Changan may not be the first name in EVs, but their new Nevo line looks to change that with competitive electric vehicles and powerful range-extended electric vehicles (REEVs) sitting at a price point undercutting the market leader—BYD, obviously—and offering great features. Changan is hardly the only Chinese manufacturer offering EV power, but they’re the only ones aside from BYD—for the moment—offering an extended range hybrid pickup truck.
And while the Nevo Hunter may look like a similar proposition to the BYD Shark 6 DMO, they’re different animals. Where the Shark is an extended range EV (EREV) built like a pickup, the Hunter is a pickup built into an EREV. Confused? Don’t be. Let’s dive into the differences.
Styling
The Hunter is built on a new platform derived from the Changan/Kaicene F70 pickup truck, as a joint venture between Changan, Peugeot, and Stellantis. It is sold globally under various nameplates, including Fiat and Ram. Compared to its conservative predecessor, the Nevo Hunter turns the rizz up to eleven, adding both EV styling cues and electric green paint to the proceedings. The front end features a swooping, complex interplay of negative and positive curves best described as Truck x Evangelion.
Behind that front end, however, the Hunter is a bit more traditionally shaped, with chunky square fenders and big meaty tires wrapped around 18-inch black alloy wheels. One of the biggest defining exterior features isn’t a styling element: Instead, it’s that gigantic electric motor hanging off the rear axle. Fully exposed, because the gigantic muffler under the bed—no space for resonators under the cab due to the batteries—leaves no room for hanging a spare tire behind it. With the high rear clearance of the Hunter, that axle stands in naked glory, making the Hunter look like an electric dragster.
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Interior
The interior is a lesson in modern simplicity. A subtly asymmetrical dashboard finished in textured slate and contrast-stitched leatherette spans the cabin, with low-set twin screens, spread out horizontally, subtly angled towards the driver. A line of nub-like buttons on the slate provides quick access to HVAC functions and emergency lights. A more traditional bank of buttons tucked under the steering wheel provides access to drive modes and differential locks.
The big flat-bottomed leather-wrapped steering wheel features touch controls rather than individual buttons. Unfortunately, the wheel only adjusts for height, not reach—a legacy of its truck roots—but the power seat adjustments on those big leather buckets more than make up for this lack.
Those contrast-stitched leatherette seats are nice and supportive, but sit a bit low to the floor. Another reminder that this is a truck, not an SUV. The rear bench is rather low as well, with upright rear seatbacks and no option for under-seat storage, as on some other modern pick-ups.
There’s a big center console with twin cellphone trays and a wide lower shelf. That shelf and the center console box are a bit shallow, making way for the rear AC vents that run underneath them. Compared to many trucks, in-cabin storage is rather tight.
Instead, all your storage will be out back. Thankfully, our 4x4 Knight variant comes with a lockable roller cover that’s surprisingly airtight. Allowing you to secure bags—and maybe even that missing spare tire—in the bed without worry of vandals snatching them in traffic or the rain soaking them through. Standard on both variants is an extra step that folds out of the tailgate, making entry much easier and providing a convenient bench for tailgate picnics. Combined with the 3kW AC outlets in the rear, this makes the Hunter a great camping companion compared to many rivals.
Engine performance
Those outlets draw power from the 31.18kW battery pack that powers the Hunter’s dual motors: A 70kW front motor inside the engine bay, and that huge 130kW motor built into the rear axle. This 200kW, 268hp all-wheel drive combo gets the 2,360 kg K50 from 0-100kph in a tested 7.8sec, depending on available traction. Not nearly as naughty as the BYD Shark, but well ahead of any four-cylinder diesel rival.
We didn’t have time or space to test the front and rear differential locks or specialized off-road modes, given the wet weather and HT tires. And I’d rather not be the first to ding the motors and skid plates against the ruddy rocks. Not without a signed waiver.
On to the on-road drive modes. Most drivers will find Sport mode too jumpy. Too much surge in the first few millimeters of travel. Eco and Normal modes give you a response similar to your typical gasoline V6. Only using nothing but electricity.
Switched to EV only, the Hunter does 4.5km/kW on the highway at 80-90kph, and 5.5km/kW at lower speeds, especially when you can take advantage of regenerative braking. Sometimes at surprisingly high regeneration rates. While Changan claims a 180km range, we saw an estimated 140km from the battery alone in mixed use.
In Auto mode, it cycles between battery and gasoline power—courtesy of the powerful 190hp 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline generator. A whole lot bigger than BYD’s 1.5-liter, but it charges fast and maintains charge more aggressively. Even while cruising, the generator steadily and quickly builds up battery charge. The onboard trip computer isn’t as comprehensive as BYD’s, but back-of-the-envelope calculations put fuel economy in gasoline mode at around 11-12km/L in mixed traffic. As with EV only, city consumption seems better than highway consumption.
Finally, there is a forced ‘one-touch’ charging mode, which will run the generator at even higher rates to bank power in the battery. While it charges the battery fast, it wastes a lot of fuel, bringing those combined estimates down to 8km/L or worse. This one’s for extreme hauling or off-road duty only.
Ride and handling
Not that you necessarily want to do either with this truck. That 2,411kg curb weight limits cargo capacity to only 745 kg—similar to a Ford Ranger Raptor—but you won’t want to take this dune-bashing like a Raptor, not with those mild-mannered 265/60R18 Chao Yang SU318a HT tires. They’re big and soft—a perfect match to the truck itself, which drives more softly than your common pickup truck. It absorbs road heaves and dips like a cruise ship smothering rogue waves. That suspension is perhaps a bit too soft—that heavy rear axle tends to dribble and twist over high-frequency corrugations and the occasional sharp bump when taken under power. Take them a bit slower, however, to give the dampers time to react, and all is fine.
At high speeds, the Hunter eats up the miles easily, only the occasional buffeting around the side mirrors ruining the relatively silent operation of the hybrid EV system. There’s no lane-keeping assist, but you do get audible warnings when you stray over the line—a bit too easy to do with the light steering. Point the truck at a twisty road, and it does okay. There’s much more body roll here than in the Shark, but the K50 feels more neutral and playful, with a little less push than the big BYD, though ultimately, less grip. Ergo, it drives more like you expect a pickup truck to.
In more sedate driving, in the city, the Hunter is solid. Not the easiest car to drive, being so wide, but the slanted nose does give it some advantages over the bricklike Shark. A full 360-degree camera suite makes parking relatively easy, as well, but there's no automatic blindspot or pedestrian braking here, so best be careful.
Extra features
While it lacks in terms of advanced driver safety technology, the rest of the tech is solid. You get lane departure and blind spot warning, as well as standard cruise control. There’s also a pretty comprehensive custom Drive Mode and vehicle set-up menu—although it is mildly irritating to have to wade into the touchscreen menus to adjust any of this. If you're using Waze navigation, it can take a dozen seconds to exit the Android UI to get back to the main home screen. There’s no home shortcut on the dash, and the pull-down menu is inactive when you're mirroring. The home menu button is also somewhat confusingly labeled Deepal—the Hunter’s Indian nameplate. At least the menus are in English!
Thankfully, common AC controls have physical buttons, and you have shortcut buttons for music on the steering wheel as well. The sound is fairly good, but the built-in DTS sound effects randomly reset every time you swap sound sources, which means wading into the menus and re-adjusting them every time you start a new drive.
On the bright side, you’ve got 40W wireless charging and seamless Android Auto integration. You can also insert USB drives and watch movies on the huge center screen when you’re parked. You can also insert an SD Card and turn the 360-degree parking cameras into a 360-degree dash-cam, with multiple feeds, advanced loop segment controls, and the option to save emergency photo and video clips. There are also menu options for charging schedules and to activate the big 3kW AC outlets out back, which are powerful enough to run a portable AC unit overnight when camping, as well as an electric stove to cook breakfast in the morning. Something you simply can't get with non-EV competitors.
Verdict
As is, there are very few competitors with this much capability. Only BYD currently sells an extended range electric pick-up like this, and while the Shark is more powerful with more driver assist features, it's also much more expensive. And also a bit less truck...? The Hunter, on the other hand, offers a more conventional pick-up truck experience at prices undercutting conventional diesel pick-ups, feature-for-feature.
Granted, the touchscreen interface may be a hurdle for some. But as a blueprint for electrifying the traditional ladder frame pick-up, the Changan Hunter is here to show everyone how it's done.
SPECS: 2026 Changan Nevo Hunter K50 4x4 Knight REEV
Price: P1,970,000
Engine: 2.0-liter turbocharged range-extender + electric motor
Power: 268hp
Torque: 470Nm
Transmission: Automatic
Layout: AWD
Seating: 5
Score: 8/10
More photos of the 2026 Changan Nevo Hunter K50 4x4 Knight REEV:
