Chinese car brand Baojun has announced a new electric vehicle called Yep Plus, essentially another version of the supermini-SUV Yep unveiled in early 2023. The ‘Plus’ suffix refers to its larger dimensions and five doors instead of three.
You can check it out in the gallery here and compare to the three-door version in the video. As you can see, the design changes are minimal: the body has a boxy shape with pretty much the same headlights and taillights. A light ‘rugged’ body kit makes the Yep Plus look a bit like an off-roader, but that would be an overstatement. The tailgate no longer has a square plastic window in it, but the rear side windows do.
Also missing is the original’s most eye-catching gimmick – the LED display on the tailgate that you could customize with your own animated messages. It is unclear whether the Plus version has no such display or will get it later.
The three-door vehicle was 3,381 mm (132.1 in) long with 2,110 mm (82.4 in) between the axles. The new five-door variant is considerably larger at 3,996 mm (156.1 in) long with 2,560 mm (100 in) of wheelbase. It also benefits from a stronger electric motor rated at 102 PS (101 hp / 75 kW) instead of 68 PS (67 hp / 50 kW). Last but not least, while the Yep ran out of charge after 303 km (188 miles) of driving, the Yep Plus will have 401 km (249 miles) of range according to the Chinese standard.
The pricing isn’t here yet, but everything points to the Plus version coming at a sizable premium over the standard car’s 83,800 Yuan. Some say it might even cost 150,000 Yuan in higher trims. Baojun has reasons to believe that adding a larger and more utilitarian version of the car to its lineup will boost overall sales; the original Yep was pretty much a flop in China last year with less than 15,000 units sold.