The Avatr 07 is arguably the most technologically advanced car you can buy in Singapore right now, but it offers much more than just fancy features and gizmos.
Just when I thought I’ve experienced it all, along comes a car that can literally park itself.
I’m not just talking about those highly advanced park assist systems on Teslas and some other Chinese cars that can do it all for you. The Avatr 07 goes even beyond that, with what it calls Walk-away Parking.
Yes, you can command the 07 to slot itself into the lot even without needing to be physically in the car. Simply select your desired space, tap ‘Walk-away Parking’ on the screen, and then step out and watch the car do the rest.
It’s quite a surreal sensation to witness in real life, and it’s probably the closest you can get to fully autonomous driving in a car you can actually purchase here.
But beyond its fancy parking party trick, what else does the Avatr 07 have up its sleeve?
Sleek and Shapely
The 07 is Avatr’s second model to arrive in Singapore, and compared to the earlier 11 with its rather unusual, almost sedan-like design, the 07 takes the form of a somewhat more typical SUV shape.
That said, it still does look pretty sleek and eye-catching. The front end is pretty much shared with the 11, with its thin, fang-like headlights being the defining feature.
The rear is more traditional in contrast, with a fairly standard looking hatch, although the overall silhouette, with its smooth curves and low roofline, does make it stand out in a sea of conservatively-styled SUVs.
One thing that strikes you though is how wide the 07 is. Measuring 1,980mm across, this is a car that requires extra care and caution when navigating tight spaces.
Futuristic Tech Fest
While the 07 seems fairly regular on the outside, it is a completely different story inside. Certainly, the interior looks like nothing I’ve seen before on a production car sold in Singapore,
The first thing that will probably catch your eye is the very long 35.4-inch display that stretches across the base of the windscreen. Avatr calls this the band screen, and it showcases all your relevant driver information like your speed and power consumption in high quality 4K resolution.
After that, your eyes will likely be drawn to the odd-looking steering wheel. It’s not classically round, but instead is more octagonal or rectangular. It’s quite clear that the design is as such so as not to obstruct the panoramic band screen, but it’s still quite strange to look at nonetheless.
Once you’ve gotten yourself oriented with the unusual design, you’ll find that the 07’s cabin is actually quite a comforting place to be in. The seats are plush and cosseting, and incorporates all manner of heating, ventilation and massage functions. There’s even an extendable footrest, allowing you to recline and catch a quick snooze if you wish.
You get almost the same experience at the back too, sans the footrest and massaging features. But the seats do recline and are heated, so there’s still some degree of pampering going on, if not quite as lavish as those in the front.
The design of the car does indicate that interior room is not the main priority, and it does show with its limited headroom and legroom, especially for rear passengers. While I wouldn’t say it’s cramped, and most adults should have no issue fitting in the back, it’s not exactly what you would call class-leading either.
Things are better for non-humans though, with the 07 offering a generous 500 litres worth of boot space, expandable to 1,325 litres if you fold the rear seats down. If somehow that’s still not enough for you, there’s also a frunk with 90 litres of capacity available. Perfect for hauling your stash of durians home without stinking up the cabin.
The rest of the interior also impresses with its high quality, with soft leather featuring around many of the touch points. The air con vents are well-hidden too, giving the dashboard a clean and uncluttered look, although having to adjust their directional airflow via the touchscreen only is a tad distracting.
Speaking of touchscreens, most of the controls are accessed via the 15.6-inch item in the centre of the dashboard. It’s a familiar formula duplicated from many EVs nowadays, but the user interface on the Avatr does feel a tad more intuitive than most, with most of the vital functions no more than two taps away.
There’s quite a few fancy features to play with too. The 64-colour ambient lighting gives the interior a rather cool vibe, and is nicely complemented by the pretty decent 16-speaker Pioneer sound system. If you want to indulge in a bit of fun childish nonsense, there are even selectable ‘engine sounds’ that give you the aural sensation of driving with a V6, V8 or V12 under the bonnet.
Smooth Drive with Rough Edges
But hearing an engine roar is not really in keeping with the Avatr’s character though. On the whole, the 07 impresses with its high levels of refinement. Without any artificial noise, the cabin is extremely quiet, and the suspension deals with most road surfaces with remarkable composure. This is a car you can take on long distance journeys and emerge at the end still feeling fresh as a daisy.
It does come with tradeoffs though. The car’s wide stance means that while it is mostly stable under cornering, it’s not exactly the most nimble to pilot. The irregular-shaped steering wheel is also fairly awkward to helm through tighter manoeuvres, such as when making U-turns, but otherwise it is mostly fine in regular driving situations.
The model tested here is the rear-wheel-drive Max variant, which features a single motor producing 338bhp and 365Nm of torque. This makes it good for a 0-100km/h sprint time of 6.8 seconds, and a top speed of 200km/h. Acceleration is smooth and effective, but it also feels somewhat more responsive and eager than its Avatr 11 sibling, which had a more laid-back nature.
There’s also a more powerful dual-motor Ultra version with 590bhp and 645Nm of torque that can blaze to 100km/h from standstill in 4.4 seconds, and also comes with adaptive dampers for a presumably even more comforting drive.
Both models come with a fairly large 82.16kWh battery though, and in the single motor Max this allows for a driving range of up to 488km on a full charge. It feels like a realistically achievable figure, and if you can find an ultra-fast 420kW DC charger, you can top up the battery from 30 to 80 per cent in just 10 minutes.
Like most new cars these days, the 07 comes with the usual suite of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), but it seems as though they aren’t as smooth as the rest of the car. The adaptive cruise control with lane keeping function in particular feels overly-sensitive, hitting the brakes at the mere presence of a passing motorcycle, and constantly steering and correcting itself despite being fully in the lane.
Dare To Be Different
It feels a tad ironic that the 07 is the more conservative-looking of the two Avatr models on sale here, and yet feels so remarkably differently under the skin from anything else on the market.
The futuristic-looking interior does deserve some credit for its boldness, even though some elements, like the rectangular steering wheel, seem to be more of an exercise in form over function. But the 07 also delivers on substance, most notably with its impressive refinement and emphasis on comfort, with only a few minor niggles detracting from the experience.
Most impressive though is its price tag, with the single-motor 07 Max retailing for $280,999 with COE (accurate at time of writing). The dual motor Ultra is another 20 grand more, but even then, that represents remarkable value considering what you’re getting.
If you’d like a taste of the future, without compromising too much on present-day practicalities, then the Avatr 07 is definitely worth checking out. If anything, the self-parking feature alone is something you’ve got to see and experience for yourself in person.
Technical Specifications
Avatr 07 Max
Powertrain: Single Electric Motor, Rear Wheel Drive
Power: 252 kW (338bhp)
Torque: 365 Nm
Gearbox: Single-Speed (A)
0-100km/h: 6.8 Seconds
Top Speed: 200 km/h
Battery Capacity: 82.16 kWh
Drive Range: 488 km (claimed)
Energy Consumption: 5.2km/kWh (claimed)
Price: S$280,999 with COE (accurate at the time of this article)
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