The swooping new Aiways U6 coupe-SUV is the second European-bound machine from the Chinese electric vehicle brand – and one of Britain’s top motorsport outfits has helped to hone the handling.
The new machine is essentially a reworked sloping roofed version of the Aiways U5 SUV that we drove earlier this year, and which is already on sale in several European markets. So while the U5 is designed to rival the Volkswagen ID 4, this is designed to take on the swoopy Volkswagen ID 5.
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Aiways is currently active in 14 European countries as well as its home market of China, but it hasn’t reached the UK yet because it is focusing on achieving scale in left-hand drive markets – but the firm says the UK is firmly in its plans for the near-future.
The Aiways U6 is built on the Shanghai firm’s More Adaptable Structure (MAS) platform, and has a focus on offering a combination of space, luxury and advanced interior tech.
As with the U5, the new U6 has a 63kWh battery, but the power output of the single motor has been lifted to 160kW, 10kW more than its sensible SUV sibling. Both machines are limited to 99mph, but the U5 will get there faster with its 6.9 second 0-62mph time of 6.9secs being 0.9secs quicker than the U6.
Both machines share an official range of 249 miles, and the U6 can be charged at speeds of up to 90kW, allowing a 20-80 per cent charge in a claimed 35 minutes. Aiways notes that the MAS platform does allow for larger batteries and to different powertrain configurations, including more powerful dual motor versions, in future.
The suspension of the U6 uses MacPherson struts at the front and a multi-link set-up at the rear, and has been tuned by engineering specialist Prodrive, which is probably best known for its motorsport division that ran the Subaru World Rally Team. Now, that doesn’t mean the U6 is going to handle like Colin McRae’s Impreza, but it’s certainly a partnership that bodes well for the car’s dynamic properties.
At 4800mm long with a wheelbase of 2800m, the U6 is slightly longer than the U5 SUV but with a slightly shorter wheelbase. It’s a close match fo the Volkswagen ID 5, and the exterior design has been honed for aerodynamic efficiency and to make the machine look as sporty.
Aiways says that the car’s design was inspired by a ‘streamlined shark nose’, with the C-pillar design also inspired by a shark’s fin. There are other watery design notes, too: the front lights sit above vertical air intakes, in a set-up Aiways says is inspired by a waterfall.
Inside, the U6 has a newly styled dashboard that is a departure from the U5, and it features’s the firm’s ‘AI Cabin’, including an 8.2in digital instrument display and a 14.6in infotainment system (which will support Apple CarPlay and Android Auto from next year onwards).
There’s also LED ambient lighting that can be set to 360 different ‘moods’, and a ‘gearshift’ controller in the centre console that is apparently inspired by the gear-lever of a luxury yacht. Aiways says that the seats are ‘higher-quality’ than in the family oriented U5 SUV, taking inspiration from Chinese luxury SUVs and the space shuttle. You certainly can’t say that the firm’s designers didn’t cast their inspirational nets wide.
The U6 offers 11 driver assistance systems, and Level Two semi-autonomous driving functions. It’s expected to cost around €39,000 (£34,000) when it goes on sale in Europe.
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