The C5 crossover with the abbreviation AWD in the name received by no means only all-wheel drive: in fact, the car is equipped with a completely different power unit. Instead of a 1.5-liter turbo engine under the hood, there is a 1.6 TGDI (SQRF4J16) turbocharged engine with direct fuel injection, belonging to the third generation of ACTECO family engines. Recall that the Exeed crossovers: LX and TXL are equipped with the same engine.
The new C5 AWD did not become significantly more powerful than its front-wheel drive counterpart: on a car with four drive wheels, the engine develops 150 hp. With. (versus 147 hp on a front-wheel drive crossover). Moreover, on the LX and TXL versions for China, the same engine produces 197 forces! But for our market, as Omoda representatives said, this engine was “strangled” a little so that the new C5 AWD remained in the tax-friendly category “up to 150 hp”. With.”. The value of the maximum torque also decreased, but not radically: from 290 to 275 Nm at 2000-4000 rpm. The motor, by the way, can consume “92nd” gasoline.
Together with all-wheel drive, the crossover received a new engine: 1.6 TGDI (SQRF4J16) of the third generation ACTECO family
The 1.6 TGDI engine is aggregated with a 7-speed 7DCT robotic gearbox with a double wet clutch. On the wheels, the torque is transmitted through an all-wheel drive system based on the ZF multi-plate electromagnetic clutch, which distributes the traction force along the axles depending on road conditions.
In addition to the new powertrain, the C5 AWD also received a different rear suspension: an all-wheel drive crossover was equipped with a “multi-link” at the rear, while the front-wheel drive car was content with a semi-independent design with a cross beam. In addition, the C5 AWD is equipped with retuned shock absorbers. Innovations in the chassis, according to the Omoda brand manual, made the car more stable on the road, significantly reducing the effect of body roll, and had a beneficial effect on handling.
How does it all work in real life? In general, very good and quite effective! The 1.6 Turbo engine, combined with a nimble and agile “robot”, is really lucky, leaving the feeling that it was deformed only according to the passport. The car willingly (and actively) accelerates both from a standstill and from the move, and there is always a margin “under the pedal” – even with the most intense overtaking on a two-lane road. Only at the very beginning of the pedal stroke when starting from a place, a slight hitch is felt. In general, we believe unconditionally in the declared 8.6 seconds from standstill to 100 km / h! ..
For the declared 8.6 seconds, the all-wheel drive Omoda goes, but our fuel consumption turned out to be higher than the passport 7.4 liters per 100 km: approximately 8.2–8.4 liters. Fortunately, you can fill in inexpensive “92nd” gasoline
Like the front-wheel-drive C5, the new C5 AWD comes standard with Drive Mode Select. But if the “regular” C5 has only two of these same modes (“Sport” and “Eco”), then the all-wheel drive has an “intermediate” option “Comfort”, as well as special “presets” for driving off asphalt roads: “Snow” , “Mud” and “4×4”. The latter forcibly blocks the center clutch.
Having tried to ride in both “sport” and “economy” modes, we eventually activated the standard “Comfort” and did not return to the “preset” selection system anymore. Yes, in “Sport” the box turns the engine up to higher revs during acceleration and keeps the gear longer, but in “Comfort” the dynamics of the car raises absolutely no questions. As for Eco, the crossover in it becomes too lazy and imposing in response to the gas pedal, so Comfort turned out to be the golden mean!
Quite good friends with the 7DCT “robot” turbo engine. The gears shift smoothly and almost imperceptibly, downshifts when overtaking are switched on exactly at the moment when you expect it, and there are no twitches in traffic jams that the first German boxes of this type were once famous for.
The main impression of the work of the new multi-link suspension is “It would be like that for a long time!” If the front-wheel drive C5 on non-standard highways and primers, I remember, rumbled with its rear beam on almost every pothole and bump, then the new C5 AWD in typical Russian directions allows you to just drive, and not bow to every bump! For complete happiness, only the length of the suspension travel is not enough, because on a completely dead section of the road between Sortavala and Olonets, on the northern coast of Lake Ladoga, we still broke through it. But if you don’t specifically look for the limits of the car’s capabilities, then the new C5 AWD will handle the so-called country off-road more than confidently!..
A pleasant surprise was, if not exemplary, but beyond the small not excellent behavior of the car on the winding paths, with which the Northern Ladoga region abounds. Omoda C5 AWD quite willingly enters the turn and tenaciously keeps the trajectory on the arc. Even on mixed surfaces, when asphalt can be under one wheel, and snow, ice or snow-ice porridge under the other. If it comes to slips, then they do not cause any stress, as they are easily controlled by the steering wheel and pedals, besides, a very finely tuned stabilization system helps to cope with them, delicately guiding the car on the right path.
The all-wheel drive system with a ZF clutch is just as delicate: the rear wheels, when the front wheels slip, are connected quickly and imperceptibly, no jerks are felt. This is most likely due to the features of the clutch itself. The system, as Omoda product specialists told us, has a certain preload, that is, some minimum torque (at the level of 5-10%) is always applied to the rear wheels – even in ideal conditions when driving on dry asphalt.
The only thing that slightly marred the pleasure of driving from the highway winding along the northern coast of Ladoga was a somewhat artificial effort on the steering wheel. In fact, it turned out to be background and very weakly dependent on the degree of loading of the steered wheels and the level of their adhesion to the road – the vestibular apparatus will tell more about what is happening in the contact patch than the steering system. However, this is quite a moderate fee for the stability of the car on a straight line and in gentle high-speed turns, which he demonstrated on ordinary federal highways like the Cola.
Inside, the new C5 AWD differs from the front-wheel drive in some nuances in the trim. The central tunnel of the novelty, for example, is trimmed with glossy piano lacquer plastic, while in the front-wheel drive version the plastic is matte. The first finish, of course, is more spectacular, but the second is more practical: the gloss actively collects dust and fingerprints and, moreover, is covered with scratches faster. In the future, perhaps, the buyer will be offered both options to choose from. In addition, according to the brand, on model year 2024 cars, the upper parts of the door panels will be trimmed with soft-touch plastic.
The sport-type front seats (with integrated head restraints) delight both the eye and the back on a long journey. The electric drive for adjusting the passenger seat is the prerogative of the top version: in the “base”, the right front seat is mechanically adjustable
Of all the design options for the digital dashboard, we liked the classic one the most: with a pair of round scales for the speedometer and tachometer. The non-fixed joystick of the gear selector is generally convenient, but under the thumb, against all instincts, there is not a button for unlocking it, but a manual gear shift key.
Trunk volume is the same as in the front-wheel drive version: 378 liters. And the loading height is too big. But the reserve in the underground is full-size (215/55 R18)
Finally – about the main thing. That is about prices. The new C5 AWD entered the Russian market in two trim levels: Active and Supreme. In the first there is no panoramic sunroof, some electronic driver assistance systems, voice control of the multimedia system and power driver’s seat, while in the second all this is included by default.
In the Active version, the new Omoda C5 AWD costs from 2,879,900 rubles excluding marketing programs, in the Supreme configuration – from 3,049,900 rubles. If we sum up all the possible benefits within the framework of current branded special offers, then the base crossover can be purchased for 2,559,900 rubles, and in the top version – for 2,699,900 rubles.
What is the upshot?
Taking into account the new power unit, transmission and chassis, the surcharge of 300 thousand rubles for the new C5 AWD, compared to the front-wheel drive, looks very adequate. Moreover, it was in the all-wheel drive version that the Omoda brand crossover finally drove the way it should be for a modern crossover of this class! ..
Now let’s see how buyers will react to the very possibility of purchasing a modification with all-wheel drive, given that there are alternatives on the market (thanks to the parallel import scheme!). The brand management expects that the share of all-wheel drive versions in the total sales of the C5 model will be significant: about a third. Given the consumer qualities of the AWD modification, this is a very realistic target.
Photo: Dvizhok magazine, manufacturing company
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