Denza B8 PHEV: Where’s the kitchen sink?

What is it?

Like Lexus is Toyota, Denza is to the Chinese brand BYD, with upmarket line of luxury vehicles and price tag to match.

The brand was established in 2010 as a joint venture with Mercedes-Benz, but Benz has since pulled the plug. 

The B8 Super Hybrid is a large six or seven-seat 4×4 wagon that is billed a bit optimistically as a competitor for the Land Cruiser 300 Series.

There’s also a B5, a smaller five-seater that has the Prado in its sights, along with a z9GT sedan and D9 people mover on offer.

Both 4x4s are closely related to the BYD Shark utility which is also a plug-in hybrid.

What’s it cost?

Prices for the B8 start from $91,000 for the seven-seater or $97,990 for the six-seat version.

Sounds like a lot of dosh for a “Chinese” vehicle, but the figures start to look better when compared to the Land Cruiser which ranges in price from $99,000-$156,000, bearing in mind that this is a proper 4×4 proposition with everything that implies.

Our test vehicle was the more expensive 6S or six-seater, with two separate, fully adjustable second row seats that permit walk-though access to the third row.

B8 is a blend of rugged, muscular design, high levels of quality and the attention to detail expected in a luxury 4WD.

And, get this, they say the look is inspired by futuristic starship aesthetics. 

At the front, the B8’s daytime running lights form the outline of the wings of an interplanetary starship.

The tail lights provide an afterburner effect, creating the illusion of jet engine exhaust.

The planetary ring spare wheel cover features two distinct lines top and bottom to symbolise Saturn’s rings.

Don’t you just love this stuff?

B8 has been designed from the ground up as premium offering, with particular attention paid to the elimination of noise, vibration and harshness (NVH).

To achieve this it is fitted with soft-close doors, sound-deadening glass, cabin-isolating rubber bushes and active engine mounts.

Standard kit includes genuine leather trim, three-zone climate air, heated, cooled and massage front and second row seats, power fold third row seats and a heated steering wheel.

There’s also LED lights front and back, NFC key support and a car fridge/hotbox that offers a temperature range of -6 to 50 degrees.

It rides on black 20-inch alloys, with pricey 275/55 series Michelin rubber.

Access to the B8 is via pop-out door handles, with buttons inside that release the doors and a powertrain that turns on automatically in greeting.

Our six-seater adds a front diff lock, Nappa leather, front seat power adjustable leg rest, front seat bolster adjustment, digital rear view mirror, night vision system, smart driving surround view camera, head-up display and second row foot ambient lighting.

The huge 17.3-inch rotating touchscreen is the largest we’ve seen, larger even than the laptop this story was written on, with another sequestered 12.3-inch digital instrument panel for the driver.

The system supports 4-zone voice assist, Bluetooth connectivity and audio streaming, FM and DAB+ digital radio (but no AM), built-in satellite navigation, wireless CarPlay and Android Auto, over-the-air updates as well as an 800 watt, 18-speaker Devialet audio system.

There’s also a mix of six USB ports (A+C), a 12 volt power socket and dual wireless phone charging.

B8 scores a maximum five-star rating for safety.

Safety begins with a rigid ladder-type CTC (Cell-to-Chassis) body with 78 per cent high-strength steel, encircling and protecting the integrated Blade battery. 

A total of 13 airbags protect driver and passengers, while a comprehensive suite of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), such as a 360-degree camera system, front and rear collision warning, front cross-traffic alert, automatic emergency braking and intelligent cruise control.

B8 is covered by a 6-year/150,000km warranty plus an 8-year/160,000km high-voltage battery warranty, with five years of roadside assistance and capped priced servicing.

Service is due every 12 months or 20,000km.

What’s it go like?

Designed in-house by BYD, the B8 is almost 5.2 metres long with a 2920mm wheelbase and sits on a separate ladder chassis as favoured by the off-road community.

With low and high range, front and rear diff locks, and approach, departure and ramp-over angles of 34, 35 and 26 degrees, along with an impressive 310mm of ground clearance and wading depth of 890mm — this is a vehicle built to tackle the rough stuff.

Power comes from a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, together with two electric motors and a 37 kWh battery, that produces a prodigious 425kW of power and 760Nm of torque.

Transmission is complicated, with a single-speed reduction gear for the front, and another two-speed transmission for the rear — to deliver high and low range.

Each electric motor drives its respective axle, while the petrol engine is employed primarily to keep the battery charged (but does chime in with some extra oomph if required) — in other words it’s basically a series hybrid.

Like the Shark, there’s no physical connection between the front and rear wheels, just the tricky electronics.

There’s also 16 different drive modes available: the usual Comfort, Eco and Sport; plus Terrain Modes of Snow, Sand, Mud, Mountain, Rock, Intelligent and others.

Leopard turn is also available, which allows the vehicle to perform sharper, tank-like turns by spinning the wheels at different speeds off road.

Despite the fact B8 weighs in at a whopping 3290kg, the dash from 0-100km/h takes a quick-fire 4.8 seconds.

That makes it 443kg heavier than Patrol and 660kg more than a Land Cruiser.

With a 91-litre fuel tank, it takes standard 91 unleaded with fuel consumption a claimed 3.9L/100km (WLTP), provided the battery retains a minimum 25 per cent charge. Above that and one can expect to use 11.4L/100km.

We were getting 9.0L/100km after more than 1200km. There was no opportunity to charge the battery, but it never dipped below 25 per cent.

Claimed energy consumption is 24.4 kWh/100km. It can recharged at a rate of up to 11kW with AC and up to 120kW with faster DC.

Combined range is 905km, with an electric only range of 100km (WLTP).

The suspension is electronically modulated and adapts automatically to road conditions.

It has a range of 140mm and means ground clearance can be boosted from 220 to 310mm at the push of a button, along with dropping the height for easier access.

There’s plenty of room front and back, but getting in and out can be difficult, particularly on a slope because the heavy doors swing shut, threatening to inflict bodily harm.

Grab handles are provided for each of the four doors, but the low-set front handles which are located at the end of the dash provide little leverage.

The heavy tailgate with the added weight of the spare wheel is hinged on the wrong side for our right-hand drive roads.

There’s just 147 litres of load space with the third row in use, with a charge cable and tool kit to contend with as shown in the photos.

B8 is a large, comfortable car in which to wile away the hours, with a first rate sound system.

But there’s room for improvement.

Don’t bother with the digital mirror, because reflections and the constant need to refocus make it virtually unusable.

The choice of light grey on silver for the control labels is almost illegible in almost any light.

We had to get out a torch to work out how to operate the stack of toggles for controlling the seats from the luggage area.

Massage is a welcome option on a long country drive but the seat heating turns into a sausage sizzle after a couple of minutes, even on its lowest setting.

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Ditto the aircon which either blows too hot or too cold, but not much in between.

B8 gets up and boogies, that’s for sure, with plenty underfoot for overtaking.

But there’s some hesitancy on take off and the ride quality quickly deteriorates on country roads — fancy suspension or not.

The brakes are grabby and the adaptive cruise control which adjusts in 5km/h increments delivered a couple of phantom scares.

Alas we didn’t get a chance to take the Denza off-road, but it reportedly made it up Beer O’Clock Hill which lends some cred.

However, the B8’s two main challenges off road are the terrain and its own weight.

Not only does it have to find sufficient traction to claw its way up a rocky slope, it has to overcome its own inertia at the same time.

Just quietly we’d hate to get this sucker bogged, because it would require a tow truck or similar to pull it out (perhaps two Land Cruisers).

Replacement of the road tyres with chunkier rubber is a must.

Tow capacity is a full 3500kg, but you need to pay close attention to the gross weight and tow ball limitations.

A drawbar, hitch receiver and 12-point electric plug are fitted as standard.

What we like?

• Brutal 425kW/760Nm power makes it the quickest, most powerful large 4WD in its class
• 100km EV range lets you do daily driving as a proper electric car
• Premium interior and looks that vibe with luxury European SUVs (not budget Asian)
• Strong off-road hardware: body-on-frame, locking front and rear diffs, self-levelling rear and DMO system

What we don’t like?

• Huge 3290kg weight makes the ride and handling feel heavy and sluggish on rough roads
• ADAS and driver-monitoring alerts are overly sensitive and annoying in daily use
• Some quality niggles and gimmicky bits (like retractable door handles) that feel unnecessary
• No true mechanical low-range gearing; steep descents rely on brakes more than engine control

The bottom line?

We doubt whether the Denza B8 has got what it takes to lure died-in-the-wool Land Cruiser owners out of their comfort zone.

But if the success of BYD as a whole is any measure, it’s certainly going to generate plenty of interest for those who don’t want to go the whole nine yards.

It could even put a dent in Defender sales (they’ve gotta come from somewhere after all).

The quality is there, it just needs a bit of fine tuning.

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