- The Changan Nevo E07 is a bizarre SUV-pickup-thing offered in China.
- It has a small 3-foot mattress and a midgate.
- It is type of formed like a Tesla Cybertruck, incomes it the nickname “Chinese language Cybertruck” in its house nation.
China is type of kicking America’s ass in relation to making electrical automobiles. It makes extra of them than some other nation, packs them with fascinating options and sells them on a budget. A lot of this is because of huge authorities subsidies of every kind for the nation’s EV market. China could even make a greater Tesla Cybertruck than Tesla does.
OK, China doesn’t really make something known as a Cybertruck. Nevertheless it does make a bizarre automobile that reminds lots of people of Tesla’s shiny wedge of cheese. It’s known as the Changan Nevo E07, and I got here throughout a overview of it from the Wheelsboy YouTube channel, a superb supply of English-language content material on the Chinese language automobile market.
In keeping with Wheelsboy, the automobile has earned the nickname “Chinese language Cybertruck” in its house nation. That is in all probability as a result of it is an electrical pickup and due to its slanted roofline and offbeat form. However I really discover it a lot cooler and extra compelling than Tesla’s truck for quite a few causes.
I’ve been seeing numerous Cybertrucks round my EV bubble of Northern California. And whereas I don’t hate it or something like some within the automotive press do, I can’t say its fashion has grown on me. On the one hand, I type of get pleasure from that such a daring, bizarre automobile exists. On the similar time, I discover it ungainly and never very charming.
The Changan Nevo E07 can also be an oddball. However in a way more interesting and endearing method, I reckon.
I’ll reduce to the chase right here, as a result of hands-down the good a part of the Nevo E07 is its mattress. Or trunk. That every one depends upon your temper and what it’s worthwhile to try this day. At first look, the rear portion of the Nevo E07 seems to be similar to the again of some other slope-roofed crossover. (Or perhaps one thing weirder like a Pontiac Aztek.) Press a button, nevertheless, and that slanted glass piece begins slides up towards the roof, creating an open pickup mattress.
The Changan Nevo E07 SUV.
From there, you’ll be able to drop the tailgate and cargo in no matter stuff it’s worthwhile to haul round. The mattress is simply round 3-feet lengthy. Evaluate that to the Ford Maverick at 4.5 toes. Nevertheless it has one other get together trick: a midgate. The divider partitioning the cab from the mattress (rear glass and all) can fold down flat, opening up a complete bunch of additional mattress area. It is loads like what you’d get in an previous Chevy Avalanche or present Chevy Silverado EV.
Payload capability is available in at a mere 300 kilograms (661 kilos), in line with Wheelsboy. So Changan homeowners gained’t be hauling round something too large or heavy. However as a life-style automobile that may typically do mild truck responsibility—for going tenting, to the seashore or shifting furnishings—it appears completely acceptable.
An idea model of the Changan pickup.
Within the video, Wheelsboy explains why this unusual SUV-pickup mashup exists within the first place. And principally, it’s due to Chinese language authorities insurance policies that discourage using true pickups. So as a substitute, you get an “SUV” that transforms, Optimus Prime-style, into some semblance of a truck.
So far as styling goes, numerous individuals discover the Cybertruck off-putting. Tesla’s truck is angular and made largely of flat items of stainless-steel. The Nevo E07 manages to look tremendous funky and futuristic, too, however with out the out-there proportions and dystopian vibes.
It’s a pleasant measurement, too. Wheelsboy describes it as barely longer than a Hyundai Santa Cruz, however a complete foot shorter than a Ford Ranger SuperCrew (the beefy, four-door mannequin). In different phrases, Wheelsboy stated, it’s “large enough to be helpful, however not large enough to blot out the solar.” I like that.
I’ll be sincere, the inside is bizarre, and never in a great way. It’s method too spartan for my tastes, and likewise seems to be virtually totally pink with little distinction. It wants some patterns, or different supplies, or shiny bits to spruce issues up.
That apart, this looks like the type of electrical truck I might really see myself shopping for and utilizing. (That’s, if it have been ever offered within the U.S., which is uncertain due to the steep tariffs on Chinese language imported EVs.)
I don’t want an actual truck, however a small one to haul bikes and stuff in could be nice. Ideally, my little truck could be electrical or plug-in hybrid, however that doesn’t exist in America. Right here, you’ll be able to both get a small, cheap pickup that’s gas-powered (just like the Ford Maverick or Hyundai Santa Cruz)—or a giant, costly one which’s electrical (just like the Cybertruck, Ford F-150 Lightning, Chevy Silverado EV or Rivian R1T).
So right here’s hoping I can purchase a Changan Nevo E07 sometime—or at the least that Tesla takes some notes on it for Cybertruck 2.0.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
