What does one choose when you have champagne taste but only beer money and you desperately desire a stylish 4x4 with genuine off-road credentials? Your pickings are limited to a few not-so-stylish single cab bakkies, the evergreen and ever-popular Suzuki Jimny, the dated Duster, or something from the Mahindra catalogue. Enter, the BAIC B40 Plus.
Related: Which BAIC B40 Plus is better: diesel or petrol?
Multivitamin naming convention aside, the B40 Plus is the latest offering from one of the largest Chinese firms, BAIC, pronounced ‘Bike’ (although Chinese Nationals will still slip with the odd Bai-Chi). A compact 4x4 that certainly looks the part and appears to handle like it as well.
Appearances matter
There’s no denying that the inspiration for the B40 Plus is the legendary Jeep Wrangler with its exposed hinges, removable roof sections and Jeep-esque grille design. This then is the price-conscious alternative to the R800 000 Wrangler Unlimited. Don’t you worry, there will be more Jeep references throughout this launch report.
And rightfully so, as both the Jeep and the B40 Plus (known in China as the Beijing BJ 40L and renamed for obvious reasons) have a history that stems from military development. This bodes well as military-derived offerings are renowned for being hardy and able to take some punishment. Indeed, the B40 Plus does set the tone with its flared arches, upright glasshouse, and clamshell bonnet.
Closer inspection will show Halogen projector headlights reminiscent of a Grand Cherokee, replete with an upright, 5-opening chrome grille. Digging into this design choice, it actually has nothing to do with the Jeep/Suzuki design language and rather is a nod to the bastions along the Great Wall of China who too sport five openings in their turrets – or so we are told.
The rear end is a familiar boxy design with a tailgate-mounted spare wheel and rather stylish taillight elements positioned on either side. Closer inspection will reveal not one, not two, but four red towing eyelets set in recesses in both the front and rear bumpers. Whether these are used for retrieving a trail mate or for being retrieved yourself will largely depend on your personal skill set.
The greasy bits
Customers get to choose from two engine choices and three trim levels with the highest-spec Champion trim only available with the petrol engine. A 110 kW and 350 Nm 2.0-litre turbodiesel and a 2.0-litre petrol turbo producing 160 kW and 320 Nm are what you get to choose from and while there are both manual and automatic models, the diesel is only paired with the 6-speed manual and the petrol get a ZF-derived 6-speed automatic.
Drive is sent to all four wheels through a Borg-Warner 4WD system with a mechanical centre and rear differential but favours a traction control-based torque transfer system. Up front there’s a double wishbone suspension arrangement while a live rear axle with 5-link setup does duty in the rear. The B40 Plus is a body-on-frame design, perfect for the purists looking for articulation when the going gets rough.
It’s what’s inside that counts
Look at the pictures of the interior. Go on, look quick. Seem familiar? It’s rather plain to see that BAIC has the license to produce Mercedes-Benz vehicles in China and the B40 Plus has lifted much of its inspiration for the interior from these pages. Quilted leather door card inserts, knurled airvent surrounds (as well as the vents themselves, rather similar), the floating, satin-silver rimmed 10-inch infotainment screen and even the digital gauge cluster are all very reminiscent of the Stuttgart firms’ offerings.
All of this is merely an observation and not a complaint in the slightest – this interior is rather stylish, especially when one chooses a more vibrant exterior colour as this is carried through into the interior on both the dashboard and the upholstery.
With ample seating for 5, the cabin of the B40 Plus is rather welcoming and despite the gratuitous use of plastic trims, appears to be well-bolted together and devoid of any glaring shortcomings.
Technology
The infotainment system may feature an HD screen with access to vehicle controls and shared HVAC display but it falls a little short on functionality with no option for smartphone tethering aside from a regular Bluetooth connection. I would have liked to have seen Apple CarPlay and Android Auto included, especially when one considers what the opposition is offering. It will however accept USB (type-A) and Aux connections as well as provide AM/FM reception. We did find the audio quality to be lacking though.
There is dual-zone climate control, a reverse camera, park-distance control (rear), electric windows, power steering, and on Champion models you will also get an electric driver’s seat.
The multifunction steering wheel allows you to configure the driver’s display with a choice of two design themes and two modes, a City mode and an Off-Road mode that will show you your roll, pitch, heading, and steering angle.
Safety
All models in the range get ABS with EBD, an electronic parking brake (which we managed to break, on two separate vehicles), dual airbags, tyre pressure monitoring system, parking sensors with reverse camera, and ISOFIX mounting points.
Move up a grade to the City Hunter trim and you will also get ESP, Emergency Brake Assist, Traction Control, Hill Start Assist, and Hill Decent Control. All models are equipped with 2-High, 4-High, and 4-Low ranges for the gearbox.
The Drive
Our test drives took us through some low-speed, high-articulation obstacles, a slate quarry with limited traction, and a road session and throughout all of this the B40 Plus performed admirably.
The traction control-based torque vectoring did have a habit of catching me out with the B40 Plus spinning a wheel for a brief moment before the differentials locked, redirecting the power to the wheel with traction. This saw me lurch over and out of the obstacles and required rather quick hands and reactions. While not ideal once you’re expecting it you learn to modulate the throttle with a little more finesses, easing into the traction control rather than trying to surprise it.
An approach angle of 37-deg, departure angle of 31-deg, and break-over of 23-deg with 210 mm ground clearance means that the B40Plus was well within its element on our test track – it genuinely can tackle the very rough stuff, even if shod with road-biased tyres.
The diesel engine, paired with the manual gearbox was a bit of a shock, I’ll admit. The vague shift selection, high take of the clutch pedal and laggy nature of the turbocharged engine means that one needs to treat the diesel B40 Plus the way you would an older Isuzu or similar 4x4. It won’t be to everyone’s liking, coming across as agricultural and uncouth, but I know for a fact that there are many out there that long for this sort of mechanical approach to off-road driving.
The preferred model is the petrol version with the 6-speed auto. This one has a little more gusto and refinement although the shift selector is another weak spot, despite being an automatic. The delay on downshifts is more than acceptable and cruising along is a rather effortless affair.
Pricing
Pricing for the B40 Plus starts at R549 500 and tops out at R629 500 for the B40 Plus Champion Petrol. All models are covered by a 5-year/120 000 km warranty while a 4-year/60 000 km service plan is an optional extra.
At this price, the relatively unknown brand has its hands full, with the likes of the Duster, Thar, and selected soft-roaders (Sportage, Forester, T-Roc, etc) also falling into the price range. It becomes even tougher when you expand your search to the LCV market with double cab Ford Rangers (with 4x4) right there too.
It’s a stylish, more affordable alternative to the Wrangler, which one knows its sights are set on, but falls a little short in value for money. While BAIC has an assembly plant in Coega, Eastern Cape, the B40 Plus is still a full import, held at the whim of the exchange rate.
