Before the significant improvement in charging speed and convenience, the range is always the most concerned indicator for electric car buyers. With the increasing number of pure electric models, consumers are becoming more rational in their assessment of the difference between NEDC range and actual range. Many consumers expressed that actual range needs to be discounted based on the NEDC standard.
Last year, WEY EX5 left a very good impression on consumers with its good product performance. Based on this, in the first quarter of 2019, WEY EX5 ranked first in the new force vehicle delivery volume list with 4085 units delivered.
We were curious about how EX5 owners feel after half a year of experience, so I logged in to the WEY official APP to check out the daily usage of EX5 owners. Unexpectedly, I found that WEY had launched a challenge activity on their official APP, roughly to compare who can run the longest range with one box of electricity, which is very similar to the fuel-saving competition held by gasoline cars in recent years. Looking through the posts of the car owners in the APP, the car owner who ran the longest range used 95% of his electricity and achieved an amazing 572 km range by driving at a constant speed, having a “gentle” right foot and strategic braking.
However, the owner honestly admitted at the end of the post that this achievement was only for the competition and could not be used as a reference for daily use. Nevertheless, some car owners also achieved a range of 400 km under normal driving habits, which is the NEDC range of this car.
As a person who has experienced the EX5 400 model in the winter and traveled long distances during the spring travel season, I have some doubts about this. However, the environment I drove in was not very friendly to the battery in cold winter. Therefore, I asked a few car owners about the actual range of WEY EX5 in the current weather conditions and their opinions on this car after half a year of purchase.
I interviewed a total of 3 car owners, all of whom live in Shanghai. 2 of them are owners of the WM EX5 400 model, and 1 is an owner of the WM EX5 300 model. The NEDC ranges for these two models are 400 km and 300 km, respectively.
Several owners of the 400 model stated that “under current outdoor temperatures of over 20 degrees Celsius, with normal driving and air conditioning on, actual driving range can exceed 350 km.” Achieving 400 km of driving range requires some effort. One owner of the 300 model said that driving range can now reach 320 km, surpassing the NEDC range.
Next, let’s talk about the driving scenarios of these car owners in detail.
The first Shanghai car owner RAY purchased the WM EX5 400 model as a second car for the family, with another being a fuel-powered car. RAY said that due to the special nature of their work, the car use environment can vary greatly, ranging from a few kilometers to hundreds of kilometers. However, when commuting in Shanghai, RAY would choose to drive the WM EX5. The frequency of use is not high, as RAY has only driven for a few thousand kilometers since taking possession of the car.
Under current weather conditions, driving in ECO mode can achieve a range of 350 km, which is enough for commuting and travel. For long-distance travel, RAY would choose the fuel-powered car in the family.
Charging mainly relies on third-party fast charging. RAY said that because of work reasons, they have relatively free time to charge. Even if they have to charge, they can continue working at nearby cafes and other places. Therefore, using public charging facilities does not impact their life, and the first year of charging using the WM “Instant Charge” APP is free, making the cost of car use very low.
RAY believes that the WM EX5 is the most richly configured and longest-range model at its price point, and overall, is very satisfied with it. The only minor issue is that the charging speed is not always stable, and it can be slow at times.
The second owner of the 400 model is Qiangqiang, who purchased the car in November 2018. The car has been driven for more than 20,000 kilometers in the six months since it was delivered. Qiangqiang also owns an electric car and a gasoline car purchased several years ago, but considers the intelligence level of the WM Motor far superior to that of gasoline-powered cars, and even more comfortable to drive. Therefore, Qiangqiang would choose to drive the WM Motor even on long-distance trips of 500 km. This surprised me.
Qiangqiang thinks that using fast charging and charging for a little over an hour is acceptable, and that they need to rest every 2 hours or 200 km, which happens to be the same time needed to charge the car. Moreover, the charging conditions in the Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai regions are already relatively complete, and there are not so many problems with charging stations, so Qiangqiang is very confident in driving an electric car.
Under the current weather conditions and commuting, with 50% congested roads and 50% elevated roads, the normal driving range is about 350 kilometers. If driven conservatively, the car can travel up to 380 km – 400 km. Qiangqiang has a home charging station, making it very convenient to use the car.
When I asked Qiangqiang if there is anything dissatisfying about the car, Qiangqiang said that they are very satisfied with the car in terms of range, configuration, space and price, especially the voice control function, which Qiangqiang considers very intelligent and convenient, something most gasoline cars do not possess.
The third owner is called “Datou” and owns the WM Motor EX5 300. When I learned that Datou had bought the 300 model, I was quite surprised. But Datou said that it is enough for their needs. What surprised me even more is that in the current weather conditions, when commuting (with 50% elevated and 50% ground roads, and fairly good road conditions without much traffic congestion), the actual driving range is 320 kilometers which surpasses the NEDC standard.
Looking back at the configuration table, the battery capacity of the WM Motor EX5 400 model is 52.5 kWh, while the battery capacity of the 300 model is 46 kWh. This means that the driving range of the 400 model is increased by 33.3% compared to the 300 model, but the battery capacity only increased by 14.3%. Considering that Datou’s driving conditions are also good, it is understandable to have a driving range exceeding the NEDC standard.In addition, Da tou is also very satisfied with this car, especially the performance of the electric car. He will not drive his other fuel car at home unless it is absolutely necessary. As for long-distance travel, Da tou said that he would only drive as far as Hangzhou and Ningbo, which are more than 200 kilometers away from Shanghai. It is quite comfortable to rest at the service area and charge once during the trip.
Based on the descriptions of several car owners, we can summarize 5 characteristics of WM Motor:
1. Cost-effective, cost-effective, and cost-effective
Cost-effectiveness is the word that car owners mention most often. Several car owners are quite satisfied with the WM EX5. Strongly recommend the WM to their friends because the price is very reasonable. Before buying the car, several car owners carefully compared pure electric cars of the same level of domestic brands, and they believe that WM is the only choice in this price range for the corresponding configuration, space, and endurance.
2. Actual endurance depends largely on driving habits
These car owners believe that electric cars have better power performance and are more enjoyable to drive than fuel cars, so they don’t consciously drive frugally. But if you drive frugally, you can achieve the rated endurance of NEDC. If you completely abandon the driving experience and just want to save electricity, you can achieve an endurance of more than 500 km like the car owner at the beginning of the article.
3. Actual endurance of electric cars also depends on road conditions
The energy consumption under different traffic conditions, such as congestion, smoothness, and high-speed driving, varies greatly. Like Da tou, driving in smooth and ring roads can easily achieve NEDC endurance.
4. Rational view of electric car winter endurance
The WM, which was delivered in October 2018, experienced the test of winter. The actual endurance will be compromised under the use of PTC battery heating and PTC heating. After experiencing a winter, most car owners began to understand and adapt to this scenario.
5. Hardware is also crucial
In addition to driving habits, hardware is also crucial. The basic three electric hardware of WM is very cost-effective. The power system uses BorgWarner’s integrated electric drive system, and the power transmission efficiency reaches 93%. The IGBT is also provided by a well-known manufacturer Infineon, and the battery cell is provided by mainstream battery manufacturers that offer VDA square batteries.
Currently, WM EX5’s endurance is not as exaggerated as the power-saving contest, but it can still achieve nearly NEDC endurance under current temperature conditions.
In the WM brand day in April, WM stated that future products’ endurance parameters will adopt a more stringent WLTP standard, making it the first domestic brand to use the WLTP cycle test standard. From the actual endurance of EX5 close to NEDC to the application of the WLTP standard, this is indeed a good improvement.
In addition, these WmAuto car owners represent the first group of ordinary electric car owners who purchased new car brands. Their reputation has an important impact on the electric car industry. For a new brand, their reputation is largely determined by the reputation evaluation of car owners.
Through this small survey, we found that the current satisfaction of WmAuto car owners with their products is higher than we expected. Of course, as time goes by, changes may happen to new car products, and we will continue to pay attention to whether car owners’ reputation will change over time.
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.