"If I wanted to buy an off-road vehicle with a budget of around 200,000 yuan, I would choose the Tank without hesitation." This is the idea I came up with after driving the Tank 300 for over 2,000 kilometers in Xinjiang.
Of course, such an idea is impractical in my current situation, because in reality I don't need an off-road vehicle, nor do I need to buy another car, but during my few days driving the Tank 300, my perception of domestic cars has undergone a complete upgrade. Here are some of my personal thoughts on the car:
1. The exterior looks very similar to [Jeep] Wranglers
I'm not sure if every boy has a Jeep in his heart, but I certainly do，从儿时开始，就很想拥有这样的一辆车，虽然他坐着很不舒服，油耗又高，买高配的版本基本上要奔着小 50 万走了，但是内心这个渴望从来没有磨灭过。
From the appearance, the Tank 300 basically replicates a Wrangler, especially with the optional gray paint job. With just a small tire modification, it can be effortlessly cool from the front to the back. Of course, this replica is not entirely copied and pasted, but instead incorporates many characteristics from other cars. For example, the interior design draws inspiration from both the Defender and the G-Class. As a design professional, I feel quite resistant to this type of replication in appearance.
It has to be said that, from the market reaction, this reproduction was successful, especially in the domestic market. The vast majority of people don't care who copied who, they care whether it looks good or not. I've seen green, orange, and lime-colored Tank 300s on the road, and basically every color has a super high rate of回头率 (turning heads).
2. The In-Car System Is "A Bit" Advanced
While the Tank 300's car system looks very similar to Mercedes in terms of UI color matching, it has its own style. In fact, it has its own application ecology, and it integrates domestic software very well, whether it's navigation or music.
However, I'm not sure if this car machine software integration is a set of relatively mature general solutions. It basically has all the configurations you can think of in China, including music, navigation, movies, and voice interaction.However, this level still doesn't reach the level of NIO, but it's basically in a usable state. Of course, this system also has many "unintelligent" aspects, such as the voice recognition rate being too low, especially when navigating to certain places, it often fails to match, but the mixed recognition of Chinese and English is surprisingly good.
Another common problem with voice interaction is that certain suspected wake-up keywords can lead to unexpected activation. It also has CarPlay, but there was also a problem where it would connect without connecting to Wi-Fi or Bluetooth (it was finally disconnected after deleting CarPlay on the iPhone).
Another small feature of his is quite useful, of course a lot of off-road vehicles basically come with it, such as his tilt angle and altitude. Along the way in Xinjiang, you can basically drive from -100m to 3400m above sea level, having a real-time display is quite useful.
The car I chose this time was also equipped with ACC adaptive cruise control, which worked pretty well overall. The only issue was that the lane departure assist kept turning on for some reason, and I wasn't sure if there was a way to turn it off in the settings. So the whole way there, it basically kept forcing the steering wheel to turn for me. It was a bit strange at first, but I got used to it once I realized it was always on.
2. The interior is designed for a comfortable ride
The tank's length is 4 meters 76 centimeters. The overall space is more comfortable than the BMW X3, especially the back seat. I'm tall, and sitting in the back seat, I had about four fingers of space in front of me, and I could also cross my legs. The overall carrying capacity is also good. Our group of four had four suitcases and three backpacks, and the trunk was basically full.
Compared to the Wrangler, the overall riding comfort is much better. After driving the Wrangler for a long time, I sometimes feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, the Tank 300's seats are softer, so it won't be too jarring for you on long trips. However, the overall shock absorption effect is not good, so it can still be quite uncomfortable on bumpy roads.
Adjusting the seat to its highest position affords both the best possible view of the entire car, and, after making these adjustments, a noticeably more comfortable seating experience.
3. Not enough power, slow throttle response
For an off-road vehicle, you can't blame it for not being able to accelerate quickly since it's not designed for speed. The 2.0T displacement requires you to floor the gas pedal to pick up speed, but the throttle response is delayed, causing a queasy feeling during acceleration and braking. The abruptness caused by the delayed throttle response can make passengers feel uncomfortable, and driving in the city for an extended period could make them nauseous.
4. Comprehensive Coverage of All Terrains
On Xinjiang's highways, you'll encounter almost every extreme terrain imaginable, from plains to canyons, cliffs to snow-capped mountains. Driving the Tank 300 on this journey makes you feel very at ease, especially when crossing the snow-covered mountains on Highway 218. Seeing so many cars broken down on the side of the road, we were very grateful that it brought us back safely this time.
The transition between the 2WD (two-wheel drive) and 4WD (four-wheel drive) modes in this car is quite smooth. Thanks to the intelligent car control system, you will barely feel the transition, especially when you're alternating between snowy and non-snowy roads. Switching from 2WD to 4WD will ensure a smooth power transfer and prevent skidding.
5. Car paint and sheet metal are relatively thin
The Tank 300's paint job is indeed thin, as is the sheet metal. If you step on the roof or engine cover to take pictures, you may have to pay for compensation when you return, as it will leave fairly noticeable marks. The boss mentioned this again when we left. I guess lots of people used to take pictures like this before, which had a big impact, so the owner of the car dealership emphasized it.
Later, after my own observations, I indeed found that it was exactly as the boss had said. Basically, the car's surface paint is easily scratched. But then again, isn't this the case with most off-road vehicles? This isn't a car like the Mercedes-Benz G-Class that you're overly careful with when driving.
Summary
I don't think that the Tank 300 can really be a replacement for the Wrangler unless it's truly hard-core off-road, after all, there aren't many other rivals at this price. If I had to guess its core demographic, I'd say young people who are interested in some off-roading and admire freedom. If you want an off-road vehicle that's also really cool, I highly recommend it.
Speaking of which, if you want to see if this car is really suitable for long-distance cross-country,You can follow "Zheng Yi Escapes Humanity", this time their journey used a tank.
Lastly, I'd like to share some of our experiences crossing snow-capped mountains. Several hours after we drove through, a heavy snowfall closed the road for two days. One regret is that we didn't visit the Duku Highway during the open season; it would have been great to experience this challenging road.