Dongfeng Forthing Friday shows its real self at Kyalami Festival of Motoring
Forthing Friday will initially launch with a range-extending electric powertrain in October, followed by a full EV in November.
Dongfeng unveiled the Forthing Friday during the Kyalami Festival of Motoring, without disclosing its pricing. This four-model range, comprising the Box, 06, and flagship 007, positions the Forthing Friday as the series' middle ground and Dongfeng's inaugural range-extending electric vehicle. Initially, it will only be available as a range-extending EV, entering the South African market in October, beginning with its launch at 16 dealerships, with plans to expand to 46 by year-end.
The Forthing Friday's external dimensions include a length of 4,600mm, a wheelbase of 2,715mm, a height of 1,680mm, and a width of 1,860mm. Its claimed boot space measures 480 litres, with an expanded capacity of 1,480 litres when the rear seats are folded flat. The luxury and exclusive variants share standard features, such as 19-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, folding electric mirrors, keyless entry, imitation leather-wrapped steering wheel, a six-speaker sound system, an 8.8-inch instrument cluster, a 14.6-inch infotainment display, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a wireless smartphone charger.
In terms of safety and driver assistance, both variants come with features like a tyre pressure monitor, rear parking sensors, traction control, Electronic Stability Programme, Hill Descent Control, Hill Hold Assist, a 14.6-inch infotainment display, and wireless smartphone charger. The exclusive variant boasts a panoramic roof, electric, heated, ventilated, and front seats, an electric tailgate, a panoramic roof, Auto High Beam Assist, and front parking sensors.
It also includes six airbags, Adaptive Cruise Control, Forward Collision Warning, Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Departure Warning, Traffic Sign Recognition, and Lane Keep Assist, in comparison to the luxury variant's two airbags and a standard reverse camera.
The Forthing Friday's powertrain consists of a 31.9-kWh battery pack driving the front-axle-mounted electric motor, which produces 120kW/240Nm. A normally aspirated 1.5-litre petrol engine, rated at 75kW/130Nm, serves only as a generator for charging the battery. The exact combined power output remains undisclosed, but Dongfeng claims an electric-only range of 200km and a combined range of 1,300km when the petrol engine is used.
The fully electric version will be introduced in November, initially with a 150kW/340Nm electric-only powertrain and a claimed range of around 400km. Pricing for the REEV and EV ranges from around R560,000 to R580,000 and R580,000 to R620,000, respectively, according to Dongfeng South Africa.
Written by urgent.news from The Citizen's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
