WeeklySA_AdminSUV: The B40 Honor limited edition makes for a strong proposition for a trendsetting, stylish, affordable and capable off-roader
By Ali Mphaki
It was with a heavy heart when I had to hand back the keys of the bold and unapologetic.B40 Honor the other day.
Having spent close to a week getting to know each other, parting felt like the end of a much promising love affair, leaving me empty and spent.
As I began dealing with my withdrawal symptoms, it dawned on me how times have changed, my.mind racing back to the days when :”Made In China” signified brittle products of.low and poor quality. Leaving the unbridled comfort of the spacious and elegant B40 off-roader for a claustrophobic small hatch from one of the e-hailing services from Sandton back to Soweto, only adding angst to my frayed nerves.
Thing is irrespective of personal biases, few can demur how Chinese autmakers have turned the automotive industry, as we knew it, on its head, churning out highly specced but affordadle products much to the detriment and chagrin of so-called legacy brands like VV, BMW, Mercedes-Benz etc.
You just have to.give it.to the Chinese, something even the belligerent peacemaker US president Donald Trump can begrudgingly attest to.
A glance at the B40, however, may just get the tariff obsessed Trump incensed, seeing that it has a striking resembles to the America’s Jeep Wrangler.
Some even detect hints of the gigantic. GM Hummer, while for others it boasts elements of the popular US Ford Branco, not available in SA, which is not a bad thing especially when you consider imitation to be the sincerest form.of.flattery.
What is however robvious to.the naked eye is that the B40 designers have come up with a seamless and exquisite fusion of all three models into one, the result a bold, rugged and good looking off-roader ready to conquer any terrain.
Before getting carried away, it’s perhaps apt to first mention there are now four versions of the B40 (Beijing 40) starting with the B40 Plus, B40 Plus City Hunter, the B40 Plus Champion, which are now joined by the limited Honor edition..
What distinguishes the B40 Honor edition from the rest in the B40 range iis its added array of features, even though the outward design of the derivatives is similar.
Other distinguishing features include LED daytime running lights and 17-inch alloy wheels.
As a more luxurious version of the B40 range, the Honor edition builds on the mid-range City Hunter specifications, with the standard fitment of electric seat adjustment and a sunroof.
We liked how these join the existing assortment of luxuries encompassing dual-zone climate control., a multifunction steering wheel, a reverse camera, tyre pressure monitor, hill ascent and descent controll, and wait for it, ABS with brake asset and two from airbags.
The interior is modern and chic. with shades of being smug in a Merced Benz, thanks to the collaboration between the Beijing Automaker International Company, BAIC, with the Stuttgart- based Mercedes-Benz. Where the B40 will most likely attract lots of admirers , critics included, is when it gets to undress or more exact, getting topless.
Take off the removable hard-top roof and the B40 Honor gets revealed in all its glory!!! In its topless wake – as I notied as i crisscrossed Gauteng roads – it surely hits the right spot with all gender groups and ages, not in the least the impressionable young ama2000s lasses.
With such looks and more, the B40 Honor easily makes it to that legion of cars said to to be a “P…dropper.” If the taste of the pudding is in the eating, under the hood of the B40 Honor ( like
In the rest of the range) sits a 2.0- litre turbo petrol engine which churns out 160kW at 320Nm paired with an 8-speex auto transmission and a diff lock. The 2,0 -litre motto propels the B40 effortlessly as it goes through its paces . The eight speed motto is responsive, allowing for a smooth ride in a relatively quiet cabin. Increased road noise can however be detected when reaching high speeds, the huge tyres hitting the tarmac with vengeance.
BAIC says average consumption is 10l/ 100km in a 75-litre tank, but we averaged at times a tad higher consumption than the official data, something most journos who’ve sampled the vehicle can vouch.
The B40 Honor’s drinking manners may just be its undoing, but if you playing in this semi-luxury sector, this should be the least of your concerns.
Priced at R699 500, the B40 Honor looks set to attract and hollow out a sizeable.number off-road enthusiasts from other well-established manufacturers. The automaker has posted an impressive 40 percent year to end sales increase compared to 2024, which bodes well for the brand going forwards.
In case you thought BAIC would leave you stranded and abandoned on the sideway, be assured the automaker is here in Mzansi for the long haul, assembling semi-knockout kitties of the BAIC Beijing X55 in the eastern Cape.
All in all, its become more and more difficult not to fall in love with BAIC’s cuttin-edge products. The B40 Honor continues that charge of dishing out trendsetting and stylish vehicles from the Chinese automaker to an arguably welcoming motoring public. Aluta Continua!
