By Otsile Kadiege

Back in 2013, BAIC took the veils off the first-generation BJ40 off-road SUV which was later facelifted in 2018 and only made it to our shores in 2021. Late last year, BAIC revealed the second-generation BJ40 which sports the same box-shape design with modern styling cues, a raft of new technologies, new powerplants including an electric version and three basic variants: Urban Edition, Professional Off-road Edition and Electric Range-extended Edition.

Emotional Block design language

The newcomer ushers in a new design philosophy called Emotional Block. Emotion means the design increment with more humane care. More positive and warm feeling surface, delicate transition and new era elements are reinforced on the basic form structures. Block refers to the internalized core attributes of strong off-road functionality as well as the accompanying strong character ethos.

Some exterior highlights include a horizontal grille with block-shaped LED headlights, more LED lighting on the grille and LED fog lights on the contrasting front bumper which also houses an underbody protective skid plate. Its side profile features chunky off-road tyres (dimensions are unknown), contrasting wheel arches with integrated LED lighting, functional roof rails and frame-less doors while the rear has a swinging tailgate with a spare wheel mounted on it and vertical LED taillights.

Exterior dimensions are as follows: 4790 mm length, 1940 mm width, 1895 mm height and 2760 mm wheelbase. Its approach, departure and ramp-over angles are 37, 31 and 24 degrees respectively. It has a ground clearance of 230 mm and a wading depth of 750 mm.

Modern, functional interior

In the interior, although it continues the relatively tough block shape structure, the BJ40 incorporates soft materials to provide users with a comfortable environment. Dual 12.8-inch screens together with a 10.25-inch instrument cluster and 1.92-inch central start screen, as well as ambient lighting, create a pleasant environment for the driver and passengers. Despite the multiple intelligent displays, a number of physical buttons are present as well to improve the convenience in various scenarios such as selecting driving modes, four-wheel drive mode control, air conditioning system control, etc.

Performance

The vehicle is built on the new Building Block 2.0 platform of Beijing off-road. Building Block 2.0 platform is a new generation off-road platform that integrates off-road technology (high-strength body on frame structure and four-wheel drive off-road chassis suspension and control system), intelligent control technology (advanced driving assistance system and intelligent user experience system), and various powertrains (including gasoline, diesel and electric). BAIC is yet to reveal the power and torque figures of the new BJ40.