel needs. The BYD Song Pro DM-i, on the other hand, solves range anxiety in pure electric vehicles and is more efficient at speeds above 80 kph, making it suitable for users who frequently travel long distances at high speeds.

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.