Leapfrog "spoiler"? Geely Xingyue L first experience | CAR REVIEWS

It must be admitted that a considerable number of excellent independent brands are catching up with or even surpassing joint venture brands at a speed visible to the naked eye. After test-driving Geely 's brand new flagship SUV Star Yue L, I confirmed this point even more.

Based on Geely's new luxury car architecture CMA platform, Xingyue L has established its own high-level "personality" from the beginning of its birth. And confidently set the price range of all models between 150,000 and 190,000 yuan, which means that Xingyue L’s competitors are not only self-owned brand models, but those of our familiar joint venture brand SUVs such as: Popular models such as Tiguan, X-Trail , CR-V, RAV4 , etc. have also directly become the main competitors of Xingyue L. In addition to courage, what is Xingyue L's confidence as a "spoiler" in this most competitive price range? With doubts we started this long-awaited test drive.

As far as styling is concerned, the first impression of Xingyue L was not very impressive. After all, in the past two years, domestically-made cars have made too many outstanding products in design. However, compared with the brand’s previous products, the design change of the Xingyue L can be regarded as a "makeover". After all, the Xingyue L 4770/1895/1689mm length, width and height, plus the super large body size of 2845mm wheelbase Placed here, the aura of the overall shape, including details, can be considered to match the identity of the flagship. There are definitely few rivals in the same class of models. The family-style super-large straight waterfall grille with three-stage matrix headlights is quite imposing. The 20-inch wheels on the side and the overall raised body give a sense of stability. Compared with the high recognition of the front of the car, the highlights of the rear of the car are concentrated on the large-size penetrating taillights. There is a taste of a certain American luxury brand, which is lit at night and full of ritual.

Speaking of pure appearance design, Xingyue L does not have strong competitiveness. On the other hand, the design of the interior has a strong contrast with the appearance.Especially in the creation of a sense of science and technology, it does not lose any new energy vehicle that is currently popular and the main technology. Pull the car door, from the instrument to the front panel of the co-pilot, three large screens occupy nearly 90% of the space in the central control section. And the three large screens each perform their duties, covering many functions such as LCD instruments, multimedia large screens, and co-pilot entertainment large screens. The 12.3-inch large screen in front of the co-pilot comes standard from the two-wheel drive premium model, which is the two-wheel drive mid-to-high configuration. The 12.3-inch large screen +10.25-inch LCD instrument of the two low-profile models will not look very shabby. The rest include LED automatic headlights, panoramic sunroof, keyless entry, suede ceiling and many other configurations are standard.

One of the advantages of the CMA architecture is that it can achieve more intelligent expansion. The 24 environmental safety sensor elements integrated in the whole car support the FOTA upgrade function of the full functional domain. The powerful hardware support can make Xingyue L In addition to the conventional FCTA/RCTA front/rear cross emergency warning, CMSF/CMSR front/rear pre-collision warning, ACC&AEB emergency braking and other conventional active safety functions, including the EMA steering collision avoidance assist system and the HWA high-speed response to high-speed driving Higher-level and more complex intelligent driving assistance functions including highway assistance and automatic lane change assistance. In terms of car entertainment, the co-pilot’s independent large screen supports separate Bluetooth connection and sound source control. The rich online movies, music, and games can create an independent co-pilot entertainment area during driving. However, the accumulation of too many intelligent functions invisibly increases the pressure on the operation of the car-machine system. In actual operation, the phenomenon of stalling and slow system response will obviously occur.

dynamic performance is the most surprising part of Xingyue L . It can even be said to get rid of the slightly mediocre driving texture of the previous model. The Drive-E 2.0T engine standard for all models has appeared in the mid-to-high-end product lines of the Volvo and Lynk & Co. The 2.0T engine is divided into high and low power versions. The low power version has a maximum power of 218 horsepower and a peak torque of 325 N·m.And matched with a 7-speed wet dual-clutch gearbox, and our test drive this time is a high-power version with a maximum power of 238 horsepower, a maximum torque of 350 Nm, matching an 8-speed automatic manual gearbox, and equipped with a four-wheel drive system. For consumers, especially in this price range, with regard to the "standard 2.0T engine for all systems", Geely can fully feel the sincerity of Geely's dedication to Xingyue L. Also in terms of data, whether it is a low-power version or a high-power version, it is completely sufficient for daily driving. Especially in the top models, the performance is more prominent. The 8AT gearbox from Aisin has clear shift instructions, and the power connection is very smooth. With the smart throttle adjustment, you can enjoy ample power output at the start stage. The speed increase in the middle and late stages will not "drop the chain", especially in the case of overtaking with a big foot accelerator, the gearbox downshift action is fast and accurate, and the power release can almost be synchronized with the footwork. The whole process is let people It feels very comfortable. Although I have always been "picking faults" trying to find faults with this powertrain, the Xingyue L did not give me this opportunity during the entire test drive.

The chassis tuning has also reached the standard that the flagship should have. The front MacPherson + rear multi-link suspension combination has been tuned to take more care of comfort and road feel. Especially when passing a bumpy road with many obstacles, the chassis gives us a very tight feeling. The suspension does not filter all kinds of vibrations and ridges on the road thoroughly. The purpose is to retain a certain extent. The sense of road, especially the crisp "bang bang" sound of the suspension when crossing the hurdle, sounds very pleasing to the ear.

In driving, the fly in the ointment is that the steering adjustment is a bit too light. Although the directivity and tracking are good, it feels a bit light and not stable enough. As for the four-wheel drive system, the electro-hydraulic four-wheel drive of BorgWarner is more oriented to increase the stability and safety of the body, although the overall passability of the Xingyue L is greatly improved with the support of the four-wheel drive. The rate has increased, but it is still not recommended to experience difficult off-road driving. The NVH performance of the vehicle needs to be improved. The sound insulation at low and medium speeds is good. The tire noise and road noise at high speeds are more obvious. Fortunately, the BOSE sound effect on high-end models is outstanding. After opening, it can compensate for the driving process to a certain extent. Excessive noise.

On the whole, the strength of Xingyue L in the same class of models cannot be underestimated. With the increasing acceptance of independent brands by consumers, the monthly sales of more than 10,000 yuan after listing can also prove that Xingyue L The more differentiated competition has obvious advantages. Geely has always contributed to improving consumers' expectations and awareness of Chinese auto brands. For self-owned brands, the strength of being able to "compete" joint venture brands and even luxury brands is that they must have excellent product strength while maintaining high cost performance. What is gratifying is that Xingyue L does a good job in both aspects. As for sales, the sales of nearly 100,000 units in nine months after the launch seems to really be nothing to worry about.

Specifications

Geely Xingyue L

2021 2.0TD high-power automatic four-wheel drive flagship model

Guide price: 185,200 yuan _strong