BYD's luxury LandCruiser competitors have completed an off-road challenge that was too much for its Shark 6 ute to handle.
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The Denza B5 and B8 plug-in hybrids from BYD's luxury sub-brand have become the latest four-wheel-drives to complete one of Australia's toughest off-road challenges, Beer O’Clock Hill in Queensland.
However, they required "adjustment" to their traction control, torque and throttle software to climb the hill, changes which will not be rolled out to Denza customers through an over-the-air update until a later date.
Beer O’Clock Hill infamously proved too difficult for the Denza B5's sibling, the BYD Shark 6 ute, an example of which bent its chassis nearly 12 months ago in attempting to complete the rocky climb, which has a 142.8 per cent grade (55-degree slope) at its steepest point.
The Denzas offer Mountain and Crawl drive modes, and tackled the hill with front and rear differentials locked and in low range, without stopping or rolling backwards.
There are no differential locks, low-range gearing, or Crawl modes fitted to the BYD Shark 6.
Both the Denza B5 Leopard and Denza B8 six-seater completed the climb with factory-standard suspension.
The B5 was also fitted with a prototype aluminum Ironman front bull bar, as the Chinese brand looks to release a number of off-road accessories for its models.
Powering the B5 are two electric motors, and a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine that can directly drive the front wheels, for combined outputs of 400kW and 760Nm. It is rated with a 100km electric-only driving range and 875km hybrid range from its 31.8kWh battery.
The Denza B8 upgrades to 425kW and 760Nm, with a 100km all-electric range rating and 905km total range, from its two electric motors and more powerful 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine.
"Learnings are shared with our Research and Development teams as part of our commitment for continuous refinement and product improvement," Denza Australia chief operating officer Mark Harland said in a media statement.
Denza said in a media release it will share "data from the hardcore evaluation" with head office in China "for validation," before the off-road software changes are "offered to all Denza B5 and Denza B8 Australian customers via over-the-air (OTA) updates."
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