- The new Voyah Free 318 comes with an advertised battery-only range of 318 km (198 miles).
- The SUV uses a range-extender powertrain with a single electric motor
- Pre-sales of the model in China will launch on May 30
Chinese automaker Voyah announced a new version of the Free SUV, targeting to beat the record for the longest electric-only range among vehicles with PHEV (plug-in hybrid) or EREV (range-extender) powertrains.
The new Voyah Free 318 claims to offer a driving range of 318 km (198 miles) on battery power under the CLTC protocol, allowing owners to effectively use it as a regular BEV, and benefit from a range-extender ICE under the hood. The combined driving range is expected to be even longer but the company didn’t reveal an exact figure yet.
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The Voyah Free has been on sale in China since 2021, as the first production model of the Dongfeng-owned brand. The SUV was initially available with both BEV and EREV powertrain options, but the former was discontinued in 2023.
The existing Voyah Free EREV has a still-impressive electric range of 210 km (130 miles) thanks to a 39.2 kWh battery pack. The new Free 318 probably improves on that front with a bigger battery pack but we still don’t have any official info about it.
According to information from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Voyah Free 318 will carry over the same range-extender turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine under the hood, with 148 hp (110 kW / 150 PS). However, unlike the existing EREV that comes with a dual electric motor setup, the new version will use a single rear-mounted e-motor producing 268 hp (200 kW / 272 PS) and 410 Nm (302 lb-ft) of torque.
While this means that the Voyah Free 318 will have less power compared to its dual-motor counterpart, it certainly contributes to the longer electric-only range with the improved efficiency of having just one motor.
Besides the notable changes under the skin, Voyah slightly revised the styling of the 4,905 mm (193.1 inches) long SUV, including a new set of black 20-inch five-spoke alloy wheels with red brake calipers, a rear spoiler, and the Titanium Crystal Gray paint finish. The dark-themed interior with suede-style upholstery features green stitching and carbon fiber accents.
Voyah will start pre-sales of the Free 318 on May 30. As reported by Car News China, the new version of the SUV is expected to be cheaper than the standard Voyah Free which currently sells for ¥266,900 ($36,855).
