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The All-New KiWi EV is Officially Launched
On September 15th, the 2023 KiWi EV was officially launched. There are three versions in total, the Intelligent Trend version at 87,800 yuan, the Intelligent Luxury version at 93,800 yuan, and the DJI version equipped with the DJI Onboard Navigating System at 102,800 yuan.
Compared with the old model, the 2023 KiWi EV has mainly upgraded its interior and intelligence.In terms of interior, the KiWi EV has added two interior color options: Interstellar Black and Future Silver, and has extensively used suede seat material; the screen has been upgraded to a double 10.25-inch screen. The front row has added a 12V car power supply, which can be used in the future to connect a driving recorder and other devices.
The top-of-the-line DJI edition is equipped with the DJI Lingxi intelligent driving system. The hardware specifications are as follows:
- Binocular stereoscopic perception front camera
- 4 surround cameras
- 1 millimeter wave radar
- 12 ultrasonic radars
- Intelligent driving domain controller with a computing power of 16 TOPS
This “City” optimized advanced driving assistance system has a mature human-machine co-driving mechanism. The driver can easily take over the vehicle in complex road sections. When the vehicle recognizes the lane, the advanced driving assistance will immediately intervene, increasing the continuity of the advanced driving assistance usage.
At the press conference, Baojun announced that it will upgrade the OTA cross-floor parking memory parking and red/green light recognition feature that is highly used in urban areas by the end of this year.
Quick Comment:
Previously, a reliable advanced driving assistance system had to cost 250,000 yuan or even more. Now, the KiWi EV equipped with the DJI Lingxi intelligent driving system has directly reduced the price of advanced driving assistance to 100,000 yuan, greatly reducing the price threshold for usage.
We have already conducted actual tests on the performance of the KiWi, using the DJI Lingxi intelligent driving system. Interested friends can take a look at our article titled “What’s the level of the binocular advanced driving assistance from DJI in a car?“. Overall, as the debut of DJI car advanced driving assistance, its performance is still very good.
MG MULAN Price Announcement
On the evening of September 13th, MG MULAN officially announced its domestic prices:
The rear-wheel drive version is divided into three models:
- 425 km Fashion Edition 129,800 yuan;
- 425 km Luxury Edition 139,800 yuan;
- 520 km Flagship Edition 163,900 yuan.
Four-wheel drive:
- 460 km Four-wheel drive Celebration Edition 186,800 yuan!
This price is much more reasonable than the European version, even after subtracting the shipping cost. Especially for the 4WD version, not only did it meet the promise of a price below 200,000 yuan, but it even lowered the price to 186,800 yuan! This makes the MG MULAN the cheapest ticket to enter the 3-second club.
Among the four versions of MG MULAN, both the 4WD version and the top-of-the-line rear-wheel drive version with a range of 520 kilometers use a 64 kWh battery, while the rest use a 51 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery.
The 425 km version uses a 125 kW motor; the 520 km version uses a 150 kW rear-wheel drive motor; the 4WD version upgrades the rear motor to 165 kW and adds a 150 kW front motor, forming a 3.8 second acceleration small sports car.
At the same time, the turning radius of the MG MULAN can reach 5.3 meters, the axle load ratio is 50:50, and it uses front MacPherson strut and rear five-link independent suspension, with a center of gravity height of 490 mm.
For users who purchase a car from today until the end of the month, they can enjoy a 2,000 yuan down payment gift that can be exchanged for 3,000 yuan, as well as priority delivery rights, free charging piles and installation services, lifetime warranty for the three power systems, and lifetime free basic data usage. In addition, users can enjoy up to 6,000 yuan in exchange subsidies or financial interest rate subsidies.
Quick Comment:
At present, the product that is strongly comparable with the MG MULAN is Volkswagen’s ID.3. However, in terms of size, configuration, benefits, and even power, MULAN is more advantageous. The price of less than 200,000 yuan for the 4WD version also makes it the cheapest ticket to enter the “3-second club”.
Moreover, in the market for pure electric vehicles in the 100,000-200,000 yuan price range, having such a product with sincerity in terms of price and configuration, how many units of MG MULAN do you think can be sold each month?
Voyah FREE Long-Range Pure Electric Version is Launched
On the evening of September 15th, Voyah officially released a new model of Voyah FREE- Voyah FREE long-range pure electric version, with a price of 393,600 yuan. The official promotion states that the longest range of this model is up to 730 kilometers. However, this is measured at a speed of 60 km/h, and the vehicle’s actual CLTC work cycle range is 631 kilometers. It has to be said that such promotional copy is quite playful.
In terms of battery, the Voyah FREE long-range pure EV version is equipped with a 106.7 kWh battery pack, which is 21% larger than the standard version.
In terms of performance, this model is equipped with front and rear dual motors, with a maximum power of 360 kW and a peak torque of 720 N·m. The acceleration of 0-100 km/h can be as fast as 4.4 seconds, which is 0.1 seconds faster than the Voyah FREE standard version.
In terms of intelligence, in addition to the standard Snapdragon 8155, the Voyah FREE long-range pure EV version is equipped with NVS active night vision function in the whole series.
In addition to the above changes, the other parameters of the Voyah FREE long-range pure EV version are almost the same as the standard version, with only a few minor changes. For example, the interior design added a new red rice color, and the remote key was replaced with a brand-new design.
Quick Review:
Overall, the Voyah FREE long-range pure EV version is not much different from the ordinary version, with the main change being the increase in battery capacity and the improvement in endurance. However, the claimed endurance of 730 kilometers during the press conference is somewhat exaggerated, and the official CLTC test endurance of 631 kilometers should be used as the standard. At a price of 393,600 yuan, would you consider buying this car?
CCTV News Visit the Birthplace of Great Wall Lemon Hybrid DHT
On September 15th, CCTV News visited the Yizhong Industrial Park (hereinafter referred to as the “Yizhong Factory”) of Great Wall Motors’ Honeycomb Yichuang Technology. As the production factory for the Lemon Hybrid DHT transmission assembly, the Yizhong Factory made the first public introduction of the four-line production line for the Lemon Hybrid DHT transmission assembly.
Great Wall Motors introduced that Lemon Hybrid DHT has the technical characteristics of “1-2-3”.- “1” adopts a highly integrated hybrid system;
- “2” supports both HEV and PHEV powertrains;
- “3” has three sets of powertrains: “1.5 L + DHT 115”, “1.5 T + DHT 130”, and “1.5 T + DHT 130 + P4”.
The Great Wall Motors Lemon Hybrid DHT adopts a two-gear parallel-axis structure to expand the range of efficient direct drive of the engine and further improve overall efficiency. Through intelligent control system, Lemon Hybrid DHT can achieve seamless switching of various work modes such as EV driving, series-parallel drive, and energy recovery. If classified by usage scenarios, the working status of Lemon Hybrid DHT is as follows:
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In the parking scenario, the vehicle engine does not start, and energy consumption is 0;
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In the congested following and low-speed driving in urban road scenarios, the system intelligently switches between “EV mode” and “series mode”, and the engine always stays in the most efficient range;
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When cruising at medium speed higher than 35 km/h, the system can intelligently select “EV mode” or “series mode” according to the system load;
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When accelerating to pass another car at medium speed, the engine, drive motor, and generator output full load together to provide the best power, and the system provides high power response;
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In high-speed cruising, the system intelligently selects “EV mode” or “engine economy mode direct drive” mode according to the system load. At this time, the engine economy mode direct drive has the highest efficiency, and the fuel consumption is 10%-15% better than in series mode;
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When performing high-speed cruising overtaking, the engine economy mode direct drive switches to power mode direct drive, and the engine, drive motor, and generator output full load together to provide the best power response;
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During deceleration and braking, the energy recovery mode is entered to improve energy utilization efficiency.
Great Wall Motors Yangzhong factory designs the production line with the concepts of flexibility, automation, and informationization for the production of Lemon Hybrid DHT transmission assembly, and uses a quality management system to monitor production data in real-time, achieve early prevention, and ensure stable production. The full-line-rated cycle time is ≤ 113 seconds.
In addition, the assembly line of Yangzhong factory uses flexible design, and the error coverage rate can reach 100%. Moreover, the comprehensive testing station used in the assembly testing of the transmission assembly can achieve 100% NVH testing. In terms of quality control, MES information system is used throughout the entire line of Yangzhong factory to achieve precise traceability of each part.#### Quick Review:
As one of the top three hybrid systems in China, alongside BYD DM-i Super Hybrid and Geely Leshen Super Hybrid, the Lemon Hybrid DHT is the biggest competitive advantage for Great Wall Motors in the new energy field. This visit to the Great Wall plant in Yangzhong by CCTV News Live is evidently recognition of Great Wall’s technological prowess in the hybrid field.
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.