The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling electric crossover in the United States last year and also the sixth-best-selling vehicle in the country with approximately 252,000 units delivered to customers. In China, however, EVs face stiff competition from local automakers and one of the new additions to the country’s zero-emission SUV segment is the Rising Auto R7. It’s not a very popular name in the US but it has quite an interesting story.
The R7 was previewed by the ES33 concept during the Shanghai Auto Show in April 2021 when it was introduced by the R brand which was founded as a standalone EV automaker from Roewe, which is owned by SAIC. Shortly after its debut, the marque changed its name to Feifan and was eventually given the name Rising Auto. The brand launched a production version of the electric crossover concept and called it the R7.
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The R7 is a typical five-seater crossover with a sloping roofline and our colleagues and friends at Wheeled boy recently reviewed the vehicle in China. In the video attached at the top of this page, you can see a short review of the R7 Performance, which is the most powerful model variant with a dual-motor setup and a peak output of 536 horsepower (400 kilowatts) and 516 pound-feet (700 Newton-meters) of torque. . In this configuration, the model accelerates from standstill to 62 miles per hour (0-100 kilometers per hour) in just 3.8 seconds, which is quite impressive.
Unfortunately, the test driver showed that braking, ride quality and handling did not match the vehicle’s performance. It’s all good – no big black marks and everything is “acceptable”, just not up to the standards you’d expect from a 536-hp (400-kW) electric crossover.
How is the quality of the interior, cabin space, and driving experience? All the answers are in the video at the top of this page. How does the Rising Auto R7 compare to the Tesla Model Y? We will leave that part up to you, our readers, to share with us in the comments section below.
