For those who don’t know, the Shenbao brand (Senova in English) is owned by Beijing Auto, the same ones who bought the rights to the Saab 9-3 and 9-5 back in 2009.
Even though most of their cars are based on these two models, the D80 is actually riding on a Mercedes-Benz E-Class L platform. We’re talking about the W212 E-Class L, which is made in China by the Beijing-Benz joint venture.
We’ll admit right away, this thing isn’t much of a looker, however it may turn out to be a very technically sound car. Design-wise, it looks a bit funny (in a bad way) in the front. The headlights have a weird shape and they don’t really go that well with the grille.
The interior however looks a lot better. They made sure to use a lot of leather, which is a must when you’re trying to sell a premium product. The vertical tablet-styled display isn’t a bad touch either. They clearly copied the Tesla Model S on this one, although Tesla’s display is bigger still.
The D80 also gets two petrol engines from the W212 Merc E-Class, a 1.8 liter and a 3.0 liter unit.
The 1.8 liter engine should be the one found in the old E 200 CGI and the E 250 CGI, while the 3.0 liter one would be from the E 300.
This shouldn’t be a bad car to drive, at least not in a straight line. The interior is nice so it probably won’t be a bad place to sit in either. However, the way in which the car looks is definitely going to be its Kryptonite.
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