Dongfeng Voyah Passion electric car: space with comfort
Voyah's Passion EV, sized like VW ID.7 & Tesla Model S, arrives early 2025 with roomy interior, top features & good infotainment.
Dongfeng Voyah Passion
(Image: Dongfeng)
- Wolfgang Gomoll
Founded in 1969, the Chinese multi-brand group Dongfeng is one of the Chinese car manufacturers with the most experience. This includes long-standing collaborations with European and Japanese car companies. Dongfeng has created the Voyah brand for its premium clientele. The Voyah Passion is a 5.09 meter long all-wheel-drive sedan with a three-meter wheelbase and design reminiscent of the Porsche Panamera in the direct vicinity of the VW ID.7, Genesis G80 electric or Tesla Model S. We were able to take a brief drive in the luxurious vehicle, which naturally only allowed us to gain a few impressions.
Glass roof with opening function
The best seat in this saloon is traditionally at the back on the right, which is even more important in China than in Europe, where not many people can afford a driver. A small touchscreen in the left armrest allows the passenger to push the front passenger seat all the way forward and use its backrest as a leg rest with massage function. Otherwise, an integrated footrest will have to suffice. The driver is also catered for in this respect, except that he has to work sitting down. The large panoramic sunroof can also be opened from the control screen, but only benefits the second row of seats for the most part. In any case, its front section only begins above the apexes of the front seats.
Glass wall with infotainment function
Three screens, each measuring 12.3 inches, form a row across the dashboard. Some call this "coast-to-coast". We found the basic functions without any major problems, although the pre-production model was labeled exclusively in Mandarin. The four-zone climate control and seat adjustments are made via a smaller nine-inch touchscreen directly below the central monitor. None of this is new, but it is well done. This also applies to the head-up display with the flying arrows of augmented reality, as is familiar from various Mercedes models.
Dongfeng Voyah Passion (15 Bilder)
(Bild: Dongfeng )
With a trunk capacity of 441 to 1515 liters (with the rear seat backrests folded down), there is still enough space to stow your belongings despite the generous amount of space in the rear. As the floor of the luggage compartment is flat and not too far below the height of the loading sill, handling luggage is easy. The frunk is large enough to accommodate more than just the charging cable.
Very fast on the road
The all-wheel drive of the Voyah Passion offers 215 kW at the rear and 160 kW at the front, a total of 375 kW and a torque of 700 Nm. This enables the 2286 kilogram Passion to accelerate from a standstill to 100 km/h in an incredible 3.8 seconds. The corresponding elasticity between 80 and 120 km/h enables swift overtaking maneuvers. Voyah specifies a top speed of 205 km/h, which is probably only theoretically relevant for the German autobahns. However, top-speed stages are probably the exception here too.
Voyah states a range of 730 kilometers in the comparatively tame Chinese CLTC cycle. After all, the battery has a capacity of 109 kWh. Alternatively, Voyah also offers a smaller battery with 82 kWh, with which one battery charge should last for 580 kilometers in the CLTC. The standard consumption of 19.7 kWh per 100 km sounds rather optimistic; realistically, the average should be well over 20 kWh/100 km.
Weak recuperation and no coasting mode
The selector knob in the center console is familiar. The driving programs, for which you have to use a touchscreen, are not quite as intuitive. In addition to Snow and Individual, the Passion also offers the familiar Eco, Comfort and Sport driving modes. While you can clearly feel the difference between the respective settings in these programs, you hardly notice any difference in the three recuperation levels (strong, medium, weak). However, the Passion does not offer real sailing either.
Like the Dream van, it is technically based on the Electric Smart Secure Architecture (ESSA). The suspension, consisting of a single-chamber air spring and adaptive dampers, reliably irons out bumps in the road. Comfort is perfect; in the German market, the Sport mode might be a little too fluffy at best. The bulky steering wheel does not interfere with maneuvering. However, the steering setup offers an overly synthetic steering feel that does not tell the driver clearly enough about the interaction between tires and asphalt.
For the battery-electric Passion, Voyah also offers a smaller battery with 82 kWh as an alternative, with one battery charge sufficient for 580 kilometers (CLTC cycle). In China, the vehicles are offered for between the equivalent of 36,000 and 40,000 euros. In Germany, the price will be significantly higher. The Voyah Passion will also be launched as a plug-in hybrid with a capacity of 43 kilowatt hours at the beginning of 2025, which should be sufficient for a total range of 1260 kilometers.
(dahe)