Summer “new thing”: Skywell will soon bring the HT-i hybrid crossover to Russia

The "Celestial" brand Skywell announced its entry into the Russian market in September last year, and a month later the presentation of the first-born took place, its role was played by the five-seat all-electric crossover ET5 (we talked about it in more detail earlier). Later, the novelty received OTTS and went on sale in the Russian market. Now it has become known that the local line will be expanded with the Skywell HT-i SUV.

The crossover was introduced in China in March 2022, however, under the Skyworth brand (both brands are part of the Skyworth Group diversified holding). In fact, it is a modification of the ET5 SUV already presented in the Russian Federation: only it is a rechargeable hybrid, not an electric car.

The models have the same silhouette, the same headlights, sidewalls and taillights with taillights, even the design of the rims did not change. Otherwise, only the lower part of the front bumper with other air intakes, as well as the radiator grille, painted in body color, are framed. The length of the hybrid SUV is 22 mm longer than the electric version and is 4720 mm. The remaining dimensions have not changed: the width is 1908 mm, the height is 1701 mm, and the distance between the axles is 2800 mm; clearance - the same 146 mm.

The interior of the hybrid is almost the same as that of the Skywell ET5 , in the center of the front panel there is a 12.8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, and in front of the driver’s eyes is a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster. In the list of differences, only the graphics of this digital instrument panel. As part of the announcement, the local office said that Skywell HT-i will be offered in Russia in three trim levels - Comfort, Premium and Luxury. Their equipment will be known closer to the start of sales.

The crossover promised to the Russians received a hybrid power plant, which is based on a 1.5-liter naturally aspirated gasoline developed by BYD. Its output from the version for the Russian market is 103 hp. It works in tandem with a 176-horsepower electric motor, which is located on the front axle. The cumulative impact of this system in the company has not been declassified.

Skywell HT-i in the Comfort and Premium versions were equipped with a traction battery with a capacity of 21.7 kWh, while the top-end Luxury version has a larger battery - 32.8 kWh. When driving in a purely electric mode, the range of the hybrid in the first case is 81 km, and in the second - 145 km (the calculation was carried out according to the WLTP cycle). The crossovers need 7.9 and 8.2 seconds to accelerate from standstill to “hundreds”, respectively. The maximum speed is the same for all options - 170 km / h.

Skywell HT-i prices will also appear closer to the start of sales. Note that for the basic electric crossover Skywell ET5 of 2023, they ask for at least 4.48 million rubles, and the top version of this model will cost at least 5.05 million rubles.