Is the Xiaomi SU7 easy to drive? If you have such doubts, you must read this article, which covers everything about the handling of this car. One article should be enough to satisfy your curiosity. I will share my insights from a first-hand perspective on the mystique of the Xiaomi SU7's chassis, as I had the opportunity to drive it quite early, about a year ago. This article may be a bit lengthy, and the knowledge might be quite in-depth. If you follow along, you can come back and review it when you make progress, and it should help you remember.

In recent days, the media has had a chance to test the SU7. Almost all KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders) are expressing their astonishment with exclamations, yet none of them elaborate much. I believe we can't blame them, as Xiaomi has signed multi-million-dollar confidentiality agreements with everyone. If they dare to reveal even a little more, it's likely that the 3 million would be forfeit.

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Analyzing the Origins of Xiaomi SU7's Handling Foundation

So, how is the driving experience of the Xiaomi SU7? I believe we can't solely rely on the media's expressions of surprise. The more astonished they are, the more calm we should be. Why? There's a contrast here. For a long time, our generation has been exposed to the concept of handling, which Europeans and Americans have done exceptionally well.

When has a Chinese brand ever excelled in handling? Especially for a brand like Xiaomi, which has just entered the automotive industry, people would think that if you can make a large screen, a good value for money, and a good autonomous driving system, I believe that. But Xiaomi, you tell me you can do well in handling, that's absolutely impossible. Many people might not be able to get past their own qualitative thinking.

At this point, I think we should first make a fair qualitative assessment of how this car drives.

I wrote a paragraph: "The chassis of the MAX version tested by the first batch of media and KOLs has a handling bandwidth that balances sportiness and comfort at the extreme. In sport mode, it can retain a large margin of control, can make the dynamics of a fuel car, and has a good texture. It is definitely not an annoying car to drive daily." The reason for writing so much is mainly influenced by Old Luo, who said that stability is the key in the world. I really want to put all these constraints here, but there will definitely be netizens saying, you just want to be impartial, let's take a look at what kind of car this is, and let everyone comment at any time.

The Importance of Slimming and Seating Position

Let me first tell you a story. In fact, at the very beginning, SU7 underwent a vigorous slimming campaign. So, did everyone notice that BYD made a U9 recently? That car is particularly heavy, right, over three tons? Then I posted a Weibo, and a Xiaomi engineer replied with a line, "The importance of slimming."

When Xiaomi was making the SU7, they indeed started a lot of thinking based on this, because this car is about several tens of kilograms lighter than an ordinary electric car, which is very difficult, but we won't go into detail today, just know that it's very challenging, and then they did a second very difficult thing, which is the inverted battery that everyone sees.The technique of inverting the battery, which reduces your entire sitting position by several centimeters, might lead some to say that lowering your sitting position by a few centimeters is useless. This is because some people indeed prefer to sit high while driving. However, if you are someone who enjoys driving, you understand just how crucial it is to lower your sitting position by a few centimeters. A lower sitting position brings you closer to the ground, with a lower center of gravity, which results in better control. If you're still skeptical, you can try driving other vehicles, and you'll see what I mean.

So, remember back in 2022 when I posted a Weibo saying that I drove a car that might be the lowest-sitting electric vehicle I've ever experienced.

The point on your buttocks is what we call the hip point H-point, which is essentially the coordinate point for our entire control. All our thoughts about a car's control start from your hip point H-point, the point on your buttocks. So, once this point is lowered, it's as if Copernicus established the heliocentric theory or Descartes established a set of coordinate axes; we can then continue to discuss the control of the SU7.

Regarding the control bandwidth of the SU7, I mentioned a term earlier called "bandwidth." A wide bandwidth means it can simultaneously accommodate both comfort and sportiness. Here, I'd like to elaborate a bit more. For instance, you might see a car that can reconcile comfort and sportiness. But have you ever seen a car that excels in comfort and also scales up to sportiness?

Not really, right? Take Porsche, for example. This car can be extremely comfortable, but can you imagine Toyotas being extremely sporty? So, you get the idea. By widening the control bandwidth, it provides you with an excellent experience on both ends.

Let's ask everyone, which cars have an exceptionally wide bandwidth?

For instance, BMW, especially the M series, has an even wider bandwidth. Additionally, as mentioned earlier, Porsche is a car with a particularly wide bandwidth. Once you've driven a Porsche, you'll understand what balance means. This car maintains strong control while also preserving a very decent level of comfort.Cars with a wide bandwidth share a common characteristic: their entire chassis is very open. For instance, when your vehicle has already reached a certain yaw angle, you still have the confidence to press the accelerator, allowing it to trace a graceful curve to counteract the car's movement.

It is precisely this fundamental setup that results in a high mechanical quality throughout the vehicle. At this point, the electronic system does not intervene excessively; it allows the car to express itself freely.

We often describe the electronic systems of various brands in this way: What is the electronic system of Toyota or Lexus like? It's like your head teacher. As soon as you have an idea, they've already stopped you in your tracks. Audi's electronic system is like a secretary; when you ask Audi's system to do something, it will do what it can, but if it can't execute, it immediately beeps to inform you, pulling you back in line.

What about Porsche? Porsche is actually the third type; it's like your brother. If you want to have fun, it will join you. If you want to get a bit wild, it will still accompany you, even encouraging you to push the limits. But when you reach the point where you realize you can't handle it anymore and call out for help, "Brother, save me," that's when Porsche's PSM system will pull you back.

By the way, Italians and British people are completely different; they are not as predictable. Italians are like a buffet; they let you play as you wish, and at the last moment, they suddenly grab hold of everything. Whether the British can pull you back is entirely up to your luck, like with Lotus.

The Driving Pleasure of the SU7

Feeling like we've strayed off-topic, the mechanical and electronic qualities of the SU7 are very reminiscent of Porsche's feel, making it seem very youthful.

Firstly, some of the KC characteristics of the vehicle are inherently designed with the need for spirited driving in mind. At this time, its electronic system adopts the brotherly strategy I mentioned, allowing it to join you in the fun.For instance, when netizens say that the SU7 passes the moose test at eighty kilometers without any electronic system intervention, there's a misconception here. It's not that the electronic system doesn't intervene; rather, when it does, its intervention is not too aggressive.

To achieve such subtle intervention that is barely perceptible, two things must be done. First, the mechanical quality of the car itself must be excellent. Second, the electronic system must be finely tuned so that it doesn't intervene forcefully. Instead, it gradually builds up pressure, increasing the support as you approach losing control.

This situation is akin to a poem that says, "The loud strings are like a heavy rain, the soft strings are like a whisper." The SU7 is capable of performing some large-scale maneuvers, and its electronic system has undergone extensive fine-tuning. When it comes to the joy of driving, Xiaomi's team is indeed quite professional and has thought this through carefully. These individuals commute daily in BRZs and 86s—could they be anything less than excellent?

Let me tell you a story. I'm well-acquainted with the members of Xiaomi's VD team, and they are all driving experts. Do you know how expert they are? One day, one of them called me and asked, "What should I pay attention to in my first race?" After our conversation, he didn't call me back in the afternoon. When I remembered to check in the evening, I asked him why he hadn't returned my call, and he said, "No issues, I won the championship." These are people who win championships right off the bat, and they have a strong understanding of the theory.

We often talk about the joy of driving, which many people understand as "interactive fun." I often joke that if you buy a Corolla and equip it with a manual transmission, hand it over to many people, even including many automotive media professionals, they would interpret it as the joy of driving. But I think that's more of a busyness pleasure. Is the chaos of your hands and feet the joy of driving? Not necessarily.

The core of driving pleasure is how much you can open up the car's yaw angle, which is greatly related to the joy of driving. So, I admit that a 200-horsepower BRZ has driving pleasure. For me, without a yaw angle, discussing the joy of driving in a car is pale and powerless. So, what should be done to create a yaw angle in a SU7? In addition to the chassis KC and the angle at which ESC is released, a significant aspect is to distribute as much power as possible to the rear wheels.When we're talking about racing cars, in circuit racing, if you notice there are no slightly higher-end cars, then it must be a rear-wheel drive, not an all-wheel drive race car, right? It's either front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive, because a rear-wheel drive car can help you to open up the rear end's yaw angle.

How is the power distribution in the all-wheel drive version of the SU7?

So here comes the question, for a dual-motor vehicle, how should you distribute its power?

In the comments section, you can state your answers. For a dual-motor vehicle, what do you think is the most reasonable front-to-rear power distribution? Those who say 5:5 can admit their mistake now, that's definitely wrong. A car with a 5:5 distribution is certainly not a good car to drive. Some might say 4:6, and indeed many people are trying that. How about being a bit more daring and suggesting 3:7 as a reasonable distribution?

Let me give you an example. I've driven a car with a 4:6 power distribution on the track. Since everyone doesn't have much experience with how much to adjust the front and rear of a dual-motor vehicle, they calculate in their minds that it should be 5:5, and then make a slight adjustment for the fastest setting, right? Is that the understanding of many people?

In fact, what is the state of a car with a 4:6 distribution? The moment we step on the gas coming out of a corner, we suddenly find that the front wheels gain traction, so does the front of the car lift up, right?

At this time, if the front wheels also have a dragging force, they will tend to run outwards. At this moment, the front of the car will lift up, reducing its front wheel traction, reducing the camber circle, and then turning outward, the car becomes very prone to understeer. So, for a good dual-motor vehicle, if you want to grasp its sports characteristics, you need to do its dynamic front-to-rear power distribution, and within the dynamic front-to-rear power distribution, how much of the limit value is given to the rear wheels is very critical. Next, I'm going to tell a story.

The first time I drove the SU7, in the winter testing, we would do a rough calibration on the snow surface. The so-called rough calibration is when the adhesion coefficient on the snow is 0.3, and then adjust to find out how much driving force the rear wheels can get at most.

I first tried a ratio of 1:9, and it was indeed very easy to drive at that time, completely feeling like a rear-wheel drive car, as soon as you steer, the tail swings out.Later, we also tried a 2:8 ratio, which pulled back a bit. The SU7 offers a plethora of choices; you can even opt for a front motor to operate, effectively turning it into a front-wheel-drive vehicle. However, once you engage its sport mode, it is programmed to shift as much power to the rear as possible. If you take it for a spin, you'll realize that the current ratio is not the highest at 1:9.

During the Spring Festival, Mr. Lei shared on Weibo a drifting video of the Xiaomi SU7. On the snowy ground, it indeed felt as if the rear end was very light, and the vehicle was extremely easy to control. It's not like some cars that carry a heavy backpack, making the rear end feel very heavy. Nor is it like some cars that, as soon as they open up a bit of angle, start pulling you back as much as possible. In fact, many other electric vehicles, when performing such drifting maneuvers, after stabilizing halfway through a drift, need to initiate another drifting action, which is actually quite difficult to complete a continuous drifting motion.

Looking at it, it indeed requires some dynamic power management of the vehicle's body.

I won't elaborate too much; if I do, I feel that Mr. Lei might demand a confidentiality fee of 3 million from me.

Speaking of drifting, what is the ultimate state of drifting?

You need to find a balance in that very interactive motion state. A car slides out as a whole, yet it is easy to control during the slide, finding its own limit.

In this state, the entire car is not just pushing the front or swinging the tail, but sliding out as a whole, which is very sophisticated.

For example, if you are fans of airplanes, you might know that the J-10 fighter jet, which is the first stable and progressive aircraft developed by China, has to find a stable state within an unstable condition.

This feeling of being both out of control and stable, I first experienced it from the Porsche 911. It has an overall outward swing, but finds a stable state within the swing. Some might say that this can be achieved by the characteristics of a rear-wheel-drive car. However, this is not the case; it requires many things to work together, such as the damping of springs and shock absorbers, camber angles, and many other things to manage it. So I believe that the SU7 may not fully provide this for you right now, but wait, after a few OTA updates, the SU7 will be capable of achieving much more.Some Additional Insights on SU7 Driving

Let's touch upon other aspects related to handling, such as the road feel. This vehicle provides a slightly heightened sense of the road. When driving, you can feel the information it conveys from the road surface. This reminds me of something, akin to the early Ford vehicles, which were known for their rich road feedback.

Another point is the quality of its ride. When you go over a speed bump, especially on uneven road surfaces, the thud you feel is very resilient, effectively smoothing out the bumps. This requires a very good bushing, and I believe the quality of this ride is quite commendable.

There's also the issue of bridge jumps. These road conditions are quite common in the Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai areas. The car takes flight, with the front and rear wheels stretching out, and then there's a bounce when you land after the jump. The shock absorbers and springs, particularly the compression process of the shock absorbers, need to be very quick and controlled.

The "rise and fall" of the bridge jump is handled very well by the SU7. The steering system is at a normal level; I'd give it an 8 out of 10. It's a Nexteer steering system, the same one used in the Zeekr 001 and the Xingji Yuan ES. If it could be equipped with a ZF steering system like the Taycan, I think I could give it an extra half point.

The tires are well-balanced, but if you're particularly fond of handling, I suggest you consider a change. However, there's a trade-off: the noise level will increase because the overall noise suppression of the SU7 relies quite a bit on its tires. Its double-laminated glass and other noise-reducing features aren't heavily utilized. Once you switch to a set of performance tires, the noise level will inevitably rise.

After writing thousands of words, I suddenly realized that I haven't mentioned the car's 0-100 km/h acceleration time. Do you think it's important? The 0-100 km/h acceleration, motor power, and torque—those three parameters seem less significant now. They're unrelated to handling; any electric vehicle can achieve them. Next time, we'll discuss some more substantial topics. See you then.