What’s a Yangwang U8 when it’s at home?
It’s a big SUV from Chinese brand Yangwang, one of the many companies that live under the BYD umbrella. It’s all about luxury, but you get the impression that it’s going straight for the likes of Range Rover, Bentley, and the people who make cars that people with clean shoes drive—but with a bigger, chunkier device. And one with a party piece: you can drive it in water.
Or, in this case, a man from Yangwang drove us through the water because we probably shouldn’t be trusted with a waterborne 3.4-ton SUV. We might try to invade a country.
You’re not seriously saying there’s a new Amphicar?
Not really. But also yes. It’s confusing. It’s been built in as an emergency measure for areas of China (in the first instance, at least) that are prone to flooding. Rather than have your pride and joy float away with you trapped inside, Yangwang has made a car that can drive through the drink and carry you to safety.
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And how does this work?
Should you find yourself accidentally driving into a river, the car’s various sensors will detect that you’re in the deep blue, and a few things will happen. Once you get to a depth of one meter, it’ll wind up your windows (if you’ve got them down) and open the sunroof. Then all you need to do is drive it as you normally would, and it’ll boat its way through the water. Each wheel can work independently and can push you in any direction you ask of it.
What are the limitations?
Yangwang says you can only do it for 30 minutes, and you should probably get the car looked at after you’ve floated it around in water for any length of time. Cars and water don’t tend to be good bedfellows. That said, it’s IP68 rated, so it shouldn’t rust into nothing after a quick dip. The body takes water on board, but none leaked into the cabin with us in it. Opening the doors afterwards was quite a sight—seeing them empty is rather dramatic.
Does it feel strange?
You know the feeling of being in a boat? And the feeling of being in a car? And how they’re both really different? It’s a mash-up of those two. One moment you’re on the road driving along happily, and the next you’re humming The Lonely Island. As you go further in, the nose dips quite dramatically—it’s where all the really heavy bits are, after all—and the water above the front wheels forms quite dramatic vortices. Once the windows roll up, you feel safe in there, though the waterline gets a touch high for comfort.
Is it fast?
Not particularly, but it’s a massive SUV in water, not a Sunseeker at full chat. The thing’s a brick. Albeit a brick that’ll do 0-100kph in 3.6sec on dry land. The U8’s pilot didn’t seem to be having a bad time of things, though they took wide, sweeping turns to get back to the dry. How quickly it’ll stop if an errant iceberg appears out of nowhere remains to be seen.
It’s a hell of a party piece.
It really is (and don’t forget it can ‘tank turn,’ too). While the man from Yangwang telling us it was designed with floods in mind was nice, you get the impression that he really wanted to say, “We made this because it’s cool.” And it is cool. Rear passengers can stand up and tank commander out of the sunroof (or, as it should be used, escape from it in disasters). The rest of the car was plush, comfy, and overall delightful.
Will it worry a Range Rover? Probably not. For now, at least.
More photos of the Yangwang U8:
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
