To most Singapore drivers, driving further than Johor Bahru would constitute as a 'long road trip'. Many of us would even go to the extent of sending our car to the workshop for preventative maintenance and a quick check before a drive to Malacca, which is only around 240km from Singapore.
Like many others, Kuala Lumpur was pretty much the furthest I've driven with my own car. But this time round, we were invited by Jaecoo Singapore to join a convoy that includes Malaysia auto journalists and Jaecoo Malaysia on a road trip that crosses two borders. The drive was flagged off at the Omoda Jaecoo Showroom in Singapore, and the destination is the Laguna Grand Hotel in Songkhla, Thailand - a total distance of over 1,000km.
Our trusty steed - the Jaecoo J7 PHEV
Media drive trips are usually centered around features of the car - it could be traits like blistering track performance, comfort and luxury or off-road capabilities. For this drive, the goal was to drive a considerable distance without refuelling to showcase the fuel economy and range of the car.
For this task, Jaecoo put forward its J7 PHEV, a mid-sized SUV that is powered by what the brand calls the Super Hybrid System. This hybrid drivetrain consists of three core components - a 1.5-litre turbocharged engine that produces 141bhp, a hybrid transmission that has two high efficiency motors (producing 150kW) built in, and an 18.3kWh Blade Battery pack. Total output works out to 342bhp and 525Nm of torque - quite a fair bit of grunt!
The J7 PHEV is a robust-looking SUV with a generous equipment list and a refined interior, but what's going to be put to the test on this drive is its incredible range - a WLTP tested range of 1,200km to be exact.
On a previous drive in China, the J7 PHEV achieved a maximum range of 1,353km on a single tank (60L) of petrol and a full charge. With this, we know that driving to Thailand without charging is definitely attainable, but the question is, just how far can we push it?
The drive - from Singapore to Malaysia, and onwards to Thailand
I've read about Singaporeans driving their cars to Thailand. In fact, such a road trip is something that many avid motorcyclists attempt (I've even seen photos of small-capacity class 2B bikes making the distance).
However, this was the first time for me, and I sure am grateful that there is a support team that helped us to settle all administrative matters, meals and stays, so that we can focus on the task at hand - driving carefully and economically.
The drive was split into three days with almost 400km covered each day. 400km a day didn't sound tiring at first, but I quickly found out that gunning for maximum efficiency is a rather taxing endeavour…
Day 1 - Singapore to Kuala Lumpur
Start of day 1: 0km travelled, 1,219km total expected range
There was a total of five Jaecoo J7 PHEVs participating in the challenge. Yes, challenge - we were told that there were attractive prizes to be won, and the goal was to achieve the highest range over the entire drive (a combination of distance travelled and remaining range).
Just like this the race was on. Each car was shared between two drivers, and Car 5 was shared between fellow motoring journalist Aiden and I, and as it so happened, both of us are of the competitive type.Â
Among all five cars, ours had the least mileage on its odometer. With just under 200km travelled, our car was practically new and hasn't been run-in yet. For those who know, the drivetrain components of new cars need time to reach peak performance and efficiency, and our fresh car meant a potentially disadvantageous situation. Add to that the fact that I am a large, overweight man with a lead foot, things surely weren't looking very good for us.
It was at this moment, inspired by the cool morning weather, that the two of us decided unanimously to drive without air-conditioning as much as possible (the organisers suggested a 22 degree air-con temperature, but having it on wasn't mandatory. After all, who would be dumb enough to drive without air-con in this region…).
Our lunch stop for the day was at a scenic restaurant called The Veil at Puteri Harbour in the Johor area, after which we drove through some twisty B-roads before re-joining the expressway. After stopping for a photoshoot at Bandar Malaysia, which is located right after entering KL, we were headed to the Mandarin Oriental hotel for the night. Oh, we ended up driving without air-con for the entire day.
Day 2 - Kuala Lumpur to Penang
Start of day 2: 401.1km travelled, 929km range left, 1,330.1km total expected range
After spending the night in KL, we were on our way to STG Tea House in Ipoh for our lunch stop. Right after we exited the city and got onto the expressway, the first thing I noticed was the three-lane carriageway and much lighter traffic than I'm used to.
There were also seemingly fewer heavy vehicles on this section of the North-South Expressway, which wasn't exactly a good thing for our drive. You see, wind-resistance, or drag, drastically affects the amount of power that you need to travel at a certain speed, and if you could follow behind a larger moving object (such as a truck), you can save plenty of fuel. The lack of trucks meant we couldn't draft behind trucks as much as we did on the first day.
The highlight of the day has got to be the beautiful Second Penang bridge. We took plenty of photos and videos as we crossed the 24km bridge, which is also the second longest bridge in Southeast Asia. Our hotel for the night was a charming heritage hotel named The Edison Penang, which was originally a privately-owned mansion.
Dinner was remarkable Peranakan cuisine at the Kebaya Dining Room - this meal was potentially the tastiest over the entire trip!
Day 3 - Thailand!
Start of day 3: 769.2km travelled, 605km range left, 1,374.2km total expected range
Start of day three, and to our surprise, our total expected range has grown to 1,374.2km - not only has our range improved, it is also higher than what was achieved in China!
With the motivation of setting a whole new record, we decided to press on with all our tactics - driving as smoothly as possible, without air-con, with the windows just slightly ajar (so we don't die from the heat) to avoid additional drag, and drafting, when possible.
After lunch at the Mansion 28 cafe in Alor Setar, we made our way to the Thailand Sadao Border. While I've been told that there are some administrative matters to tend to before you could drive your car into Thailand, everything was sorted by the support team for us. All we had to do were to get out of the car and go through immigrations with our passports, just like most other immigration checkpoints.
With a fresh cup of coffee from a quaint roadside cafe just after we crossed the border, we made our way to our final destination: The Laguna Grand Hotel & Spa Songkhla, which was just in the vicinity of Hat Yai.
It was also the moment of truth - we knew that we have spent considerable efforts to maximise our car's range and fuel consumption, but was our result good enough? Turns out that all the sweating in the car and driving gingerly the entire time was worth it! Our car's trip computer was showing 1,056.5km, with 371km range left - this works out to a new global record of 1,427km of total expected range! We made it!
With the drive completed, all that's left was dinner, which was held at The Proud Koh Yor, a hilltop restaurant with a view to die for. It was also when we finally found out what we have won - a DJI Action 5 Pro action camera!
Taking it to the limit
Final result: 1,056.5km travelled, 371km range left, 1,427.5km total expected range
While Aiden and I took extreme measures to achieve the incredible range, the J7 PHEV's efficiency was clear to see from everyone's results. The second-place team had managed a total expected range of 1,355km, which was an improvement from the prior record. Furthermore, even the car in 5th place managed over 1,200km of total expected range, eclipsing the WLTP figure, while driving with air-con, ventilated seats and other amenities on.
The economy challenge pushed us to utilise unconventional measures that aren't exactly representative of real-world usage, hence it isn't likely for the average driver to achieve the 1,427km figure while driving the car normally.
However, this drive has proven that the J7 PHEV is highly efficient and able to drive for more than 1,000km on a single charge and tank of fuel with ease. Once you factor in the fact that it is a rather large vehicle that is fully equipped with features, you'll appreciate the feat even more.
Many drivers have a general distrust of official fuel economy figures, citing the disparity with real-world results. But after our experience with the Jaecoo J7 PHEV, I can confidently tell you that this car does indeed sip on fuel!
