Changan Deepal S07 Review: Good Enough to Compete with Tesla, BYD and MG?
John Marcar has been testing the Changan Deepal S07. On paper, it looks like a fantastic all-around choice, but with competitors like BYD, MG, and Tesla all within reach at a similar price point, some technical setbacks and a compromise on comfort might be this model's downfall.
Hot Competition
We’re in a fascinating period of time for new cars at the moment. It’s no big secret that the European manufacturers we’ve regarded as staple brands for decades are now struggling to keep up with the proliferation of new Chinese car brands. In the past few years, we've seen new brands such as Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo, BYD, and Geely emerge with little to no brand heritage or history, yet almost immediately outperform the big European brands many of us have regarded as unchallenged. Now, there's potentially an even bigger battle going on, and it's not just the newbie Chinese car vs the stalwart Europeans; it's Chinese cars vs other Chinese cars.
The initial influx of Chinese cars has proven that good tech doesn't need to come with a luxury price tag. Recently, we've reviewed new Chinese cars with radar cruise control, massaging seats, premium audio and even some with self-driving capabilities, which just 5 years ago would have been features reserved for the most expensive European car makers. The B, C, and D-segment SUV market is an area that the Chinese car makers are especially good at, too, and now, there's another new car-making contender that's likely to have your friends saying, "That looks nice, but sorry, it's called a... what?"
Changan in the UK
Whilst the brand will be new to most in the UK, like many of its competitors, Changan has a very long history in China. Changan was once state-owned and has been producing vehicles for the Chinese market for many decades. It has since expanded into international markets and is now focusing primarily on battery EVs and plug-in hybrids.
For the UK market, Changan takes pride in its own UK R&D facilities. Inside the centre, just a couple of miles from Birmingham airport, each model is tuned for our roads, and the software and tech are adapted for the UK road network. It's a similar approach to that of MG, which, despite now being a Chinese carmaker, has retained its UK offices and development centres in London and Longbridge. This is a smart move for a Chinese car maker, as we Brits have a fairly unique road network and driving style, which doesn't always work for 'out of the box' Chinese cars. In terms of first impressions for Changan, we’re off to a good start.
Price and Standard Equipment
The Changan Deepal S07 is a D-segment SUV aimed at families and executives wanting a stylish, luxurious package. What's likely to draw in enquiries beyond its sharp design is the price, which starts at just under £40,000 OTR. Changan is particularly proud of the extensive standard equipment list that comes with the Deepal S07. The features include advanced ADAS systems and integrated adaptive cruise control with start-stop traffic capabilities. There's also a huge list of safety features included as standard, including lane keep assist, collision warning systems and intelligent speed assist, plus blind spot detection, automatic emergency braking, high beam assist, and safe distance warning systems with clever floating graphics displayed on an intuitive head-up display.
For a sense of luxury, the interior is finished to a very high standard with high-quality materials, switchgear, and a huge 1.9 sq metre panoramic glass roof, making the interior feel gloriously spacious from all seats. Additional tech luxuries include heated and ventilated seating, ambient lighting, wireless smartphone connectivity and a 14-way premium sound system. The car's interface is managed entirely via a 15.6-inch touchscreen that can tilt its display toward either the driver or the front passenger for convenience. A head-up display incorporates what would typically be seen in an instrument cluster ahead of the steering wheel and projects navigation guidance in augmented reality onto the windscreen.
What's clear about the Changan models is that some of the menu layout and features in the driving experience have been inspired by a few larger competitors, including Tesla. That's not necessarily a bad thing; however, when taking inspiration from the Californians, some of the Changans' layouts aren’t quite as slick or seamless.
Battery, Range and Charging
The Deepal S07 can boast a fairly impressive range of up to 295 miles (WLTP) thanks to its 80kWh battery. DC fast charging capability also allows for a 30-80% charge in 35 minutes.
The Deepal S07's Unfortunate Shortfalls
On paper, the Deepal S07 looks like a superb overall package at a very enticing price, and it's also conveniently below the UK's luxury car tax threshold. But in practice, many of the features Changan touts as luxuries fall short of what its competitors can offer.
Annoying ADAS
Before driving the Deepal S07, I was given a briefing on some of the car's features. A fairly big deal was made about how Changans UK's R&D facility had gone to great lengths to reduce the annoyance of the ADAS system and the many alerts that now come as standard in all new cars to comply with the EURO NCAP rules.
Unfortunately, whilst driving the S07, I found the Changans ADAS system to be possibly the most annoying I've ever experienced. The bongs, bings and notifications are incessant, and even when you think you've turned them off, there's more to contend with. Look at the central infotainment screen for too long to see what the car’s complaint is, and you're immediately met with an additional complaint about looking at the screen for too long. Fortunately, the systems can be turned off individually, and the menu for doing so is intuitive, allowing you to customise settings before starting each drive.
Lane Assist Software Needs Work
The lane assist is another luxury feature as seen on many new cars, but unfortunately, on the Deepal S07 it’s not great and, at times, actually quite unnerving - especially on country roads. The system is designed to help maintain a consistent driving position in the centre of a lane, but after a short while, I had to switch it off. On typical two-way roads with standard-width lanes and dividing lines, the system is okay, but on some wider stretches of road, the lane-assist cameras don't know where to place the car, so it ends up weaving left to right regardless of steering-wheel input. On lanes with no central diving line, it becomes erratic. While other systems would automatically deactivate in this sort of environment and instruct the driver to take full control, the Changan system is constantly trying to find outer painted lines that don't exist on most country lanes.
Not so Intelligent Assisted Cruise Control
Changan highlights assisted and intelligent cruise control as a major selling point, but I’m afraid this also needs some work. The most crucial drawback is that the traffic sign recognition system is unreliable. On two separate stretches of 70 mph road (dual carriageway and motorway), the traffic sign recognition system, which automatically regulates the cruise control speed, repeatedly set itself to 43 mph without any prior warning. The result of the change in perceived speed limit is that the brakes are applied from 70mph to abide by what the car assumes is now a 43 mph speed limit (a limit which does not exist on UK roads). This happened multiple times in different driving environments and left a very disconcerting feeling - the result, like the lane assist, was that I felt I needed to switch the system off, making it another redundant luxury.
Seats - Not as comfortable as they look
The most disappointing feature on the Deepal S07 is the seating. The interior design on the model is fantastic, and the materials used are on par with those of more luxurious competitors. But in use, the options for positioning and the overall comfort could be so much better. On the front seats, there is no adjustment to the seat base angle at all - it's simply flat, which removes all leg support from the seat base. The seat height can be raised, but this only makes the base feel even more obscure and sometimes gives the feeling that you are sitting at an angle tilted forward towards the wheel. The cushioning in the back seats is also surprisingly firm, despite the seats looking luxurious, and this will likely become tiresome on long journeys. The disappointing seat comfort seems like a major miss for Changan, especially given the attention to design and other aesthetics elsewhere on the interior.
Driving the Deepal S07
Tech and comfort niggles aside, once the individual ADAS systems, assisted cruise control and driver monitoring systems are all deactivated, the Deepal S07 drives fairly well. The UK R&D team's efforts are clearly felt in the chassis and in how the model soaks up the UK's unique lumps, bumps, and painfully on-trend potholes. The steering feel isn't overly inspiring, but it's fairly typical for the price bracket and is on par with the vast majority of its closest competitors.
The Deepal S07 offers a sensible, perfectly adequate 215 hp and 320 Nm of peak torque to the rear wheels via a 160kW motor. There are more powerful options in this price bracket; however, the power and performance feel nicely balanced on the S07, with enough punch to pull away from a standing start and to get up to motorway speeds from 30-70mph without any fuss.
An additional perk for some is the model's towing capability. A retractable tow bar can be specified as an optional extra, granting 1,500kg of towing capacity.
Overall, visibility, touch points, and day-to-day aesthetics are positive. With a dual-storage setup featuring a large boot capacity of up to 510 litres and an additional 125-litre frunk, the practicality is very good.
Can software updates save the day?
Unfortunately, for now, the current negatives do outweigh the positives on the 'S07, and therefore, in its current form, it's likely to fall short against the competition. As a potential saving grace, Changan operates with 'over the air' updates, meaning if many users have similar complaints around the software, most of them will likely be fixed and then updated via software updates without any need to visit a dealer or workshop.
Conclusion
The Changan Deepal S07 is a spacious and stylish car that has plenty of kerbside appeal. It also offers all the practicalities most families will require, but (and here's the but) it doesn't yet offer anything over its competitors, which isn’t great news for Changan as it almost certainly won't be 'the one to pick'.
For very similar money (and in some cases slightly less), better all-round packages are available from the likes of MG and BYD. The MG S5 and BYD Sealion 7 are close competitors, with the MG marginally undercutting the Changan and the BYD costing slightly more. But with a starting price just a couple of thousand pounds more than the Deepal S07, the Tesla Model Y is also an option, and for most, that will be the most sensible choice, as it has much better tech, an easier charging infrastructure, better WLTP range and much more comfortable seating.
Don't rule out Changans' future, though, as new cars are coming, including a selection of plug-in hybrid options. Provided the software and driver-assist issues can be addressed, and with a rethink of seat comfort, there's no reason Changan won't be seen as a major player in a few years, but for now, there's still some work to be done.
words by John Marcar
photographs courtesy of Changan
