You may have seen the Yangwang U8 which is a hefty Defender-alike which can turn on the spot. I had assumed it was fully electric but it's actually a hybrid. I did not manage to find out what engine is under the bonnet but it's definitely not a V8 and may even be a 4-cyl based on the sound (quiet but not exactly distinguished). It also had a weird clutch smell when sat idling for ages, even when not turning round on the spot.
So with the U8 being an ugly beast I had a look at the U9 which was inside the showroom. It's a bit generic, like a GTA hypercar, but actually not bad looking in the flesh. Bearing in mind the Volvos and Teslas we get in the UK are made in China, being Chinese isn't a particular criticism now but it was definitely more akin to those cars than something from Temu. It had a way OTT rear spoiler which I was told was optional, but then I was also told that neither U8 or U9 were likely to be made in RHD or sold here, despite which I was given a price of £300,000 for the U9.
The thing which I particularly liked about the U9 was the raw carbon weave visible on the doors when open, and the contrast with the very rich, high quality materials on the door cards. It was a nice contrast to the dressed and lacquered carbon weave on the sills and appeared very honest. The interior smelled really nice and leathery too. Wonder how much was actual leather? Felt good, anyway.
After having a fiddle with the U9 and looking at its rear boot (there is one, but no rear window) my wife expressed an interest in sitting in the U8 outside. Apparently they were demonstrating its party trick turning every now and again; I checked the tyres and the edges looked well scrubbed. There was a Chinese guy in the driver's seat so we got in, me in the back and my wife in the front. Again the materials were really good, though the terracotta interior was too much (maybe they call the colour 'army'?) because everything was that colour, even the alcantara headlining.
The Chinese guy in the driver's seat turned out to be with the car - either as its guardian or demonstrator - and looked pretty bored. But we got him talking, and he showed us the karaoke mic. When my wife asked him what music there was, he said it was just Chinese but I wasn't willing to let him off and suggested Gangnam Style. Which made him smile; he found it and perked up as we had a boogie and sang along - but not using the mic; he was too busy fiddling with the audio settings, moving the sound focus around like we were in a Ford Sierra in the 80s with its joystick balance/fader control. Gangnam Style finished as he was getting ready to demonstrate the 360 turn on the spot, so we rotated to Gentleman and coincidentally nicely in time with the tune
The rotation was weird. Definitely does not feel as harsh on the car as it looked in the videos - we did it in medium speed and the videos I've seen must have been fast. It started moving visibly without really being able to feel anything, and was very stable. Certainly no feeling of car sickness. I think it's bad that it was so refined because I imagine people will actually use the function.
I came away quite liking the U8 in the end. It has character which was unexpected. Maybe that requires a dour Chinese driver who perks up when he plays some music. The rear legroom was a bit disappointing for such a massive car; I think it was only 5 seats (didn't look in the boot but there was a load cover directly behind me). It apparently weighs 3.5 tonnes so may require a goods vehicle driving licence to use here. Overall both imrpessed me way more than I expected.
Still a stupid name and won't sell any of course
