Old car enthusiasts with some experience may still remember that Chery once had the "Fengyun" series. Nowadays, Chery has regained its "Fengyun" name in the new energy field, and it seems that it is also planning to add some fuel to the domestic new energy vehicle market that continues to involute. The first model of Chery's new Fengyun series, "Fengyun A8", is positioned as a plug-in hybrid compact car and will be officially launched on January 3 next year. Recently, we also conducted a preliminary test drive on this new model. It seems that the performance under the blessing of new energy goes without saying. The smart cockpit, safety configuration and comfortable experience of the new car are certainly eye-catching, but the most surprising thing is probably the Chery Fengyun A8's ability to control fuel consumption. (Note: This test drive model is not the final version for sale. If there are differences in software and hardware, the final version for sale shall prevail)
hybrid (plug-in hybrid), does having more gears have nothing to do with fuel economy? The
test drive route selection is about 130km, including urban roads and intercity expressways. This distance design actually cleverly exceeds the vehicle's 127km pure electric range (CLTC operating condition). In other words, pure electricity cannot run the entire distance, and a mixture of gasoline and electricity will be inevitable. Under this mixed state test, the average fuel consumption can be controlled at around 3L/100km. And if the foot feel is strong, it is possible to achieve a performance of about 2L/100km. However, this will sacrifice power. Counting the power consumed by shooting, only about 20% of the power is left on the return trip. In addition, the one-day round trip time is quite tight, there are sparks and lightning all the way back, and when three adults are aboard, the fuel consumption under approximate feeding conditions is only 4L/100km. Including power consumption, the comprehensive fuel consumption is 4.2L/100km, which happens to be the test feed fuel consumption result of Chery Fengyun A8 (WLTC operating condition).
As we all know, Chery has a 3-speed DHT technology tree in the field of hybrid power. So, is Chery Fengyun A8’s fuel consumption control capability also thanks to it? The answer is obviously no, and it has to be doubly negative. First of all, Chery Fengyun A8 does not use the 3-speed DHT hybrid gearbox, but uses a more common single-speed solution. Secondly, under the logic of hybrid power, in most common cases, there is no relationship between the number of gears and fuel consumption. Even if there is, the relatively lower fuel consumption can only be regarded as a by-product. But this goes against common sense. The more gears there are, the more fuel-efficient it is, right?
To clarify this question, we must first answer: Why do hybrids, or even pure electrics, need multiple gears? In a nutshell, the core purpose is performance, not energy saving. This logic is similar to why Porsche wants to install a two-speed transmission on the rear axle of pure electric vehicles. Because the working conditions that the motor can cover are basically within 80km/h, it certainly doesn’t hurt to occasionally cope with high output, but the pursuit of higher performance is a bit stretched, which is obviously unacceptable to Porsche.
Returning to the hybrid logic, due to the presence of the internal combustion engine, this not only broadens the channels for obtaining performance, but also imposes special restrictions. First of all, it goes without saying that the internal combustion engine is friendly to high-speed conditions. But if a gearbox structure is to be added, then the motor, as one of the power sources, must be located before P3. Coupled with the limitations of most transverse engine structures, the axial space pressure on the entire power system becomes unprecedented. Therefore, to balance performance, space and cost, the P2 single-motor solution stands out. The advantage is naturally that all power sources can be amplified through the gearbox structure. The disadvantage is that a single motor integrates multiple work contents, which puts great pressure on stability such as heat dissipation, and its own power is easily limited by space. In order to break free from this shackles, Chery designed two drive motors on the 3-speed DHT structure, which are respectively arranged at the P2 and P2.5 positions. With the staggered functions, it combines multiple gears, stability and cost advantages.
It doesn’t matter if there are multiple gears for a big horse-drawn car.
So, with such a good technical solution, why doesn’t Chery use it for Fengyun A8? The answer is simple: not necessary. As mentioned before, hybrid power's need for multiple gears is due to the pursuit of high performance.The Chery Fengyun A8 is just a compact car. Even if you want to drive such a car to obtain a high-quality high-speed experience, there is no need to resort to multi-speed DHT. And the car width is just over 1.84m. Although it is relatively wide and comfortable among A-class cars, the powertrain does not care about the class. When we open the engine compartment, we can also find that the Chery Fengyun A8 is already fully stuffed. In terms of price, according to what is known, Chery Fengyun A8's top-end model may also be controlled "within 150,000 yuan" (for reference only, not the final price). But this raises a new question. There are so many single-speed P3 motor solutions on the market, how can you save fuel?
Experienced drivers all know that "small horses and big carts" do not save fuel under normal working conditions. The ease of use of a "big horse-drawn cart" is more conducive to controlling fuel consumption. Chery Fengyun A8 is obviously the latter, you can know this even just by looking at the data. The 1.5T internal combustion engine has a maximum power of 115kW and a maximum torque of 220N·m. This is still an adjustment that pursues high thermal efficiency, but in terms of power, it is quite close to the new EA211 1.5T engine just launched by Volkswagen in China. As for the electric motor, the maximum power of the drive motor of Chery Fengyun A8 reaches 150kW. Even compared to its own Tiggo 7 PLUS plug-in hybrid version that uses a 3-speed DHT solution, the power of the drive motor of Chery Fengyun A8 is significantly higher. This is also in line with the previous introduction to Chery’s two hybrid technology solutions.
As we all know, the greater the power of the motor, the higher the speed range it can efficiently cover. From the perspective of driving experience, Chery Fengyun A8 is very keen on using electric drive to take over the vehicle under normal working conditions within 80km/h. And taking advantage of the power of the internal combustion engine, a relatively radical feed management plan is given. For example, in EV+ mode, the driver can even use the battery capacity to 15% without triggering the forced battery preservation strategy. If the vehicle speed is further slowed down, the capacity that triggers the forced battery protection may be lowered. This also lost the value of practical application, so we did not try it again. In high-speed cruising, the internal combustion engine charges the power battery very quickly. The meter showed that the power consumption was negative for a time, which also fully prepared us for the urban congestion conditions at the end of our return trip.
As for the internal combustion engine, its job function is of course not just for generating electricity. Judging from official data, the vehicle accelerates from 90-120km/h in just 3.8 seconds, which is obviously due to the output of the internal combustion engine. Due to the sufficient power reserve, when the internal combustion engine is triggered by pressing the accelerator deeply, the sound coming from the engine compartment is not the usual roaring state of models in the same price range (including fuel vehicles). In terms of detailed adjustment, whether it is rapid acceleration or re-acceleration during high-speed cruising. With the accelerator pedal opened at a large angle, unlike a fuel vehicle, the downshift speed will be tested and the engine speed will increase. Chery Fengyun A8 uses its own high-horsepower drive motor to "send the internal combustion engine a ride" while waiting for the engine to climb to a suitable stage to take over the main power output. The function switching between the two can basically only be judged by the sound of the engine compartment. For drivers who are accustomed to driving fuel vehicles, the cost of getting started is extremely low, and the overall experience is fast and smooth.
is written at the end: In fact, since the era of fuel vehicles, Chery has distinguished itself with its excellent power system performance. After entering the new energy era, whether it is single-speed hybrid, multi-speed hybrid or even extended range. We have also talked many times about Chery's preference to build a high-quality power system architecture based on internal combustion engines from the underlying technical logic. Through the test drive of a real car, we can also clearly perceive the confidence behind this preference. As for the specific energy consumption results, it is just a clear manifestation of user perception under the condition of adapted technology.
