From China with love
The Aiways U5 is the first electric car from a completely new Chinese brand Aiways, created by former managers of Volkswagen China, Audi China and a number of other companies, not only in automotive, but also in the IT and AI fields. The brand name is based on the Chinese word, which is spelled in English as ‘AI’ and means ‘love’. About 1 billion dollars have been invested into the project, with such serious suppliers being involved in the production as Bosch (which developed the U5 chassis), Lear and others.
The first Aiways vehicle is an Aiways U5 electric SUV with a length of 4.68 m. It was unveiled at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show. In 2019, its production started in China, and in 2020, the U5 began to be exported to a number of EU countries. In 2021, they began to supply it to Israel. Therefore, we wanted to take a closer look.
Equipment
The new Aiways U5 is built on a modular, scalable platform with an adaptable structure designed specifically for the U5 and U6 models, which allows for the installation of various powertrains. The U5 sandwich battery was developed by Aiways independently, using components from other companies. It is a battery pack of 24 high energy density CATL modules.
The manufacturer emphasizes the fact that the components for the car belong to European brands. The new U5 is positioned as an advanced electric vehicle, therefore it is equipped with such modern options as:
- Automatic emergency braking;
- Lane keeping assist at speeds from 60 to 120 km/h with warning;
- Blind spot monitoring;
- Forward collision warning;
- Rear cross traffic warning and so on.
First impressions
According to the first reviews of European drivers, we can conclude that the 2021 Aiways U5 is a rather mediocre, boring and even plain electric car, but at the same time it is not repulsive and quite suitable for everyday driving. The driving range is less than 400 km.
At the same time, the vehicle comes with a wide choice of options that are not accurately adjusted, for example, an electric vehicle warns that it’s prohibited to smoke in the passenger compartment (there is a special monitoring camera), although no one smokes in it, the adaptive cruise control is loose and works at its own discretion. Moreover, the entry-level model has no heating, and you can control the U5 only digitally, as there are no physical buttons (which is rather a drawback for such a vehicle) and so on and so forth. The general list of complaints from drivers is quite impressive. But, in fairness, it should be noted that these are the first, in essence test, batches of the U5. It is quite likely that the manufacturer will take the results into account to revise the vehicle.
As for the advantages, the 2021/2022 Aiways U5 features a spacious interior layout and a large trunk. Soundproofing is good and the chassis is well tuned for everyday use. The main advantage of the Chinese U5 electric SUV in the European market is its price. It is decently equipped at a relatively low cost compared to electric vehicles of comparable parameters.
