Review: Chana Benni / Chang'an Ben Ben CV6

Chana's take on the supermini: Supersize me!

WORDS Niky Tamayo PHOTOS Ken Tamayo, Marvin Tan | 22 July 2009

There is one unifying theme to Chinese cars: Cheapness. Obviously, low prices do not a great car make. But cheapness ensures affordability. Affordability means sales. Sales mean profit. Profit funds research and development, which leads to better cars. This spirit built Japanese automotive empires in the 80’s and funded Hyundai’s rise from ignonimity to number five in the world in the past decade. Now Chinese automakers are trying to ride the mass-market to the big time with their own cheap, economical cars. Which brings us to the Chana Benni. The Chana Benni (BenBen) or Chang’an CV6, as it is known in China, is not just a cheap car funding Chana’s research and expansion. It’s actually the result of development funded by Chana’s sale of licensed Suzuki products, as their first grounds-up design. While many Chinese companies make do with decade-old secondhand mechanicals from the Daewoo Matiz and various Daihatsus and Suzukis, Chang’an is boldly going where few Chinese companies have gone before, and have made something… original. It’s a cheeky little thing, a dash of Suzuki here, a sprinkle of Peugeot there, and some Citroen, to taste. The heraldric icon, nifty five spoke alloys, stylish lines and huge greenhouse have a vaguely European flair that’s not without appeal. The neon lime color of our tester unit isn’t the best choice of color amongst those available, though… the blue one is much better. On closer inspection, the European façade gives way to a stereotypically Chinese interior... thin plastics, natty fabrics, and standard Chinese switchgear... clunky, with a side order of light and springy. On the bright side, the steering wheel is inoffensive and the seats are comfortable, if a bit lacking in lumbar support. Interior space is surprisingly good. The Benni is taller than a Honda Fit/Jazz, and about as wide. And it feels like it, from the inside. It lacks the trunk-space of the Japanese über-mini (though trunk space is pretty good), but legroom and headroom are decent. It’s a little like the Hyundai Matrix, tall, with lots of glass. The large greenhouse works the air-conditioning harder than global warming, but we survived summer heat without frying. It’s better than the Chery QQ in this regard, but no patch on the Suzuki Alto’s ice-cold cabin. Granted, the Alto’s cabin is so tiny that an electric fan will probably keep it cool, but still… Like the QQ and Alto, there’s a fair bit of mechanical gnashing and moaning audible through the firewall, and wind-noise is intrusive at over 80 km/h. But what you do expect at these prices? On the plus side, at least the ride is soft as butter. Fuel economy is great for a Chinese super-mini... which is just about average compared to anything else. It returned 12.2 km/l in city/highway traffic and about 9-10 km/l in rush-hour traffic (damn Skyway construction). Not great, but there are smaller and smaller-engined rivals just as bad. The little 1.3 liter F6 mill (a name familiar to zuk-o-philes) boasts electronic fuel injection, direct ignition, an electronic throttle and 88 horsepower. Aggressive tuning gives the Benni lots of low-down torque... I actually had fantasies of finding a tiny turbodiesel underneath the short hood after the test drive. That torque allows you to short shift your way to fifth gear at ridiculously low speeds, or to hit 60 km/h in just 5.2 seconds. It starts to run out of steam in 3rd gear, as it takes 7.9 seconds more to get from 60 km/h to 100 km/h... (aggregate time of 13.1 seconds 0-100) a half-second more if you mash the soggy gearlever into the wrong slot. THE GOOD Sound engineering Spacious interior Torquey engine Soft ride Cheap THE BAD Control quality needs improvement Interior materials, too So-so brakes Rides too softly Not cheap enough? THE LOWDOWN A big step up from the QQ in terms of space and power, but with a price to match. Soggy is an apt description for the Benni’s other controls, too. The electric steering is loose and darty, the brakes are spongy and the clutch is light and tricky to modulate. Soft springs and twitchy steering make bobbing along provincial highways as exciting as thrashing down a mountain road. Come those mountain roads, the Benni feels strangely well-planted while squealing around hairpins, as heavy cornering loads glue the springs to their bump-stops. It has a neutral demeanor just edging into understeer at the limits of grip, with a chassis that feels more of a piece than the QQ. That’s not saying a lot. The Benni isn’t going to win any rallies anytime soon. As a city commuter, though, it’s passable. Sure, the clutch and brakes are a proletarian chore, but they’re about par for the Chinese class. Low-end torque makes for easy motorvation at an eco-friendly 40 km/h in fifth gear and the suspension, though it sometimes bottoms out over humps, smothers potholes like a Communist censor. The higher specs and space of the Benni were conceived to entice budget buyers away from the QQ... and that it would... but it sits at a higher price point than the Chery. Therein lies the Benni’s biggest problem: It’s caught in that never-never land between the cheap and disposable and the not-so-cheap but desirable. The Benni faces the challenge of convincing buyers to gamble their hard-earned cash on an unknown quantity. Maybe after another model generation or so, it’ll be up to the task. But for now, the Benni and others like it will remain a rarity on our roads. It’s a commendable first effort from a young company, but it’s up against some incredibly good Korean and Indian-made rivals. If nothing, at least Chana has the engine and the styling right. And the catchy name. Now they have to upgrade the rest of the package to match it. Who knows? In another five years, the Chana Benni2 might be benni benni good. But by then, it probably won’t be benni cheap, anymore. Oh well.

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