The BYD Han and Tang sit on top of the local BYD lineup in terms of safety and handling.

Such qualities were showcased in detail when BYD Cars Philippines put the said electric vehicle (EV) models through their paces via a quick but exciting drive event at Ayala Vermosa Sports Hub in Cavite.

Zigwheels Philippines, along with media entities and influencers experienced firsthand the performance of the Han full-size luxury electric vehicle via a straight-line acceleration test and the Tang mid-size electric SUV through a traction test. 

The event comes at an opportune time for the ACMotors-led EV car brand. As BYD Cars Philippines President Antonio Zara III claimed, the growth of EV sales in the local market is primarily driven by its products. 

As such, one can say EV offerings are well on their way to becoming more mainstream in the local market in general. However, the brand said that these cars must face several remaining hurdles, particularly from the preconceptions of the car-buying public. The latter mainly concerns EV driving performance, which the drive event serves to shed more light upon.

BYD Tang

At the beginning of the activity, Georges Ramirez and his team created a simulated low-traction situation for the BYD Tang. 

For the said exercise, the SUV was driven on a slippery chicane. When taken through the aforementioned course at half-throttle input, the BYD Tang maneuvered through it as if it would on a regular driving condition.

On the second run,  participants entered the soapy course at a higher speed that could have spun or lost control of the vehicle.

However, traction and stability control systems were proven active in ensuring that the vehicle was supposed to go the way we wanted it to.

The aforementioned activity dispelled the notion of SUV EV models being big, burly, and hard to control in slippery conditions.

Sure, the BYD Tang has a curb weight of 2,489 kilograms, but its all-wheel-drive system and its advanced set of safety features had enough intelligence to intervene at the right time to make the vehicle stable amid any driving situation. 

Plus, the BYD Tang is no slouch when it comes to power. At most, its front permanent synchronous motor can dish out 241 horsepower (hp), while its rear motor can produce up to 267 hp. In total, it can also generate up to 700 Newton-meters of torque. With all those output figures, the result is an exhilarating but equally cushy ride. 

The Tang’s 85.4-kilowatt-hour battery capacity also provides it with a Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure-indicated (WLTP) range of 530 kilometers.

BYD Han

For the  BYD Han, participants were able to  experience its punchy acceleration through a straight-line course. 

For this activity, the EV unit was positioned on one end of a long straight road. Drivers were directed press the accelerator at maximum until reaching a pre-determined point a several meters away from the starting location. Once arriving at the point, which was marked by cones, we were signalled to ease off the accelerator and apply the brakes as needed. 

To put it bluntly, the Han is one of the few cars that will make you feel as if your brain is being pressed against your skull.  

The activity at the straight-line course proved that the BYD was rapid. We didn’t take acceleration times, but only a few meters of driving it at full throttle input was a good demonstrator of instantaneous torque.

On paper, the BYD Han can go zero-to-100 kilometers-per- hour at 3.9 seconds.

The aforementioned time is a noteworthy spectacle — especially from a large four-door sedan that is 4,995 millimeters long. 

Besides its potent capability for acceleration, the executive EV sedan’s controls will feel and look familiar to those who drive internal combustion engine-power vehicles.

The throttle pedal, for instance, had the right amount of progression to not make it feel too sensitive. Steering likewise felt direct and was neither too light nor too heavy.

So how does the BYD Han accelerate so fast? Well, its motors can produce the same output numbers as the Tang while being a smidge lighter with its curb weight of 2,250 kg. It also has a very low drag coefficient of 0.233, which is already up to par with many other high-performance vehicles.  

On the other hand, it has a slightly shorter range of 521 km, at least when compared to the Tang. Nevertheless, it was more than capable of catering to the more than half dozen participants who were all taking it for the brisk acceleration test. 

At the BYD event, pariticpants also had the chance to get up close and personal with Han. 

As mentioned above, we consider the model an “executive car” because it has plenty of creature comforts to pamper even the fussiest users. 

Notable amenities inside the Han include perforated leather upholstery, a massage function for the seats, a 15.6-inch rotating touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 12-piece Dynaudio speaker system, a filtered automatic climate control system, and heaps of safety features. 

The shapes BYD gave to the said leather-wrapped seats perfectly wrap around any body type. The ones in the rear, in particular, are deep and relaxing, even for my large 5-foot 11-inch frame.

Overall, BYD’s Han and Tang showed the enticing performance and safety benefits of fully electric vehicles. As demonstrated in the driving activities, these vehicles are far from the ponderous, ungainly rides some misinformed folks think they are. 

On the contrary, the aforementioned rides are agile, and stable in adverse driving situations. 

Photos from Cesar Guiderone Miguel

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