When your belly spills out of the fold: Yangwang U8’s giant monster on trial.

At first glance, BYD Yangwang U8 is nothing special. Big and impressive, with a formidable grille and a silhouette that resembles a Range Rover. Another Chinese SUV that seems to be citing familiar models. Interesting, but a concept that has been tested by the Chinese car industry for several years. But there’s more to this car than just the rustic Land Rover range, Mercedes-G-Klasse & Co.

Yangwang U8: 1,200 hp swimmer

Yangwang U8 not only runs in terrain, but also can swim for 30 minutes as an amphibious vehicle. The body is waterproof, the structure provides buoyancy and the four wheels provide propulsion at a speed of up to three kilometers / h. However, this swimming function is only intended for emergencies. Simply shortening your journey by crossing the Rhine, Elbe or Main is not an option.

Power comes from four electric motors, one on each wheel, a total of 800 kW / 1,197 hp. Things go even faster on the tarmac, where four electric machines propel the 3.5-tonne colossus from zero to 100 km/h in 3.6 seconds. Some sports cars look pale in comparison. On the test track at Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden airport, we also put the pedal to the metal. Our tester Lisa Brack’s stomach quickly showed up at these levels of acceleration and by the time she tried to break from 100 to 0 in 35 meters, her lunch was going down her gullet.

If you open the hood, you will see a 2 liter combustion engine. So the Yangwang U8 is not a fully electric car? The answer is “no”. The combustion engine is used as a range extender and is never involved in propulsion. Instead, you don’t charge the battery when it’s empty.

A lithium iron phosphate (LFP, nickel and cobalt free) battery has a capacity of only 49.05 kilowatt hours. This gives the U8 an electric range of about 180 km. Of course, the colossus is not a champion of energy saving. With a combustion engine and a 75 liter petrol tank, it still adds up to 1,000 km. A glance at the on-board computer shows that at a battery charge level of 64 percent, there is still a range of 599 km. Consumption is 6.7 l/100 km or 10.9 kWh/100 km. Due to the fact that a combustion engine is involved, the car would be considered a plug-in hybrid in Germany and would be taxed in the same way. There is a good reason for the subjunctive, because the main brand BYD still does not know if the SUV will be presented in Europe. The Yangwang brand, which in German means looking up, is very young. With a length of up to 2.08 meters and a high suspension travel, the U8 lives up to its name.

Yangwang U8: With refrigerator and heating box

TERRACOTTA colored leather, comfortable seats with increased support on the left and right depending on the corner position and a sound system consisting of 22 speakers from the Dynaudio system. To ensure that the driver also feels comfortable, the leather upholstery in front of the side window is raised higher than the window sill. Comfortable for the elbow when traveling long distances. With a wheel of 3.05 meters you can make yourself comfortable in the upholstery at the back.

The interior with three touch screens, one of which is even an OLED with a resolution of 2k, a digital instrument display, as well as a large head-up display, looks very elegant. There are two rotary wheels on the left and right under the steering wheel: on the left you select the driving programs Eco, Normal, Sport and on the right off-road modes such as sand, mud, snow. At the push of a button, the chassis raises the body 15 centimeters more. Four electric motors can perform different locks (rear axle, front axle, transfer case). This means that the Yangwang U8 should also be ready for tough off-road tests.

Yangwang U8: Instant 360 degree rotation like a tank

The Chinese rider has more tricks up his sleeve. Again Mercedes EQG U8 can turn on the spot and do the so-called “tank turn”. In our test in Baden-Baden, the U8 did this without any problems – see video. You can choose whether you want to turn a full 360 degrees (which doesn’t make sense in practice) or just half a turn or three quarters of a turn, for example because you’ve run into a bad end. This feature is also useful during parallel parking: just put your nose in the gap and let the Chinese do the rest: parking with the rear wheels rotating in the opposite direction is a show. But be careful: If you pull off the occasional stunt to impress your potential spouse, you may soon be buying new rear tires because the tread wears out quickly and the tire eventually slides on the pavement. If desired, the large SUV can also park freely to protect the tires.

The Yangwang U8 is the first car from Chinese automaker BYD to be based on the new E4 platform, which gives its name to four electric motors. As a brake motor, it creates a force of one G, so that at a speed of 50 km / h the U8 should stop in less than 30 meters, even if the analog brakes fail. If this happens, the maximum speed is limited to 60 km / h. Operation without an operating range is also possible. These redundant systems are clearly aimed at autonomous driving. Yangwang U8 has 38 sensors: three LIDARs, five millimeter wave radars, 14 ultrasonic radars (including two water detection sensors) and 16 cameras. “We developed all the systems ourselves,” enthuses the Chinese engineer proudly. Not so long ago, Asians still needed the help of Western experts. This now seems to be over and the principle of “from China to the rest of the world” desired by the Beijing government is becoming a reality.

Yangwang U8: Price is fixed, market launch yet

However, cars like the Yangwang U8 are no longer a special offer. The majestic beast costs from around 120,000 euros, although that is still “cheap” compared to the G-Class which probably costs 200,000 euros. Since BYD is building a factory in Hungary, the route to Europe is much shorter and the fact that the Chinese have overtaken VW as the main sponsor of the European Football Championship in Germany underlines the seriousness of China’s attack on Europe.

Yangwang U8: Technical data