China’s EV revolution is in full swing. We literally
see a new electric car brand being born every day. Today’s newborn is called
Ciwei, and their first car is this pretty blue thing called the Simai’er.
Ciwei Auto is a subsidiary of an internet company
called Xiamen Sanwu Internet Technology, based in the great city of Xiamen in
Fujian Province. Ciwei means hedgehog, and the logo depicts a seemingly
angry example. Their slogan is ‘Make every drive a good memory’.
Naturally, because it is owned by an internet
company, Ciwei auto claims all sorts of internet and cloud connectivity,
without getting into specifics. They are also working on a block chain based
storage system for the owner’s information, which seemingly does exactly the
same thing as a normal cloud-based storage system. But in anyway, block chain
is kinda hack-able cool and makes for great marketing speak.
It is called the Simai’er, which is
a weird name even in Chinese. It has no real meaning, and there isn’t any
English name yet. Power comes from an electric motor with 122 hp and 270 Nm,
mated to a 49 kWh ternary lithium battery pack. Ciwei claims an NEDC range of
360 kilometers and a top speed of 144 km/h.
Funky funky with a black red color scheme, a hedge
hog on th steering wheel, a 12 inch touch screen, a digital instrument panel,
and big round air vents. Hedgehog on the drive selector. Interestingly, there
are no R N D markings. The only way to know what you are selecting is by
looking at your instrument panel. Electronic parking brakes systems are getting
cheaper by the day, as ever more car companies install them into their
products. And that means even start-ups like Ciwei can now afford them.
When the Simai’er hits the market and for how much
is yet unclear, but we expect to see it in person on the upcoming 2018 Beijing
Auto.
Cr : Carnewschina
