Aiways U5
The Aiways U5 is an electric SUV, one of the new Chinese electric cars that are coming to Europe.
Aiways is one of the brands that is betting the strongest on its implementation in Europe, through Norway and Italy where it has a homologation and distribution center. Right now on the market, this Aiways is possibly the most westernized vehicle, with permission of course from the MG ZS, which is a lower cost car.
It is a perfectly comparable product to what is sold in Europe and can have a very competitive price with purchase aid.
It comes to compete with electric SUV type cars such as the Volkswagen ID.4, Skoda Enyaq, Tesla Model Y, Ford Mustang Mach-e or Peugeot e2008.
Shopping guide and review
Index
Aiways U5 Exterior
External dimensions
The Aiways U5, by its appearance, is a car that attracts a lot of attention. It is a 4.68 meter long car, thanks to its generous wheelbase.
It has design details such as the retractable handles identical to those of the Kia EV6 or Hyundai Ioniq 5.
Battery and charging socket
Its battery is liquid-cooled and has a capacity of 63 kWh useful, from the CATL cartel brand, that is, of the highest quality and has an 8-year warranty.
The charging socket is located, as in most Chinese electric vehicles, on the front. In this case it is also turned over, so that the loading maneuver is somewhat uncomfortable in most of the continuous load chargers that are found on our roads.
Its fast charging system of up to 90 kW , allows you to recharge from 20% to 80% in 35 minutes in direct current through CSS combo. Slow charging on a 6.6 kW wallbox with Mennekes type 2 would take about 10 hours.
Aiways U5 interior
It is a very spacious car inside, very generous in terms of space. This habitability of its interior is one of its strengths, although its trunk is not particularly large, 423 liters has a double bottom with a hole to leave the cables and also a space in the front where you can leave some objects.
The seats and the finishes convey a feeling of quality that has nothing to envy of a European vehicle.
The gear lever is, in this case, a wheel that seems to be taken from the one that Hyundai or Kia Niro has.
Infotainment system
The central screen is of quality and when we make a maneuver, the screen is divided and we have a 360-degree view of the car.
It has an automatic parking assistant in which horizontal or vertical parking mode is selected, which is one of the many technical sophistications that this vehicle has
Safety equipment
It has the latest systems in safety equipment such as automatic cruise control assistance system, lane change alert, pre-collision warning, signal detector, camera capable of monitoring the car 360 degrees or blind spot detector.
It has an LKA driving assistance assistant (level 2 autonomous driving), which between 60 and 120 km / h, can take control of the steering wheel, works really well and is very remarkable
There is a camera to monitor the driver and prevent him from falling asleep or doing something weird. The car will warn quickly.
EuroNCAP security
The Aiways U5 earned 3 stars in EuroNCAP tests. He was heavily penalized for his active driving assistance systems and specifically he was penalized in the recognition of cyclists (the pedestrian recognition did better) and another penalty was in the lane departure assistant. The car got 3 stars in 2019, which in an earlier era could perfectly have been 5 stars and is not a particularly unsafe vehicle.
Aiways U5 At The Wheel
The Aiways U5 has a battery of 63 kW hour of capacity (soon a new one of more than 80 kW) with which it announces 410 km of autonomy with the European homologation cycle, which really in normal use can be between 280 and 350 km, depending on how you drive, something that happens in most electric SUVs on the market.
At the wheel we find two screens and the good quality of the infotainment system is striking. The front screen is actually three screens: The one on the left can be configured with the consumption data and the one on the right with the multimedia system. We can change the screens and the different forms of instrumentation with the steering wheel.
The driving position is completely SUV. The first thing that draws attention to the margin of the screens on the one hand is the shape of the steering wheel, which is flattened at the top and bottom and secondly is the noise generator that the car has, which can be configured and modulated.
The ride quality is remarkable and tends to be hard and with a slightly sporty feel. Power can be changed in driving mode, which has three levels: normal, eco and sport.
Regarding the dynamic behavior, it is in a car that performs well and is not oriented to sporty driving. There are no variable suspensions or damping adjustment systems, therefore a compromise has been sought and has been oriented more towards comfort. When going through potholes it can be more bumpy than normal, but it is logical given that these cars have a lot of weight. The steering feel is good, it is communicative and it is smooth.
The worst of the car are on the one hand the consumption, which is high on the road. because it is a tall car and if we go over 120 km / h on the road we can easily reach over 25 kWh of consumption.
We were not too convinced by the feel of the brake pedal, which is a bit uncomfortable since it lacks a bit of bite at the beginning, when you start to step and then a lot of bite comes in at once. This requires a certain period of adaptation to be able to perfectly dose the braking
Opinion
| + The Best | – Worst |
– Battery capacity – Interior spaciousness – Autonomy | – Charging socket location – High consumption on the road – Touch of the brake pedal |
Aiways U5 Price
Regarding the price in Spain of the Aiways U5, it can be purchased at a price of around € 37,000, which with the aid of the MOVES plan can be around € 30,000.
Aiways U5 Insurance Price
To find the best insurance the Aiways U5 can compare and hire safe from asegurar.org
Technical characteristics
| Aiways U5 | |
| Measures | 4.68 meters |
| Power | 140 kW (191 cv) |
| Through | 315 Nm |
| Battery capacity | 63 kWh |
| WLTP autonomy | 410 Km |
| Acceleration 0-100 Km / h | 7.5 seconds |
| Price | From 37,000 euros (Spain) |