As a relatively young brand under the Great Wall, the performance of tanks in the past year can be said to be obvious to all. According to the sales data of the EasyCar App, the tank's first model, the Tank 300, has sold 85,000 + vehicles in the past 12 months, with an average monthly sales volume of 7,000 vehicles. Such a performance is almost at the level of the ceiling for a hard-hitting off-road vehicle.
Just this month, the second model of the tank brand, the Tank 500, is also about to be launched, and the manufacturer has previously announced its pre-sale price. This time, as an invited media, EasyCar took the lead in conducting a comprehensive experience of this blockbuster model before its listing. At the same time, I am also eager to take the opportunity to experience the Tank 500 to obtain the "sales code" of this model in the future.
Very different styling orientation from the Tank 300
Generally speaking, we will define the SUV with a non-loaded body as a hardcore off-road vehicle, and for the sake of positioning needs and practical use, the shape of most hard-core off-road vehicles will generally appear rough and wild, including the tank 300. The tank 500 adopts a very different styling orientation from the tank 300, which makes people think of the word luxury when they first see this car.
Tank 500 has two different styling styles of the sports version and the business version, and our experience this time is the tank 500 business version of the five seats, the official pre-sale price of 355,000 yuan. The whole vehicle looks like it has a very good sense of volume, the test drive type uses the body color of Kunlun Gold, due to the non-bearing body, the height of the tank 500 front is still much higher than that of ordinary SUVs, so the aura is still very sufficient.
Its front face has a very large medium grid grid, and a large number of chrome trim embellishments, in the creation of a sense of luxury is still in place. The tank's brand logo is located in the center of the central net, which is very eye-catching, and the front of the engine cover also adopts an air intake opening design. The shooting vehicle has a configuration of LED day running lights and full LED headlights, the headlights can switch between near and far lights and have a height adjustment function, and the LED fog lights are located under the headlights.
The tank 500 is positioned as a medium and large SUV, and the actual shooting of the commercial version has a length, width and height of 4878x1934x1905mm, and a wheelbase of 2850mm. The sport version, due to the use of external spare tires, its body length is 5070mm, and the rest of the size is the same. The design of the body side is relatively simple, which is very consistent with the calm and atmospheric style of the whole vehicle, the two front doors of the vehicle have the function of keyless entry, and the whole series is also equipped with electric pedals to facilitate getting on and off.
The rear of the tank 500 adopts a relatively square, tough design, and the horizontally protruding ridges show the strong sense of power of the tank 500. Its taillights adopt a vertical modeling scheme, which is slightly similar to the tank 300, but the chrome trim strips are also designed around the tail lights, in addition, with the penetrating trim on the rear tailgate, etc., so that the entire rear of the tank 500 looks much more exquisite. It is worth noting that the tank 500 tailgate adopts a side-open tailgate similar to that of the Haval H9 and is equipped with an electric suction function that can be gracefully closed.
The real-time vehicle is equipped with a set of 20-inch multi-spoke wheels, and the rim also adopts an electroplated surface treatment, which is a good echo with a large number of chrome trim strips in the vehicle. Matching this rim are UC6 SUV tires from German horse brands, with front and rear wheels in 265/50 R20.
Emphasis is placed on luxury and comfort in the cockpit
Entering the cockpit of the tank 500, a luxurious breath came over you. Compared with the exterior, the interior seems to be more violent in creating a sense of luxury, and at the same time, there is a touch of domineering inside. The interior of the vehicle as a whole adopts brown as the main color, with metal, wood grain trim panels and Nappa leather and fur materials, which raises the sense of grade and design of the tank 500 interior to a higher level. In addition, in the central control area, the designer also added a clock, which also undoubtedly shows the luxurious positioning of the tank 500.
The steering wheel is wrapped in leather, the surface is delicate to the touch, and the grip is relatively tight. The multimedia buttons on both sides are operated mechanically, while the adaptive cruise lever is located at about 8 o'clock behind the steering wheel. In addition, the shooting vehicle also has a steering wheel electric adjustment function, while steering wheel heating and paddle shifting are standard in the whole series.
The tank 500 series is equipped with a 12.3-inch full LCD instrument and a 14.6-inch central control LCD instrument as standard. The full LCD instrument adopts an embedded design, which forms an integral part with the instrument table, has a sense of design, and its display color and resolution are also relatively good, and it can also be navigated and mapped. The central control LCD screen adopts the more popular suspension design, which is much larger than most traditional fuel models.
The car machine system has navigation, multimedia, air conditioning, vehicle settings, voice control, car networking and other conventional functions, the logical layout of the pages at all levels is reasonable, the switching operation is very smooth, the speech recognition rate is also high, and overall, this car machine system is still easy to get started. In addition, the tank 500 can also display the real-time situation of the vehicle off-road in the vehicle machine system, so that the driver can more calmly understand the information of the vehicle. In the rear center armrest position, the tank 500 also has a 7-inch LCD screen, through which rear passengers can control air conditioning, seats, multimedia, vehicle mood lights, etc.
The functional and comfort configuration of the real-time tank 500 business version of the 5-seater is also very powerful. There is no need to say more about the panoramic sunroof, one-button lift of the full window, keyless start, dashcam, wireless charging of front mobile phones, Infinity audio with 12 speakers, HUD head-up display, induction wiper, automatic three-zone air conditioning, air purification device, automatic anti-glare inner rearview mirror and other configurations. Configurations such as wireless charging of rear mobile phones, rear sun blinds, and rear privacy glass have also significantly improved the experience of rear passengers.
The seats of the whole car are wrapped in Nappa leather material, and the touch of the leather and the wrapping of the seat cushion have reached a very good level. The front main seat has 8-way electric adjustment, in addition to a 4-way electric waist rest, and the co-driver's seat is equipped with 6-way electric adjustment. The front seats are heated, ventilated, massaged and positional memory.
The second row of seats of the five-seater model of the Tank 500 has the design of aviation headrests, and the second row of seats we test drove this car is also equipped with seat heating, ventilation, massage, and can also be reclined in 4/6 ratios, which can be basically flush with the trunk floor after being reclined.
As a medium to large SUV, the Tank 500 provides a lot of storage space for passengers in the car, and passengers in each position in the car can find suitable areas around to store their belongings. And engineers designed "mechanisms" for some storage compartments, so that these areas can be hidden when idle, greatly increasing the integrity of the interior.
The entire series is equipped with 3.0T V6+ hardcore four-wheel drive
In the era of increasing electrification and small displacement engines, the tank 500 is "waywardly" equipped with a 3.0L V6 turbo engine with a maximum power of 260 kW (354Ps) and a maximum torque of 500 N·m, which is matched by a 9-speed automatic transmission independently developed by the Great Wall. For many consumers, the V6 engine not only brings a lot of power, but also a release of feelings. In addition, the Great Wall added a 48V light mixing system to the tank 500 to take care of the vehicle's NVH and fuel consumption performance.
As a hardcore off-road, the tank 500 naturally adopts a non-load-bearing body structure, and the chassis structure of the front double wishbone independent suspension and the rear integral axle non-independent suspension is also the standard configuration of the hardcore off-road, and the vehicle spare tire is suspended at the rear of the chassis. The tank 500 adopts a set of intelligent timely four-wheel drive system, with mechanical lock function, the system can be switched between two-wheel drive, intelligent four-wheel drive, high-speed four-wheel drive, low-speed four-wheel drive. The rear axle of the vehicle is equipped with an electronic limited slip differential lock, while the front axle differential lock is available as an option.
The tank 500 has a proximity angle of 29.6°, a departure angle of 24°, a minimum ground clearance of 224mm, a maximum wading depth of 700mm for the business version, and a higher 800mm for the sport version. In addition to displaying information such as altitude, air pressure, and slope, the central control can also make the driver more aware of the surrounding environment through 360° panoramic images and transparent chassis. In addition, the tank 500 is also equipped with high-intensity off-road features such as off-road creep mode and tank turning.
On paved roads, the tank 500 does not have a very obvious hard-core character, tires and suspension can absorb most of the road bumps, and the thicker padding of the saddle is also indispensable. At the same time, the adjustment of the shock absorber also reduces the feeling of shaking of the body after completing the bump, and the top model is also equipped with a damper with variable damping, which I hope to have the opportunity to experience in the future.
According to the official, this 3.0T V6 engine can complete 0-100km/h acceleration in 7.3s, and in terms of actual experience, the subjective acceleration feeling brought by the tank 500 to the driver will be more exciting than this data, and with its relatively large body, it is still more exciting. But you can also drive it slowly and methodically, letting it take you to your destination like a gentleman.
The front/rear windows of the tank 500 are made of double-layer laminated soundproof glass, which allows the vehicle to obtain a relatively good quietness during driving. In addition, the multi-layer door and window seals also block the noise very well, and when the vehicle is driving at a high speed of 120km/h, the wind noise outside the car is almost not felt, and the occupants can get a good rest environment.
The electronic steering configuration makes it much easier for the driver to drive the tank 500, and you don't need much effort to get the vehicle to where you want it. Although the steering of the Tank 500 will still appear blurry compared to ordinary SUVs or cars, it can still make people feel some pleasure compared with some hardcore off-road vehicles that have been driven.
Thanks to the intervention of the 48V mixing system, the engine start-stop of the tank 500 has become much softer, and the smoothness of the V6 engine also makes it possible to obtain a comfortable environment inside the vehicle even when the start-stop is closed. Although the contribution of the BSG motor to the start and acceleration cannot be intuitively felt, the tank 500's 10.79L 100-kilometer fuel consumption performance under WLC conditions is still more eye-catching, after all, this is a hardcore off-road vehicle with a built-up mass of 2455kg.
The intelligent driving assistance configuration makes the long-distance driving of the tank 500 much more comfortable, and the vehicle is equipped with full-speed adaptive cruise as standard, and also has functions such as lane keeping, lane departure warning, active braking, forward crossing warning and so on. At the same time, by installing the optional high-speed pilot assisted driving function, the vehicle can also realize automatic up and down ramps and active lane changes. And like tire pressure display, automatic parking, automatic parking, etc. are equipped on the real-time model.
Editor's comments: This time with the tank 500 is only one day, which is obviously unfinished. The emergence of tank 500 may make people's impression of independent brand hardcore off-road vehicles subverted, people can't help but sigh that 300,000 yuan can also buy the main luxury, exquisite, and equipped with V6 engine of the hardcore off-road vehicle, which is based on functionality and practicality of the traditional hardcore off-road vehicle, may also provide a new idea: hardcore off-road vehicles can meet luxury, modern, fashion, personality, technology and other characteristics. At the same time, it can also be seen that the research and development process of independent brands has gone to a new level, and the products subdivided to meet various groups of people have gradually increased. Although I still had a test drive in casual clothes this time, I think that if someone comes down from the tank 500 in a suit one day, it may be the most beautiful scenery.