A day out with the Changan Nevo Hunter K50 4×2 REEV

It’s an interesting time to be in the market for a pickup truck today. With the removal of the excise tax exemptions, traditional diesel-fed pickups have seen price increases that drive customers away from them. And ironically, they look at the newcomers in the pickup space, the electrified ones from China.

One of the most notable offerings is undoubtedly the BYD Shark 6 DMO, thanks to how aggressive BYD Cars Philippines has been in pushing the model, but there are also other offerings from other corners of China, such as this, the Changan Nevo Hunter K50 REEV. Changan Philippines is offering it in two variants, the 4×4 and the 4×2.

For this media drive up to Villa Escudero in Quezon province, I was assigned to the entry-level Changan Nevo Hunter K50 4×2, which costs Php 1,699,000, a good Php 271,000 cheaper than its top-of-the-line 4×4 sibling. While you may think that there are some notable omissions to bring the price down, Changan Philippines actually specced it well enough that most buyers won’t actually end up missing them in the first place.

For those wondering what the REEV means in its name, this stands for Range Extender EV, and this acts a little bit differently compared to other traditional hybrids or even BYD’s Super DM-i drivetrain.

Yes, this is a plug-in hybrid as well, but instead of having the engine drive the wheels alongside the electric motor, the electric motor is the only one that’s connected to the wheels, resulting in a more EV-like driving experience.

This pickup truck is powered by a 2.0-liter turbo gas engine and a single electric motor, paired with a 31.18kWh battery. The power output is a healthy 174 horsepower and 320Nm, being sent to the rear wheels. Changan Philippines quotes a combined range figure of up to 1,031km, and up to 180km on pure electric range.

This can also be charged via the two ports (Type 2 and GB/T) on the side of the truck bed, which can fast charge in 30 minutes. During our drive, we were able to record a fuel economy reading of 12.9km/L, which was achieved in mixed heavy traffic within the city, expressways, and provincial highways over almost 200km of driving.

Compared to your usual pickup truck, the Hunter REEV, even in its base single-motor form, has a very linear feel with just the right amount of torque off the line. It doesn’t feel heavy nor labored, nor does it feel like it has enough power to force the tires to squeal every single time you floor it. The best part about all of this is that due to its electric-first nature, the truck is incredibly refined, and Changan has done very well in terms of cabin insulation from both wind and road noise.

However, the car allows you to dictate how the powertrain works via its very clunky interface (more on that later), allowing you to either prioritize electric power or the gas engine, to force either of the two, a force charging mode when higher loads are needed, or to leave it in Automatic, which is best for the car.

However, when the gas engine does turn on, it’s not like other hybrid vehicles, where you notice the engine whirr to life in the background. Here, the engine violently shakes the car as it warms up, inducing some rather concerning side-to-side vibrations that aren’t befitting of a car with four cylinders.

The severity does decrease as the engine warms up, but there’s one thing for sure: you will feel the engine vibrations permeate into the cabin, wherever you sit. One thing for you to note as well is that this engine operates at fixed RPMs for the ideal power generation for the battery, meaning this sounds more like a chainsaw rather than your traditional gas engine as it moves through the power band.

Though the Hunter makes up for that with how it drives and handles. If you’re expecting the usual heavy pawis steering with a chassis that loves to jostle its cabin occupants, think again. 

The Hunter drives much like a large crossover, with slightly overassisted steering and a very well-damped and softly sprung suspension. This is also thanks to the rear multi-link suspension, though Changan says you can only carry up to 495kg of payload in the bed.

It even has a special brand of torque and brake vectoring called Active Yaw Control (yes, I did verify that it is called that) to improve cornering. However, disturb the suspension too much or too fast, and you can feel a slight disconnect between the cabin and the chassis as the car makes its way over the imperfection. Plus, the brake feel is very linear, with no way to adjust regenerative braking at all. At least the standard regeneration is gentle, almost like engine braking in an ICE-powered car.

And despite being the entry-level variant with fewer creature comforts, this is an incredibly comfortable and attractive-looking cabin to be in.

The manually adjustable seats are incredibly well-bolstered and feel very well shaped to the body, and the leatherette-and-fabric upholstery is more beneficial to our hot climate, with the center inserts staying relatively cool and breathable on long journeys, and our backs did not hurt in the long stretches of time we spent crawling in traffic.

Getting an ideal driving position did prove to be slightly problematic, as the steering column only featured tilt adjustments. However, just like its BYD competitor, the Hunter’s cabin is very spacious and easy to see out of, especially from the second row, which also offers rear air vents and a USB port.

The dashboard design is minimalist and very attractive too, following the modern trend of two screens (a 7.5-inch digital driver’s display and 12.3-inch touchscreen), a few physical climate control buttons with your hazard button in the middle, a column-mounted gear selector stalk, and a cooled wireless charging pad with two cupholders on the right. There isn’t even an engine on/off switch; all you do is simply press your foot on the brake, and the electronics come to life.

Though the infotainment used on the Hunter feels noticeably last-generation compared to its newer companions, it features all the pitfalls that infotainment-centric older Chinese cars had. 

Lots of basic functionality is buried beneath multiple menus (such as auto hold and the light controls), poorly translated English all over the menus, climate controls that take over whatever you were doing on the screen, and even an incredibly buggy implementation of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.

My companion, Carlos Divino of YugaAuto, and I experienced multiple freezes and disconnects with our devices over the entire trip, even while using a wired connection. Only resetting the infotainment would temporarily fix it, and it didn’t help that the six speakers in the car were poorly tuned to be very shrill and lacking in bass, even after tuning the equalizer.

Regardless of variant, this comes with a few niceties and advanced driver assistance systems, like a 360-degree camera with built-in dashcam functionality, remote start, standard cruise control with lane departure warning, a tire pressure monitor, and multiple airbags, though the 4×2 lacks side curtain airbags.

But to save the best part for last, the Hunter does stand out from the crowd in how it looks. Unlike most pickup trucks that look very similar to each other with boxy, blocky faces and bodies, the Hunter goes against the grain with its distinct design that features multiple sharp lines and edges, and a face that would remind you of the multiple EVAs featured in the likes of Evangelion.

And it doesn’t stop there, as even this 4×2 variant features blacked-out 18-inch wheels, automatic LED headlights with LED foglights, a step board, a sports bar with (non-load bearing) roof rails to further aid with utility, and a truck bed that not only has bedliner as standard, but also a bed light, and a panel that covers two power outlets for powering any appliances that you might see, plus a very clever assisted tailgate that turns into a step to help with loading and unloading whatever is in the bed.

One of the most attractive aspects of this Hunter 4×2 variant in general is how good a package this truck offers for its price point, targeting buyers who would normally look at mid-range variants of pickups. Considering that the BYD Shark 6 DMO’s entry-level Advanced trim is priced at a higher Php 2,098,000, the Changan Hunter K50 REEV provides a very compelling alternative at a more affordable price point.

^{Photos by Sam Surla}