New electric car brand from China M Hero unveils two models

Dongfeng unveiled yet another brand but this time the new subsidiary is aimed at the premium off-road market. M Hero, as the brand is called, is the first Chinese automotive brand to offer cars in this segment.

At the official launch in Wuhan, the company unveiled two concept cars - M-Terrain and M-Terrain S. The M in the brand’s name and the car’s names stands for military vehicle DNA as well as Man, Marvelous and Mission - that’s straight from the official press release.

The word Hero in the brand’s name is not just your normal everyday hero - according to a lengthy press release the H stands for High-tech, the E is for Electrical. R is for Reform and O is for Off-road. So this is a Military Man Marvelous Mision High-tech Electrical Reform Off-road vehicle - M Hero. It all makes sense now.

Even the company logo is stylized after an ancient warrior’s helmet. With its sharp edges and large size, you could use it as a defensive weapon in a sticky situation. What’s up with the Chinese car companies going all military with their car names?

Both concept cars are based on new off-road EV architecture called M Tech. The actual platform used in the cars is called MORA and it’s China’s first skateboard type platform designed specifically for off-road vehicles.

The all-wheel drive system uses four electric motors with more than 1,000 hp and is aptly named Mega-Power. There is a world’s first two speed transmission with a diff lock and apparently the wheel torque stands at over 16,000 Nm. All those brain numbing numbers translate to a rather brisk acceleration of 4.2 seconds from 0 to 100 kph.

The traction control system is called M-ATS and can select the most ideal off-road mode according to terrain and even has a Crab Walk Mode which means there is a four-wheel steer system on board.

If That wasn’t enough, the M-Terrain comes with an intelligent security system, it has L3 autonomous capabilities and it has its own drone.

The parent company of M Hero - Dongfeng, is proud that it took nearly a year to develop the new brand. Dedicated factory is already under construction and the production will begin in 2023. The expected manufacturing capacity is 100,000 vehicles.

Dongfeng beat the BYD to the finish line with the premium off-road EV brand. BYD announced it was launching its premium hard-core off-road vehicle soon with a target price of at least RMB 1 million which translates to around $146,000.

The M-Terrain presentation video is short but somehow the company managed to squeeze in a couple of helicopters, a fighter jet and some army vehicles. The ominous soundtrack makes you think China wants to take over the world or something… check it out:

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