by Rebaneilwe Semakane
Chinese brands are coming to the playing field with products that are hard to overlook, and the H6 HEV is one of them. It’s a car with an unmissable presence and for a volume product, it stands out quite well in traffic. But is it any good?
The H6 HEV is powered by a 1.5 litre turbocharged petrol engine combined with an electric motor that endows the car with 179kW and 530Nm. The drive is quiet, the car literally has to tell you that it is on and ready to go. It carries itself fairly well in traffic and city driving and feels as though it’s hovering over the tar roads. With regards to range, I managed to get the 700km range up to about 836km, whilst averaging about 6.8l/100km. I did experience some vibrations under my foot on the accelerator pedal which was unnerving at first but is due to the car going into regenerative braking mode, plus I do appreciate how it does not throw you back and forth as some hybrids do. The noise insulation is not up to par, in my opinion. And another flaw of this vehicle is the infotainment system, which is painfully to respond. One has to make sure all their settings and functions are set before you embark on your journey, or else you will be very frustrated. Also, to connect to CarPlay or Android Auto you have to plug your cable into the socket on the passenger side, which honestly, is ridiculous.
It is, however fairly comfortable and incredibly spacious. The H6 HEV is absolutely perfect for a small to large family, you can throw anything in there and occupants will be comfortable and fit well in the car. As someone who is single, it would not necessarily work for my lifestyle but, I’d shortlist it purely based on the range. The interior quality is really just okay, nothing feels out of place but in the same breath, it is not made up of very robust materials.
Apart from all the things mentioned above, I think the H6 HEV is a solid offering from the Chinese manufacturer. It is a really good attempt from them, and I think they have the formula right, and only need to refine their execution. Haval’s products do not have much emotion or character to them just yet, rather coming across as massively mass-produced. But give them some time. It is a conflicting car to be quite honest, I cannot shun it at all as it is not bad, but it could be better. The main selling point here is the space and the range, and that light bar at the rear which makes it look super cool when illuminated at night.
The H6 HEV is priced at R669 950, which I think is a bargain for such technology. Hybrids and electric vehicles with such a range are very hard to come by, so it would not hurt to give the Haval a try.
