Author: The Knight Errant
After Mocha and Macchiato, WEY’s latest “Coffee Series” third model – Latte, officially started pre-sale yesterday. The pre-sale price of the new car is 160,000-180,000 yuan, and it is expected to be officially launched in the fourth quarter of this year.
Although Latte is the third vehicle model to be introduced, it ranks second in terms of body size. The length, width and height of Latte are 4668/1890/1730 mm, with a wheelbase of 2745 mm, which is obviously superior to Macchiato’s 4520/1855/1665 mm and 2710 mm wheelbase. However, in terms of vehicle positioning, Latte and Macchiato are both compact SUVs.
In terms of appearance, Latte still uses a very familiar family design language. The shield-shaped hexagonal grille, the large headlights with angled corners, the vertical LED daytime running lights, and the front face continued from the VV series models still have a clear and harmonious sense on the new “Coffee Series” models, except that the new series has less roughness and more softness. If you want to distinguish between the differences of the Latte and Mocha and Macchiato, you need to look at their lower bumper shapes. Latte’s design is the most conventional, but it is also the most harmonious in terms of the senses.
Looking at the side, the entire contour of Latte is a traditional SUV line, and the distinct levels of the design bring a good sense of muscularity to the new car. At the same time, the front-low-and-back-high waistline also adds a touch of delicacy. In addition, the blue-green body color shown in the official picture creates a youthful and fresh feeling.
Coming to the rear of the car, Latte still doesn’t use the very popular through-type taillights. Instead, it uses a chrome-plated decoration strip connecting the two taillights to set the tone. Therefore, the overall feeling is not too stunning. One point to note is that although the lower bumper design of Latte looks quite complex, with light bars and chrome decorations, the exhaust is a hidden design, which gives people a somewhat anticlimactic feeling.
In terms of interior design, it must be said that the “Coffee Series” models really refresh our impression of WEY. Thinking back to the mediocre central control area in the VV series models in the past, it is really frustrating. Fortunately, on Latte, WEY’s designers finally realized the minimalist + technology route. The full LCD instrument panel + HUD + floating central control large screen + air conditioning function screen, which are four screens in total, can all achieve interactive linkage, and the sense of technology is firmly online.
Apart from its high-tech feel, the luxurious ambience inside the Latte is also well done. The combination of two colors, large areas of leather wrapping, diamond pattern design on the seats, double-sided steering wheel, and antique bronze decoration on the crystal-style electronic gear lever and air conditioning vents, all visually give a strong sense of luxury.
Lastly, the power system of the Latte is particularly noteworthy. The new car will be the first model equipped with the 1.5T Intelligent Hybrid DHT system, which has a total power of 175 kW and a maximum torque of 530 N·m. It will be matched with the DHT130 hybrid transmission, with a 0-100 km/h acceleration time of 7.5 seconds. The official claim is that the full tank and full electric endurance will exceed 1000 km, with a fuel consumption of 4.9 L/100 km.
In terms of suspension, the Latte is also equipped with an electronically controlled active suspension, which can adjust the damping force value of the shock absorber output in real time according to the vehicle’s passing road conditions, effectively suppressing the posture changes such as pitching and rolling of the vehicle, bringing a better driving and riding experience.
In fact, from the power system alone, it can be seen that the reason why WEY launched the Latte in the same class as the Mocha before the official launch of the latter is to meet the needs of users with higher consumption and to quickly expand the DHT hybrid technology in the market. The larger size, better space, and stronger power of the Latte are obviously half a class higher than the Mocha. Of course, the price will also be half a class higher.
Not only in the Chinese market, but also at the recent Munich International Auto Show, WEY also brought the Latte to the booth, renamed Coffee 02 overseas, and expanded overseas markets with its big brother, Mocha (named Coffee 01 overseas). Let alone other things, this naming method for car models is sure to arouse the curiosity of foreign friends.
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.