GAC brought a good-looking two-door SUV called the Enverge
to the Detroit Auto Show to get its name out in the open before its official
launch in 2019.
The Enverge is
wearing a futuristic design, something that a lot of EVs miss out on at the
moment. The grille-less front end allows GAC to tack on a massive badge onto
the front of the vehicle, while the headlights wrap around the entire front end
of the vehicle. The car has a pinched
rear end that mimics the Toyota Prius with a rear taillight design that wraps
around the rear end. The SUV’s design is striking, especially when you take the
gullwing doors.
The design, as the Chinese automaker claims, is
supposed to appeal to young consumers in the U.S. If the exterior doesn’t draw
buyers in, the interior certainly will. There’s a Formula 1-inspired steering
wheel with a few steering-wheel-mounted buttons within reach of the driver’s
thumbs. Instead of a traditional dashboard, there’s an enormous flatscreen that
provides necessary information – the car’s speed, navigation, etc.
While the majority of enthusiasts enjoy sitting in
the driver’s seat, the passengers in the back of the SUV are treated to
something even more high-tech – panoramic augmented reality goggles that take
information on things outside of the Enverge and lays them onto the opaque
windows.
Power wise, the SUV features a 71 kWh battery pack
that gives the vehicle a range of 370 miles, which is 120 miles more than the
Byton Crossover Concept from CES. GAC also claims that a 10-minute charge
allows the Enverge concept to go up to 240 miles. A wireless charger will be
available for the production-ready version of the vehicle.
The SUV has a claimed output of 240 horsepower,
which is put down to all four wheels and can get to 60 mph in less than 4.5
seconds. The vehicle tops out at 99 mph. The zero to 60 mph figure is right on
par with what the Tesla Model 3 recently did. A production version of the
Enverge concept would certainly be an interesting vehicle for GAC to enter the
North American market.
