Button accordion break: test drive of the Chinese sedan BYD Han

Options not even available in Rolls-Royce. Fuel consumption is about four liters per 100 km. And then there is a leather interior and a bunch of all sorts of “gadgets”. This is how Russian sellers briefly describe the Chinese hybrid sedan BYD Han. The correspondent of the portal “AvtoVzglyad” did not believe in it and gave the “premium” a severe test for adaptation to our roads.

The five-meter flagship of the BYD series is often confused with German cars. And the truth: in the front it is somewhat reminiscent of Audi, and behind Porsche. No wonder, because the chief designer contributed to the structure of the Volkswagen group for a long time.

The model was named “Khan” in honor of one of the ancient Chinese dynasties. During their wise rule, paper, a seismograph, an adjustable wrench, a wheelbarrow and other household things were invented. Therefore, grateful descendants placed dynastic hieroglyphics on the sides, as well as on 19-inch alloy wheels.

INNOVATIVE “waste”

“Four Door” is based on the DM3 platform of its own design. It is “sharpened” for production of both hybrids and pure electric vehicles. Therefore, the traction battery is placed quite compactly under the floor and the power cables are covered with a strong steel protection. But the fuel lines going through port are open to all winds. Yes, and the ground clearance is low. If the car “sits down” on a snowdrift with a battery, it will be difficult to move it.

If we talk about the suspension, then it practically copies the Toyota Camry scheme. Powerful steering knuckles are visible in the front. These are good for a crossover. Behind it is a multilink where you have to pay attention to the lower silent blocks. In the Camry, they are the first to wear out from stress. The “Chinese” may have the same story.

The DM-I hybrid system is modeled on various solutions from Mitsubishi and Honda. It works in both serial and parallel modes. For this purpose, the electric motor and the variator were combined into one unit.

Under the hood is a 1.5-liter supercharged unit with a capacity of 139 forces. Usually it is muted or works as a generator to charge the traction battery. And that, in turn, powers the electric motor for 197 “horses”. The drive of this copy is in the front. But there are also all-wheel drive options with a total power of the power plant – 415 horsepower. Of.

“Powered” BYD Han from the power outlet. As a pure electric car, it can cover almost 250 kilometers. And the power reserve with a full tank and a charged battery is 1300 km. At the same time, the average fuel consumption is 4.2 liters per 100 km.

“CUT” UNDER THE EMPEROR

The door handle extends invitingly and invites me into the salon. Quality is not a problem. On the center console – a rough coating that is pleasant to the touch. It’s called dragon skin. In general, this “Chinese” will already argue with Japanese and Korean cars.

By the way, the seats can be both bucket type with integrated headrests and traditional seats. This can be seen in the photo. The front ones have heating, ventilation and electrical adjustments.

In the middle is a rotating display from Huawei. “Software” simply “flies” with him. But the huge screen isn’t used to distracting from the road. Several times I caught myself thinking I wasn’t looking ahead, but into him.

augmented reality

I wake up the power source with the button and roll onto the road. Acceleration is quite fast. When you press the accelerator, the car can “shoot”, but it is solid, so it is indecent to drive. It is much better to move slowly. So comfort is felt, and the spring suspension gently smoothes out bumps. The only complaint is that all road noise can be heard in the cabin. Especially the rustle of tires and stones drumming on the wheel arches. Parasitic sounds aggressively “break” through the sound insulation. What must we do?

In conventional cars, increase the volume of the acoustics and relax. And BYD Han has a full-time karaoke system for this! And it comes with a microphone. It’s in the trunk. So you can sing something funny.

I look at the back row. The sofa is upholstered in leather and shaped for two. The third is already uncomfortable. There is plenty of room in the legs, but not much overhead. Tall people will touch the ceiling trim with their hair. You have to go deeper. By the way, in some trim levels, the split backrests have an electric drive. My version doesn’t have them. There is only a rather narrow hatch for skis.

GIVE TIME

After breaking the virtual button accordion and breaking the real voice, the realization came that the Chinese had really made the BYD Han into a premium car. Technically it is well put together. The interior won’t give in to what Lexus offers and the option list is rich. For example, there is adaptive cruise control with a DiPilot lane assistant, traffic sign recognition, a three-zone climate control, all-round cameras and other equipment. But the price is also big. This, not the richest version, costs 5,000,000 rubles. At the level of the best German cars, albeit second-hand. But give the Asians another five years and they will already be in the lead. Anyway, BYD Han made me believe it.