In the previous static evaluation of the Silver Steel Honey Badger 150, we interpreted the annual new product of this silver steel motorcycle that was the first to set foot in the field of MINI cars in China from the aspects of product personality, appearance, and configuration. But after all, whether the car is good or not, you have to ride to know, so let's move on to the second part of the shock of the little MINI car, the dynamic chapter.
But before I begin, let me digress a bit. How to judge whether the company's confidence in its new products is enough? In fact, it can be seen to a large extent through the promotion of new products when they are first launched.
The first launch of "Honey Badger" was in April this year, Yingang Motorcycle held a track experience day for this new product, inviting many dealers and car friends to the car park, by putting this personality MINI car on the track, so that everyone can run happily together, and then show the real product appeal of the enterprise, that is, Yingang Honey Badger 150, not only good-looking, this is a real sense of play, fun MINI new products.
Therefore, in the next dynamic evaluation, we will also focus on how to play the "honey badger".
Riding position
Don't look at the Silver Steel Honey Badger is a MINI model, but the feeling after actually riding it is not cramped. Due to the high and wide handlebars, the sitting position similar to the off-road vehicle has greatly improved the riding comfort of the whole bike.
So don't look at its petite body, the feeling of riding is very natural, the whole riding triangle will put people in a relaxed sitting state, and from the perspective of others it looks unrestrained, there will be no friends of some MINI car so-called "dog riding" visual absurdity. And the honey badger is 745mm high, and the height of the rider will not be picky, from 1.5 meters to 1.8 meters +, almost anyone can ride without pressure.
However, there is a detail here that still needs to be paid a little attention, that is, considering the appearance tonality and high passability needs of the honey badger, this car adopts a high-level exhaust design, although the silver steel is very intimate exhaust design with heat insulation treatment, but the temperature of the tail end is not low after a long time of riding, and you still need to pay a little attention when getting on and off the car.
Dynamic performance
It can be said unceremoniously that among all the current MINI models in China, the silver steel honey badger is definitely the one with the highest playability. The reason is actually very simple, the premise of fun has to be energetic, most of the current car cars are 110mL, 125mL, but the silver steel honey badger is 150mL, this is not a direct dimensionality reduction strike?
The silver steel honey badger adopts its own very mature 150mL power platform, with a maximum power of 7.8kw/7500rm, a maximum torque of 11.5N•m/5500 rpm, and a compression ratio of 9.1:1. And it also adopts the design of the international five-gear, which is a god-like blessing for riders who want to ride the MINI model but don't want to touch the cycle gear.
And the power platform of this car, is also the current mainstream play car in the relatively rare vertical engine, the advantages of this type of engine is obvious, its life is longer, the displacement can be larger, and the balance shaft design can be used, so that the vibration suppression of the vehicle is quite good, the most important thing is that the heat dissipation of the vertical engine will be better, in a long time riding, or summer riding without worrying about thermal attenuation, so that the happiness is more "lasting", which I like very much.
The Honey Badger's engine is tuned for low torque, so it can perform quite well on climbs and gravel sections. On a section of the gravel road of the test, just encountered the uphill, our female rider turned off halfway because of an operation error, she directly subconsciously immediately re-ignited the start, and saw the honey badger hanging in 2 gears very light half-hill start, the low-torque strong engine coupled with the lighter weight of the car, there is no sense of dragging mud and water, it is really powerful. After this part of the run, the female rider praised the honey badger's dynamic performance.
And when I got on the car and measured it myself, it was more violent, and the first gear increased the fuel and started directly, which was very energetic, and I felt that I could easily tilt my head with a little lifting the handlebar. When the revs are increased from 3,000 rpm to 5,000 rpm, you can clearly feel the irritability of the Honey Badger as a 150mL model that is completely inconsistent with its petite body, and the pleasure of driving is also spontaneously born.
In fact, don't look at the honey badger is a MINI car, but the power of 150mL is enough to easily pull it to more than 80km/h, and maintain a stable high-speed cruising state, if you ride a little more recklessly, it should not be a big problem to break 90km/h.
It is worth noting that don't look at the small body, the weight of the car is light, but in the state of pulling the high speed, the stability of the Honey Badger vehicle is very good, even if it maintains a high-speed cruising state of 80km/h, it will not feel the situation of the body fluttering, which can give people enough driving confidence.
And the overall vibration suppression is also very good, low-speed vibration is really small, although it can be slightly shaken at high speed, but the overall suppression is very good, unlike some cars when the engine vibrates at high speed. In short, in terms of power performance, the honey badger scored a leading high score in similar domestic amusement cars.
Feel the control
If there were two words to describe the handling characteristics of the honey badger, I think it would be "comfortable". This comfort is divided into two aspects, one is when riding in the city as a scooter, the flexible control brought by the small wheelbase can be very comfortable through the traffic, and the caterpillar seat cushion is really soft, as if sitting on the sofa, which makes urban cycling become a fun experience of sitting on the sofa and shopping.
On the other hand, it relies on the color calibration of the entire suspension system to ensure the maximum filtration performance of the honey badger to the potholes and gravel vibrations on the road, so that it can also ensure a comfortable driving experience when riding on non-paved roads.
In terms of braking, the silver steel is equipped with front and rear dual-piston calipers for the honey badger, which is also a relatively rare high-end configuration in similar amusement cars, this configuration can significantly improve the braking effect and driving safety, and it is also a weapon to enhance the sense of control and play attributes.
The section we tested this time was mostly mountainous, so the handling was more focused on the honey badger's cornering performance. It has to be said that the short wheelbase body, excellent suspension support, and excellent grip of the matching Zhengxin all-terrain tires make driving the Honey Badger continuous cornering is simply a pleasure. Whether it is the stable track of the body when pressing, or the relaxation and comfort when returning to the center, it makes people look confident in the face of corners and play heartily.
epilogue
MINI cars based on fun have become a new trend, which also makes Yingang Motorcycle, an enterprise with rich experience in the field of MINI cars in China, get a broader space for development.
Although there are endless motorcycles with fun attributes at present, most of them are still cyclic gear engines based on curved beams, and there is no soul of control without clutch. And even if there are domestic companies holding the international 5-speed vertical engine to join the track of the fun car, but in terms of power, there is no way to beat the 150mL base of the honey badger, so go around and around, the most energetic, the most fun MINI car, but also look at the MINI car veteran enterprise silver steel motorcycle honey badger 150.
It is worth mentioning that half a year after the honey badger was listed, Yingang motorcycle carried out a deep facelift on the honey badger according to the market's voice, and the biggest change was to listen to market feedback, improve the manned performance of the honey badger, and turn its one-person solo music into a crowd that can carry people. For this reason, the wheelbase of the honey badger's vehicle has increased, and Yingang has also re-declared the product announcement, for the sake of customer demand, which is really expensive, but Yingang is willing to do it.
The appearance of the new honey badger at this year's China Motorcycle Expo has also won the favor of many car lovers, and the honey badger 150 that can better enjoy with friends after the facelift has also been put on sale.