Stronger, faster and more economical dynamic test drive tank 500 Hi4-Z

In June 2023, I went to test drive the Tank 500 Hi4-T. The overall impression it gave me at the time was very good, because compared to the fuel version, the plug-in hybrid version brings lower usage costs, and the pure electric range can also meet daily urban travel.

However, the battery life of just over 100km requires frequent charging, and there is only one P2 motor, making the pure electric mode slightly weaker in power.

This time, the 500 Hi4-Z launched by Tank perfectly solved these shortcomings and brought a product more suitable for urban transportation, with great improvements in both battery life and power.

So this time, let us use this article to take a look at the strength of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z and whether it can better meet the urban transportation experience.

Table of contents

A quick look at the Tank 500 Hi4-Z

Dynamic driving experience

Battery life and charging test

Appearance analysis

Interior analysis

Storage and seating space analysis

Summarize

1. Quickly understand the differences between Tank 500 Hi4-Z-Hi4-T and Hi4-Z

Before talking about the Tank 500 Hi4-Z, let us first understand the differences between the Hi4-T system and the Hi4-Z system.

The Hi4-T system is a power system based on oil and supplemented by electricity. It is a non-decoupled four-wheel drive form. Therefore, several Hi4-T models have drive shafts and transfer cases, and the battery pack is also placed under the trunk and the second row of seats. In terms of motor, only one P2 motor is equipped for auxiliary driving.

The Hi4-Z system is a power system that uses electricity as the main fuel and is supplemented by oil. It is a decoupled four-wheel drive form. So the Hi4-Z model will not have a drive shaft and transfer case. The location of the battery pack is also placed where conventional plug-in hybrid and extended-range models are arranged. In terms of motors, it is equipped with a P2 motor and a P4 motor.

-power

Tank 500 Hi4-Z is equipped with a power system consisting of a 2.0T engine and dual motors, and the gearbox is matched with a 3-speed DHT gearbox.

Among them, the power of the 2.0T engine is 180kW, the power of the P2 motor is 215kW, and the power of the P4 motor is 240kW.

The combined power of this system is 863 horsepower and the combined torque can reach 1195N·m.

-Battery life

Tank 500 Hi4-Z is equipped with a 59.05kWh battery pack, which uses ternary lithium-ion cells.

This set of ultra-large-capacity battery pack gives the Tank 500 Hi4-Z a pure electric range of 201km (WLTC working conditions).

-size

In terms of size, the length, width and height of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z are 5078*1934*1905mm, and the wheelbase is 2850mm.

-Suspension

In terms of suspension, the Tank 500 Hi4-Z adopts a front double-wishbone independent suspension and a rear five-link + Dion bridge suspension structure.

So what is the five-link + Dion bridge structure?

Officials said that the Tank 500 Hi4-Z uses a very thick round high-strength steel pipe to connect the left and right rear wheels, making the rear suspension form a suspension form similar to a five-link integral bridge, which not only retains the dynamic ground clearance of the integral bridge ability, provides a huge suspension stroke, and cleverly places the motor in an easy-to-protect position.

2. Dynamic driving experience

Since the test drive groups were different this time, our experience with the Tank 500 Hi4-Z was in the city and on the highway, and we did not go off-road and test acceleration. So in terms of urban and high-speed experience, let’s talk about the feelings of Tank 500 Hi4-Z.

When driving on urban roads and highways, the overall adjustment of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z is relatively comfortable. The front suspension rebounds quickly when crossing ditches, ridges and undulating roads, and it is also relatively crisp.

Compared with the Tank 500 Hi4-T, the rear suspension of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z has less unnecessary bounce, which better meets the comfort of this model for traveling in the city.

In terms of acceleration, in the most energy-saving mode, only one motor is working, so if you don't pedal too deeply at the start, the power will feel a bit weak, but this mode in the city is basically enough for urban transportation.

On the highway, the most energy-saving mode is actually OK, but it takes a little longer to speed up after encountering the brakes of the car in front. If you switch modes, there will be no problem.

In sports mode, you will feel a steady flow of power output regardless of whether the engine is involved. When you are driving at high speed, you can also be more calm when encountering situations where you need to overtake.

In terms of braking, you will feel that the stroke is a bit long, and you need to step deeper to get more obvious braking force. This is mainly because this is a hard-core off-road vehicle, so the adjustment is more off-road.

In terms of roll, the control of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z is still good. As a hardcore SUV, it is not particularly soft in terms of roll, and the overall support is quite sufficient.

The steering gap is not particularly large and is acceptable when driving on the road.

As a 3-speed DHT model, the transmission of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z is basically insensitive in all areas, because no matter whether it is driving in the city or at high speed, there is no feeling of any transmission shifting.

3. Battery life and charging quiz - achievement rate 108%

On the day of the test drive, we also conducted a battery life test to see whether the battery life of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z was solid. Then the pure electric cruising range of this model when fully charged is 201km (WLTC working condition).

At the time of departure, our watch showed that the remaining power was 80%, and the remaining pure electric range was 157km.

Finally, after driving 135.3km in the city (20%) and highway (80%), we ended this small endurance test because the engine intervened.

At the end, the remaining battery capacity was 23% and the remaining battery life was 32km.

After calculation, it can be concluded that the achievement rate of this endurance test is 108%. Based on the achievement rate and estimated battery life on full power, it should be able to run 217.6km. If it is a purely urban endurance test, there is no problem in running better results.

-Measured peak power 163.3kW

After testing the battery life and returning to the hotel, we conducted a charging test at the JiKr charging station in the hotel’s underground garage. During the test, all piles were replenishing energy for the tank 500 Hi4-Z, so there would be diversion.

But even under this condition, the peak charging power of the tank 500 Hi4-Z we tested reached 163.3kW. And it only takes 17 minutes to charge from 30% to 80%.

4. Appearance analysis

The Tank 500 Hi4-Z we tested this time has a business-style grille design. In addition to this grille, there is also a grille that is relatively less business-style to choose from.

There are two cameras in the front gear position, one is for assisted driving, and the other is for the driving recorder.

The entire grille position is filled with chrome decoration, which is mainly eye-catching.

A large tank brand logo can be seen in the middle of the grille.

Below the car logo is the location of the front surround camera.

In terms of car lights, it does not adopt the popular split design, but has a relatively square design, which is very suitable for the Tank 500 Hi4-Z.

In terms of front ultrasonic radar, the tank 500 Hi4-Z tested this time is equipped with a total of six.

Coming to the side of the car, although the overall shape is still a square shape, there are many more curves on the side of the tank 500 Hi4-Z to make it look less angular.

In terms of size, the length, width and height of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z are 5078*1934*1905mm, and the wheelbase is 2850mm.

Compared with two hard-core off-road plug-in hybrids of similar size, the advantage of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z lies in its shorter wheelbase (the advantage here is the advantage of off-road passability).

The L8 is placed here mainly for size demonstration. After all, the visibility of the L8 on the road is very high, so you can have a better judgment of the size.

For hard-core off-road models, parameters such as approach angle, departure angle and fully loaded ground clearance are very important, so the approach angle of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z reaches 29°, which is considered a good result;

The departure angle is 24°, which is relatively weak; the fully loaded ground clearance reaches 213mm, which can give the vehicle a good passability when fully loaded.

In terms of wheels, the actual shots taken this time are 20-inch wheels, which adopt a multi-spoke design, and the large chrome plating style looks more luxurious. Tire size is 265/50 R20.

As for the rearview mirror, you can see that it is designed to be connected to the small window, and it also uses a two-color color scheme.

In terms of configuration, the side view camera and turn signal functions are integrated.

The door handle adopts a traditional design, which is better than hidden style for hardcore off-road models.

You can see the fuel filling port on the left rear side of the car body, which supports filling of 92-proof gasoline; on the right side is the charging port, which integrates fast and slow charging functions.

Finally, let’s take a look at the rear of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z. As the version with a small school bag, the visual effect after hanging the small school bag is obviously better than the version without the small school bag.

The high-mounted brake light adopts a long strip design, which looks very recognizable.

There is also a camera that serves the electronic rearview mirror integrated under the high-mounted brake light.

The rear wiper is hidden in the spare wheel position.

The external spare tire can greatly improve the appearance of a hard-core off-road vehicle, so the external spare tire cover of the tank adopts an integrated design, which looks very wrong.

In the spare tire position, you can see a camera integrated in the middle, which serves the rear surround view function.

The taillight adopts a conventional design, and the vertical layout is just right on the Tank 500 Hi4-Z.

The tailgate of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z uses a conventional door handle design for opening, and the tailgate is closed with an electric suction function.

As for the tail logo, the Great Wall Tank Off-Road logo can be seen at the license plate holder, while on the right side is the Tank 500 Hi4-Z model logo.

As for the rear ultrasonic radar, there are six of them in the actual car.

5. Interior analysis

In terms of interior, the Tank 500 Hi4-Z is highly consistent with the Tank 500 Hi4-T, and the overall look is very luxurious.

The steering wheel adopts a three-spoke design, and the shape seems to be a relatively hard-core design. However, the thickness of the steering wheel is consistent with other Great Wall models, and it is slightly thinner to hold.

The buttons on the left side of the steering wheel are used to control assisted driving functions, while the buttons on the right side are used to control multimedia functions.

In terms of levers, since the Tank 500 Hi4-T uses a traditional shifting mechanism, the levers on the left are all levers for light adjustment; the levers on the right are wiper adjustment levers.

As a model with a petrol version, the Tank 500 Hi4-Z retains a physical button for one-button start.

In terms of instruments, you can see that the displayed content is much simpler than that of the Tank 500 Hi4-T.

In terms of central control, the car uses the latest Coffee 3.0 system, which has three options: car model desktop, wallpaper desktop and navigation desktop.

In the middle of the front air-conditioning outlet, you can see a physical watch marked with the TANK logo.

Below the air-conditioning outlet, there is a row of physical keys related to vehicle air-conditioning adjustment. This consideration is still necessary for hard-core off-roading. After all, the air conditioner can be controlled more conveniently through physical buttons.

Below the physical keys of the air conditioner is the location of the wireless charging panel for mobile phones, which can support 50W charging power.

You can see a large number of physical buttons at the position of the center console. I personally think this is acceptable for a hard-core off-road vehicle. After all, the stability of the physical buttons is better than that of the center console.

The gear lever uses an electronic gear lever, which is very convenient to shift into gear and feels good in the hand.

Although the bottom of the center console is not hollowed out, there is still a small space left on the driver's side, and you can see that there are two power interfaces in the front, and a 12V power interface and a TF card at the rear. groove.

Coming to the back row, you can see that the configuration is very high and it is also equipped with a large number of physical keys.

Above are two independent air conditioning outlets.

Below are the physical buttons for controlling rear air conditioning and seat functions.

And there are two charging interfaces and a 12V power interface at the bottom.

When the armrest in the middle of the rear seat is lowered, you can see an armrest with many functions.

There is also a large screen in the middle of the armrest, through which functions such as seats, air conditioning and media can be adjusted. In addition to heating and ventilation functions, the seats also support multi-level massage adjustments.

Coming to the trunk, you can see that the trunk is equipped with anchor points and there is a 220V socket on the right side.

In terms of doors, Tank 500 Hi4-Z adopts a framed door design.

You can see conventional window control keys on the front door panels, as well as physical keys for rearview mirror adjustment.

The rear doors can also be seen equipped with manual sunshades.

6. Analysis of storage and riding space-storage space

In terms of storage space, there is a small storage box on the left side of the main driver's side, which can be used to store the driving license.

From the main driving position, you can see that there is a hollow space under the center console, which can be used to store some sundries that are not easy to slide.

The central water cup holder can be seen to have a very deep design, which can effectively prevent the water cup from shaking and will not block the place where the arms are placed.

There is also a small sliding storage box in the center armrest box.

After removing the storage box and water cup holder, you can see that the space inside the center armrest box is very large.

And we can also see that there is an air conditioning outlet inside.

The interior of the passenger glove box is wrapped in velvet and has considerable space.

There are two water cup holders in front of the rear armrest, and you can see that there are stoppers inside.

There is a storage box with considerable space at the rear.

The space in the trunk can only be said to be sufficient for a model of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z level, but the length is slightly worse. However, the seats can be fully folded down, so larger storage space can be expanded.

Then after folding the seat, you can see that the depth has reached 175cm, so there is no big problem in sleeping one person.

After the tailgate is opened, you can see that there is also a certain storage space at the bottom of the tailgate.

-Ride space

Before talking about the riding space, let’s talk about the seats first. The first thing I felt when I sat on the seat of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z was that it was very well wrapped (for me personally). The wide and thick seat can play a very good supporting role for an off-road vehicle.

And the hardware configuration of the rear seats is also very high, which can provide you with relatively good comfort when going off-road, allowing you to complete an off-road trip with ventilation and massage on, or be very comfortable all the way through. spent.

You can also see in terms of seat size that the height is very considerable, so the support is also very good.

Specifically speaking of the seating space, when an experiencer with a height of 180cm adjusts the seat to the lowest and most comfortable position, it can be seen that the head space at this time is one punch and two fingers.

When moving to the back row while keeping the front row still, the first thing is that the seat back is in a relatively upright state. At this time, the head room is four fingers and the leg room is two fists.

When the backrest angle is adjusted to the most inclined state, the head space is two punches.

Editor's summary: If you don't often go off-road, but want to buy a model that looks fierce and can also bring a certain off-road experience, I think the Tank 500 Hi4-Z is a good choice.

After all, this time, the tank has greatly improved in terms of energy consumption and battery life. The pure electric cruising range has doubled, and the commuting distance can be longer, reducing the cost of urban transportation.

But in the end, it still depends on the price of the Tank 500 Hi4-Z. If the price difference between the Tank 500 Hi4-Z and the Tank 500 Hi4-T is not big, I think the Tank 500 Hi4-Z can better meet the needs of most people.