According to data from the Association of Passenger Vehicles, compact SUVs accounted for 29.5% of the total passenger car market from January to September this year, while medium-sized SUVs accounted for only 8.2%. It can be seen that the cake of the compact SUV market is very large, and it is also a must for major car manufacturers, and it is not easy to get a piece of the compact SUV market with many masters, and it is necessary to have real hard power, which includes the integration of high value, intelligent network connection and higher level intelligent driving assistance system.
On September 10, Dongfeng Fengshen launched the 2021 AX7 and AX7 PRO products in the compact SUV market. The latter has launched dongfeng fengshen's new track logo, which means that the AX7 PRO is a heavyweight product.
The AX7 PRO is not a sporty version of the 2021 AX7, it is strictly speaking a modification of the AX7. The new car has not only changed in appearance, but also upgraded in terms of configuration. The AX7 PRO has three models to choose from, and the official guidance price is 123,900-143,900 yuan.
In terms of body dimensions, the AX7 PRO is 4650/1880/1690 mm long/1880/1690 mm long/1880/1690 mm long/1690 mm long/1880/1690 mm long/1690 mm and has a wheelbase of 2715 mm, positioning itself as a compact SUV. Compared to its peer, the Boyue PRO, the AX7 PRO has a significant advantage in terms of body length and wheelbase, with an additional 106 mm and 45 mm respectively.
It can be seen that the overall shape of the AX7 PRO is not much different from the AX7, and it still maintains a tough visual experience, but it has changed in detail. For example, the new car uses a new style of black grille and red embellished body trim. These details of the adjustment, so that AX7 PRO on the basis of tough but also create a sporty atmosphere, making it more suitable for young consumer groups.
At the configuration level, the AX7 PRO mainly focuses on the improvement of intelligent interconnection and L2+ level intelligent driver assistance system. The L2+ Intelligent Driver Assistance System consists of assistive systems such as Forward Collision Warning (FCW), Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB-C) and Pedestrian Identification Protection (AEB-P). In addition, the AX7 PRO's storage space diversity is worthy of recognition, every space is fully utilized, such as sunglasses, mobile phones and other personal belongings can be placed reasonably.
Driving the AX7 PRO on city roads or congested conditions with frequent starts and stops gives me a very easy first impression. With a light on-pedal pedal, the AX7 PRO gives me good power feedback, and the power output is just right, neither delayed nor very channeled, which is basically the same as the prediction in my mind.
This performance has a certain relationship with the twin-scroll tube single-turbo structure of the 1.6THP engine. Due to the diversion of the exhaust gases of the 1st, 4th and 2rd cylinders to the turbine, the exhaust interference is avoided, thereby reducing the energy loss of the exhaust gas, improving the charging efficiency, and significantly reducing the pressure hysteresis. This allows the turbocharger to be plugged in at 1000 rpm and the 1.6THP engine to deliver a maximum torque of 250 Nm at 1750 rpm.
Among them, the third-generation 6AT gearbox from Aisin also performed very well. Although the number of gears in the 6-speed gearbox is not dominant in today's market, the response speed and working logic of this gearbox are worth affirming. For example, if you slam the accelerator pedal in 6-speed cruise, the gearbox will decisively drop 3 gears in a row, so that the engine speed will immediately increase to the optimal power range of 3000-4000 rpm.
The AX7 PRO has two driving modes, Sport and Economy, which differ little in subjective perception at high speeds, but are revealed on low-speed urban roads. In Sport mode, the 1.6THP engine will be slightly more reved, and the transmission and accelerator pedals will respond more positively.
The AX7 PRO also has room for improvement in sound insulation and noise reduction, and when the engine is running at a high speed, the noise of the engine in the cabin is too large. At the same time, the main noise at high speeds comes from wind noise, and tire noise control is excellent.
The AX7 PRO features a front McPherson/rear double-wishbone independent suspension, and the suspension system is tuned very well between "soft" and "hard". When the vehicle passes through a large pothole road, the suspension can well filter out the vibration from the road surface, coupled with the soft seat, which makes me feel very comfortable. When driving on mountain roads, the suspension will also give you the feeling of the road you want, and the suspension can also play a good support for the body when cornering quickly, so the body will not have a significant roll, which is very rare for a family SUV.
Written in the end: AX7 PRO is not only a model whose appearance is "blackened", compared to the AX7, the new car has a great degree of improvement in terms of configuration, especially in terms of intelligent interconnection and intelligent driver assistance system, making the AX7 PRO make up for the shortcomings of the AX7.
In terms of product positioning, the AX7 mainly meets the price-sensitive and cost-effective people, while the AX7 PRO is mainly responsible for meeting consumers with higher configuration needs, and it is a high-level product. It can be seen that the AX7 and AX7 PRO cooperate with each other to make Dongfeng Fengshen more competitive in the compact SUV market.
Active time
March 17, 2022 - March 18, 2022