The selling price is 1329000 Thai Baht, with a range of 540 kilometers. What are the highlights of DEEPAL L07, a competitor of BYD Seal?

DEEPAL, derived from a Chinese brand called Changan, emerged as a new energy brand. It launched a sedan called SL03 in the Chinese market. Difinitely, it is actually named DEEPAL L07 in Thailand. The difference is that SL03 was independently released in China. However, DEEPAL has simultaneously launched and sold two models, the L07 and S07, in Thailand.

The power system of the two cars is the same, both equipped with a 66,8kWh ternary lithium battery. The difference lies in the NEDC range, with the L07 achieving a longer range of 540km, compared to 485km, the range of S07. The first reason that leads to the distinction in the range is that the body weight of the S07 is 1820kg, which is 120kg lighter than that of the S07, equivalent to the weight of two slender male adults. Additionally, the drag coefficient of the S07 is lower than that of the SUV due to its sedan appearance, so the range can be enhanced by low wind resistance.

The L07 will form a competitive relationship not only with BYD Seal but also with popular products like the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord in the current market. Therefore, it is necessary to know about L07.

Things we should know about DEEPAL L07

·2,900mm wheelbase

·100% electrically driven, rear-wheel drive, with a maximum motor power of 190kW

·NEDC pure electric range of 540km

·Comprehensive intelligent driving assistance system

·5 exterior colors and 2 interior colors

·Exterior and interior designs acclaimed by young people

1. EPA-1 All Electric Digital Platform

It is necessary to know about the EPA-1 All Electric Digital Platform of DEEPAL since both L07 and S07 are born from this platform. According to official information, the EPA-1 All Electric Digital Platform is the first platform that supports pure electric, hydrogen, and hybrid systems. The advantages of platform-based vehicle development mainly manifest in lowering the development cost, shortening time, and improving quality control. Different models from the same platform can share parts with each other, thereby reducing the price, saving repair costs, and ensuring vehicle reliability. Certainly, a specialized purely electric platform can also ensure the driving safety of electric vehicles.

2. The Exterior Design of DEEPAL L07

Both the exterior and interior of L07 designs are embraced by young aesthetics, which has probably been the mainstream direction of automobile design in recent years. Nevertheless, compared to the prevalent fuel vehicles available in the current market, the exterior of DEEPAL L07 is more angular and aggressive, which presents a dynamic posture that draws more attention. After all, there's no young person who doesn't like to get attention.

Attributed to its pure electric-driven platform, the exterior design of L07 does not need a traditional grille, therefore, the enclosed front face can essentially embody a sense of freshness. After all, since the birth of automobiles, the internal combustion engine has been the mainstream. If I were asked when the profound changes in automobiles take place, I would believe it lies in the shifts in driving forms. The shift in design, however, is an inevitable trend as the driving forms are changing.

The closed design does not mean monotony. For example, there are many details welcomed by young people, such as the shapes of front and rear bumpers, hidden door handles, 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels, and rear spoiler. Thus, these details can save a large amount of modifications to some extent because the original design is wild, isn’t it?

The L07 is available in five body colors: blue, green, grey, white and black

DEEPAL L07's Body Dimensions:

· DEEPAL L07: 4,820 x 1,890 x 1,480 / 2,900 mm

· BYD Seal: 4,800 x 1,875 x 1,460 / 2,920 mm

· ORA 07: 4,871 x 1,862 x 1,500 / 2,870 mm

· Honda Accord: 4,962 x 1,862 x 1,449 / 2,828 mm

· Toyota Camry: 4,885 x 1,840 x 1,445 / 2,825 mm

Compared to traditional fuel cars, one major advantage of pure electric vehicles is that they can provide a larger passenger space while utilizing more storage space. For example, there is storage luggage under the hood since the volume of the electric motor and control system is much smaller than that of the engine and transmission. Moreover, L07 adapts a rear-wheel drive configuration and the electric motor is on the rear axle, thus, most of the space in the front trunk is spared. In addition, the shorter front and rear suspensions lead to a longer wheelbase. For instance, although the length of the L07 may not be advantageous compared to the Accord and Camry, it features a longer wheelbase, which means that the interior passenger space is larger. Due to the hatchback design, L07 boasts a spacious trunk opening. Therefore, it is convenient to put some boxes and large items.  

Main External Configurations of DEEPAL L07:

·LED Star Petal Day Running Lights

·LED Headlights

·LED Star Flame Taillights

·Doors without Frames

·Panoramic Glass Sunroof with Electrically Adjustable Sunshade

·Front Trunk with a Capacity of 71 Liters

·Electric Hidden Door Handles

·19-inch Alloy Wheels with the Size of 245/45 R19

·Sporty Designed Rear Spoiler

·Power Tailgate

The Interior and Configurations of DEEPAL 07

The interior of DEEPAL L07 is available in two colors: black and white. In comparison, if orange were available in the interior of DEEPAL L07, it would be more eye-catching and youthful. However, L07 does not offer an orange interior. Instead, orange decorative lines are added to the white interior, whereas the black interior features blue decorative lines, which are more understated.

The cabin is wrapped with soft materials to ensure a touching-friendly environment, instead of a rigid sense of plastic. Considering the price of this car, it is really reasonable. The seats are generously padded and the V-shaped perforated design is also featured on the surface, giving a sense of wearing a business suit. In fact, when it comes to a sense of luxury, the seat design of the S07 is more outstanding, while the seat styling of the L07 is somewhat more traditional and the V-shaped texture seems formal.  

The design style of the center console is in line with the mainstream design of electric vehicles to distinguish it from traditional vehicles. Preferences for this design vary from person to person. However, without a traditional gearbox structure, a more substantial storage space will be given under the center console. Therefore, it is convenient to put a handbag or a medium-sized item and the surface of the center console will look cleaner.

Major Interior Configurations of DEEPAL L07：

·6-Way Power Adjustment Driver Seat with 4-Way Power Adjustment Lumber Support

·4-Way Power Adjustment Front Passenger Seat

·Driver Seat Position Memory and Welcome Function

·Ventilated Driver and Front Passenger Cushion and Backrest

·Rear Trunk Space of 435 Liters

·Flat Rear Cabin Floor

·Dual-zone Auto A/C System

·Rear Touchscreen A/C Control Panel

·Air Purification System Displaying PM 2.5 Index

The core of DEEPAL L07’s configuration is a 14.5-inch LCD touchscreen. It is interesting that the DEEPAL L07 is also equipped with an AR HUD system, but it still retains a 10.2-inch LCD instrument panel, while the S07 removed this instrument panel. This may be due to the fact that the corresponding Chinese model of L07, SL03, was released earlier. It is estimated that this instrument panel tends to disappear in future upgrades in that AR HUD can dynamically display navigation and other information and retaining one instrument panel may seem somewhat conventional, which does not conform to the style of DEEPAL.

The center console screen utilizes a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 chip, which is the high-end chip in the mainstream in-car system chips. The direct advantage is the smoother screen operation experience. For example, the transition is smoother while sliding the screen, so that the user experience can be improved. In addition, the responsiveness and recognition capabilities of gesture control, and voice recognition highly rely on the processing ability of this chip. Moreover, L07 also boasts functions like an OTA upgrading system, wireless Apple CarPlay, and wireless charging.

L07 is equipped with a complete set of driving assistance systems, including integrated adaptive cruise control (IACC), automatic emergency brake (AEB), and blind spot detection (BSD), but it does not provide an auto lane change function. Apart from 360° around view camera, S07 has a transparent chassis, which is necessary while driving on rough roads because the driver can see underneath the chassis of the vehicle to avoid unnecessary troubles caused by the collision of stones or other objects. The safety configurations of L07 are not bad, but the competitor models show similar capabilities. Thus, the differences can only be subjectively discerned in actual usage.    

Major Technological Configurations of DEEPAL L07

·AR HUD Information Display System and AR Navigation System

·10.2 Inches LCD Meter

·14.6 Inches Center Console Touchscreen

·Audio System with 14 Speakers

·360° Around View Camera with Undercarriage View and Transparent Chassis

·Wireless Apple CarPlay System

·OTA Online Update System

·64-color Ambient Light

·Cabin Intelligent Scenario Modes System

·40W Wireless Charger

·Gesture Recognition System

·Voice Recognition System (Supports Thai and English)

·Drive Video Recorder

·6 Safety Airbags (Front, Front Side, Side Curtain)

·Integrated Adaptive Cruise Control (IACC) System

·Traffic Jam Assist (TJA) System

·Car Follow, Stop & Go

·Safe Distance Warning (SDW) System

·Front Collision Warning (FCW) System

·Automatic Emergency Brake (AEB) System

·Lane Keep Assist (LKA) System

·Lane Departure Warning (LDW) System

·Blind Spot Detection (BSD) System

·Lane Change Assist (LCA) System while Vehicle Changing Lanes

·Rear Collision Warning (RCW) System

·Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) System

·Rear Cross Traffic Braking (RCTB) System

·Door Open Warning (DOW) System

·Front Auto High Beam (FAB) System

3. The Power System of the DEEPAL 07

The L07 adopts a rear-wheel-drive configuration with a permanent magnet synchronous motor on the rear axle. The motor has a maximum power of 190kW and a maximum torque of 320N·m. The L07 is equipped with a 66.8kWh capacity ternary lithium battery system, which provides the car with 540km of pure battery life (NEDC). The L07 also supports AC and DC charging, with a DC charging power of 78kW and it takes around 35 minutes to charge from 30% to 80%.

The suspension system of L07 adopts a MacPherson independent suspension, while the rear is equipped with an H-type multi-link independent suspension. The vehicle provides four driving modes: ECO/COMFORT/SPORT/CUSTOMIZE, to cater to different users and driving preferences in various scenes.

Conclusion:

It is hard to predict the impact of the arrival of DEEPAL L07 and its advantages while competing with Chinese electric vehicles like BYD Seal. If the traditional pure fuel vehicles confront serious homogeneity, the situation is the same in pure electric vehicles today. However, the timing of their entry into the Chinese market is different and BYD has a notable presence in this market. As a newcomer, therefore, DEEPAL should demonstrate more strength to compete. Perhaps, the exteriors of these vehicles will be ultimately judged.  

But for consumers, having more choices of pure electric vehicles is not a bad thing. The most important point is the reliability of these vehicles, which requires time to validate. Furthermore, it is worth noting that the range-extended versions of the DEEPAL L07 and S07 may be released in Thailand. However, the extended-range models of these two corresponding vehicles are available in China.