Skoda is reportedly negotiating with SAIC over the possible use of the Chinese company’s DMH PHEV technology for use in the Czech brand’s Chinese market offerings. The Skoda brand is sold in China as part of the SAIC Volkswagen joint venture and, in recent years, has been struggling for sales.
DMH, standing for dual-mode hybrid, is the name given to the fourth generation of SAIC’s PHEV system. Other generations were given different names, with the first generation being named EDU. Development of the first-generation system began as far back as 2010 and first debuted in the Roewe e550 in 2013.
SAIC’s fourth generation PHEV system debuted with the Roewe D7 in late 2023 and has since appeared in the D5X SUV. The DMH system is also used in the recently launched second-generation MG HS in the European market.
Much like the BYD DM 5.0 technology, the DMH SAIC system uses either a naturally aspirated or turbocharged 1.5 liter engine. The D7 DMH sedan uses the 1.5 liter naturally aspirated engine, which has a maximum power of 82 kW, while the D5X SUV uses the turbocharged 15FKE engine, which has a maximum power of 110 kW. The turbocharged 15FKE engine uses the Miller cycle and has a thermal efficiency of 43%.
There is also some variation in the motors used within the system, with the D7 DMH using a 150 kW motor while the D5X has a slightly more powerful 153 kW electric motor. During a test earlier this year on Hainan Island, a D5X managed a combined range of 1,621 km with an average fuel consumption of 3.8 l/100 km, although it is unclear under what conditions this was achieved. For reference, the Roewe D5X uses a 21.5 kWh battery pack. The official all-electric range is 135 km, with a combined range of 1300 km using the CLTC measurement system.
At the end of 2022, it was reported that Skoda CEO Klaus Zellmer was considering withdrawing the brand from the Chinese market and that a decision would be reached in 2023. As yet, no decision has been made, and Zellmer commented in October 2023 that it was still not clear whether Skoda would withdraw or not.
Skoda’s aim in using the SAIC DMH system would be to produce cars that are more in line with Chinese consumers’ requirements. In 2018, Skoda sold 341,000 cars in China, but in the first half of this year, it sold just 7,100.
Editor’s note:
While the SAIC DMH system may help the Skoda brand’s cars become more attractive to Chinese consumers, it is difficult to know how much of a difference just a PHEV system will make in sales as the problems are more likely deep-rooted. Where things might get more interesting is if Skoda decides to use the DMH technology for its European offerings.
Source: Autohome
