BYD HAN review: Sporty, elegant, surprising
A TEST REPORT from David Wurm 
on March 29, 2024, 9:00 pm | Write a comment
With the BYD HAN, the Chinese have their first premium e-limousine in their range on our market - a touch more valuable than the “flagship” BYD SEAL. In our TechnikNews However, the test clearly shows that the competition in this country really has to dress up warmly.
In a nutshell: BYD couldn't be more sporty, elegant or better equipped. The top model with a futuristic look clearly shows that the time of – as is often claimed – “cheap Chinese cars” is over. German car manufacturers can no longer rest on their laurels, but will inevitably have to adjust - especially the price.
BYD offers a lot of car for just under 71.190 euros (including 0% NoVA and 20% VAT; Austria) or 74.790 euros (Emerald Edition). If it weren't for the very disappointing assistance systems and their signal tones, the sometimes poorly structured menu navigation and the comparatively slow charging speed of up to a maximum of 120 kW DC, you would have a perfect vehicle here. Unfortunately, there are also individual softwareProproblems that BYD has to get under control, especially for the European market. However, it can be assumed that BYD will make improvements here soon - and then the competition can warm up.
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Futuristic & classy – outside
Picture: TechnikNews
With a length of almost 5 meters and a width of 1,9 meters, the limo really looks impressive. The automatically extending and retracting door handles make the car look even sleeker than it already is. The sedan is available in a total of six color variants: Space Black, Time Grey, Snow White, AI Blue, Emperor Red and Mountain Green (Emerald Edition only).
Also worth mentioning is the lack of frunk, which suggests that the HAN is probably a converted combustion engine.
Picture: TechnikNews
High quality at the top level – inside
Picture: TechnikNews
BYD also takes the workmanship of the HAN to a top level in the interior and does not need to hide from well-known “premium brands”. The sports seats in the interior, which can even be adjusted in inclination on the back seat, are really impressive. Another highlight is the seat heating and ventilation on all four seats. The selection of buttons on the steering wheel and levers could have been a little more discreet - there are so many things on there that are probably never used while driving. This gives the impression that the manufacturer has tried to accommodate everything possible. On the other hand, it is commendable that BYD uses physical buttons on the steering wheel instead of touch buttons, which offer a significantly better feel.
Picture: TechnikNews
There is also a head-up display for the driver, which can be individually adjusted and is already included in the basic equipment of the BYD HAN.
Entertainment & infotainment
My personal highlight in the interior is the large entertainment display, which can be rotated horizontally or vertically as desired. The biggest shortcoming here is the software itself, which does not give the HAN the elegant feeling that it otherwise radiates in all other areas. Too much text, too small elements, far too much at a glance – a car software interface has to appear tidy, which in my opinion is unfortunately not the case here.
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The interface appears awkward, convoluted and pasted together. For example, it takes four steps to activate the seat heating - that's too many for such an essential feature. In addition, the display feels too much like an Android tablet instead of car infotainment. If you connect your smartphone wirelessly and switch to Apple CarPlay, for example, it immediately gives the HAN back its more elegant look. It's a shame: Android Auto and Apple CarPlay do not support rotating the display, but can only be used horizontally.
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Touchscreen in the rear – DJ in the back seat
The Dynaudio sound system with subwoofer in the trunk is impressive, providing a lot of power and making listening to music a real pleasure. By the way, with the BYD HAN the music not only plays in the front, but the passengers in the back seat can also play a DJ. The current media, the air conditioning, the sunroof can be controlled and the interior lighting ambience can be adjusted via a display in the fold-down center backrest. However, it is advisable not to show the display to your protégés or - from your own experience - friends, as the driver cannot lock it and otherwise everything possible can be controlled from the back seat in a very short time.
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Sporty & economical
Of course, the BYD HAN not only looks sporty, it is sporty too - with an output of 380 kW (517 hp), it accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 3,9 seconds. The manufacturer also notes this completely proMinent on the rear right - for whatever reason. The maximum speed is also 180 km/h. Depending on the driving mode, the wheels also spin more or less and the acceleration varies. Let's put it this way, driving in sport mode is the most fun with the HAN, but it also increases consumption accordingly. Otherwise, our average consumption based on a mix of motorways, country roads and local areas is around 19 to 21 kWh per 100 km, which corresponds to a real range of around 410 to 460 kilometers. The manufacturer speaks of 521 kilometers (according to WLTP combined).
The chassis is rather sporty, but can elegantly compensate for bumps with the air suspension. The cornering hold is just as impressive as the brakes with Brembro brake calipers. The response to the power pedal is also quick - exactly as you would expect. BYD does everything right here and delivers a sports sedan not only visually but also in terms of driving behavior.
As a small gimmick, there is a “timer” on the driver cockpit display - translated somewhat poorly, but it means that the time from standstill to 100 km/h can be stopped and the HAN then tries to get the maximum performance out of it. It is commendable that the strength of the recuperation can also be adjusted. Those who are used to other electric cars will probably feel most comfortable in the highest setting.
And if it gets dark outside while driving, there is an automatic high beam, which unfortunately can only dim or brighten and does not mask individual cars. The cornering lights offer a great view of the side of the road, especially when turning or on winding roads.
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Weak charging performance, but fills up quickly
The BYD HAN's charging performance falls short of expectations, especially when compared to some competitors that already offer significantly faster charging times. At 120 kW DC this is currently the end - which is really disappointing given the 86 kWh battery. To do this, it maintains this charging power at 120 kW to just over 60 Pro80% and charges up to over XNUMX Prozent continues with 100 kW, which is really surprising and partially makes up for this point. In our test, a charging process lasted from 0 to 100 Procent just under 1,5 hours, from 30 to 80 ProAccording to the manufacturer, it takes around 30 minutes. We were just unable to achieve this value review (between 32 and 40 minutes).
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Disappointing assistance systems
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The assistance systems in the HAN disappointed me the most, so I used them less and less as the test progressed. Starting with shrill warning tones to the jerky steering assistant - but one after the other. Overall, the sedan comes with numerous assistants that we already know from the competition. Adaptive cruise control, steering assistant and lane change assistant are no longer a world first these days. It is all the more disappointing that BYD cannot deliver these in the HAN in the expected quality.
- That's how he recognizes it adaptive cruise control sometimes there are obstacles or cars in the next lane on the highway and sometimes it brakes very suddenly to match their speed - even though they don't extend into your own lane, mind you. If another vehicle changes lane just in front of the HAN, it also brakes very sharply and causes a brief moment of shock for the passengers. Apart from that – fine and maintains the set speed correctly.
- There is a matching one Road Sign recognition, which brings the current top speed to the cockpit display. However, this showed more incorrect than correct speed limits. In addition, the cruise control does not automatically adopt the detected speed.
- The legally required one is also on board EU speed warning. This not only beeps briefly, but also lets the navigation system speak - “You are exceeding the maximum speed”. Not exactly good either, especially because the recognition of traffic signs doesn't work optimally.
- The Steering assistant Basically it works well on the highway, but it can't brake in curves and keeps swerving quite a bit in the lane. Staying in the middle of the lane also works relatively rarely; the system tends to orient itself to the left or right of the edge of the lane.
- Those are also inappropriate shrill warning tonesEverybody knows when you didn't steer enough or your hands weren't on the steering wheel for a few seconds. These scare the driver more than point them out and give the whole thing a “cheap” touch.
- Work can also depend on the quality of the work Backup camera, which offers a great view but could have been a little sharper.
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BYD HAN Executive vs Emerald Edition
The Executive and Emerald Editions of the BYD HAN were often mentioned review. But what are the differences? After all, the two equipment variants differ by around 3.600 euros. Basically, the cheapest version of the BYD HAN (Executive Edition) starts at 70.800 euros or 74.400 euros (each including 0% NoVA and 20% VAT; Austria) in the Emerald Edition. There is also the Austria package with underbody sealing, velor mats, charging cable and V2L (vehicle-to-load) adapter, which costs an additional 390 euros each. The total price is 71.190 euros or 74.790 euros.
If you look at it Proproduct folder If you take a closer look, the differences are quite minimal. For example, with the seat covers, which in the Executive Edition are made of dark or light brown leather with wooden trim elements or red carbon, while in the Emerald Edition they are made of green velor and leather, with trim elements made of green carbon. Our test vehicle was delivered in the Executive Edition - the wooden trim elements can be seen in the pictures above.
Another difference is the wireless charging for smartphones, which supports up to 15W or 50 watts in the Emerald Edition. Otherwise, all highlights such as the Dynaudio sound system, head-up display, glass roof and the rotating display are included in all equipment variants. Beyond that, there are no other model variants with more or less performance or different battery sizes.
