First EV Model of Dongfeng Motor’s Voyah Delivers 136 Units in Norway

Voyah, an electric vehicle brand owned by Chinese state-owned automaker Dongfeng Motor Corporation, said on December 28 that its first batch of 500 Voyah Free models had arrived in Oslo, Norway at the end of November. In December, it started local deliveries, now reaching 136 units.

As the first model launched by Voyah in Europe, the Free has been customized in its configuration according to Norwegian regulations and requirements. With a starting price of 719,000 kronor ($68,731), the model is equipped with a 106.7 kWh battery pack and has a cruising range under WLTP conditions of 500km. It is equipped with dual motors, with a maximum power of 360kW and a peak torque of 720 N · m, and the acceleration time from 0 to 100 km/h is 4.4 seconds.

The Voyah Free’s intelligent navigation system in Norway adopts local mapping software, and local car owners can remotely operate the car through mobile apps. Compared with the version sold in China, Voyah’s R&D team redesigned the car body, providing towing capacity as high as two tons, better meeting the travel needs of Norwegian drivers.

In June 2022, Voyah opened its first user center in Europe in Oslo, Norway. In November, Voyah opened its first overseas flagship store in Trondheim, Norway, further expanding its brand influence in the country. At present, more than 25% of the users who have tested Voyah’s vehicles in Norway place an order.

You Zheng, the chairman of Voyah, pointed out previously that Norway is a country with a high penetration rate of electric vehicles, and its demand is relatively large. Due to the cold winter in Norway, the battery attenuation of electric vehicles is severe. However, Voyah Free’s cruising range shrank by only 10% at -20 ℃. After the Norwegian market, from 2023, Voyah plans to enter Israel, Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark.

As the first smart electric vehicle brand under Dongfeng Motor, Voyah was established in 2018 and began to operate independently in 2021. Voyah currently has three models: the intelligent electric SUV “Free,” electric luxury flagship MPV “Dreamer” and sedan “Chasing Light.”

The Chasing Light model faces many doubts. As a medium and large sedan under ESSA electric platform and SOA, which is focused on smart features, the body size of Chasing Light is almost the same as those of NIO ET7 and NETA S, but the wheelbase is shorter.

SEE ALSO: Chinese NEV Brand Voyah Secures Round-A Financing Worth $702M

Voyah sold a total of 17,652 vehicles in the first 11 months this year, of which 1,508 vehicles were delivered in November, increasing by 32% year-on-year but decreasing by 40% month-on-month. Interestingly, the initial delivery target of Voyah in 2022 was 46,000 vehicles, which was lowered to 31,000 vehicles in the middle of the year.

Voyah is not the only EV firm to be backed by a major Chinese state-owned automaker. IM Motor under SAIC focuses on control and metaverse gameplay, Avatr under Changan Automobile is famous for its fashion design and support from Huawei, Geely’s Zeekr focuses on performance, and GAC Aion focuses on cost performance and long battery life.