Topic: Final Drive: Zotye Hunter 1.3i

[Autos_Editor]

Pritch visits Cuba and is nearly killed by a crappy Chinese SUV on a mountainside.

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[JohnM]

"nearly killed by a crappy Chinese SUV"

Should read "nearly kills himself with a crappy Chinese SUV".   The key is to know where you are and you weren't in Arizona at the Scottsdale Country Club Annual Hill Climb and champagne brunch with complementary Range Rover.

Everyone else made it up the hill on their own using the same machinery, correct?  Maybe their expectations were a little lower and they were better prepared to make the best of what they had.  In Cuba, you get by with what you have which can be extremely variable.  Once you re-calibrate to the lay of the land, you can relax and go with the flow.

Recognize the environment and the infrastructure you are dealing with and your next experience will be a whole lot less crappy no matter how marginal the machinery.

Cheers,
John M.

[dirtyjeffer]

when i went to Cuba about 12 years ago, there was a "Jeep Tour" as well...the "Jeeps" were Suzuki Sidekicks (or whatever they are called now if they still make them, it was pre-Grand Vitara)...i thought it was "funny" to use "Jeep" since that is a brand name of vehicle they don't sell down there.

[Scaerio]

"Jeep" is the generic word for SUV in many countries.  It is transliterated as "džip/џип" in Serbia/Bosnia/Croatia/Montenegro.

The Zoyte Hunter looks like a pretty accurate copy of a Daihatsu Terios...

[PJ]

I'd guess it's condition had more to do with the 80,000 kms in the hands of spoiled tourists then where it was made. 

[infinitime]

As someone who has had first-hand experience driving a variety of Chinese vehicles, I can't see how the author's experience can be attributed to the design or "shoddy" construction of the vehicle. 

Clearly, it is a case of the wrong tool being used for the job... a Zotye "Hunter" or the "5008"  is essentially a jacked-up hatchback, derived from a Daihatsu Terios.  It is similar in concept to FWD Suzuki SX4... in other words, this was never meant as a serious off-roader.  In its intended role as an urban runabout, it does fine.   I know, as I've drive one for several days without incident.   Perhaps the author should also do some research, to figure out that this model retails for about 43,000Yuan, or about $6,200Cdn, new.     I hope he wasn't expecting Landcruiser prowess at 1/10 the price.

http://www.zotye.com/models2008.html?cate=price

In any event, the Cuban tour group probably had limited resources to acquire real SUVs, aside from that little issue with the pesky embargo which kept them away from real Jeeps...

I am sure if they were well funded, and felt the need to buy a Chinese SUV, they could have gone for any one of these, which are more than capable of a match-up with most "western" SUVs.

http://chinaautoweb.com/car-models/baic-yongshi/?pid=4369
http://chinaautoweb.com/car-models/zhongxing-landmark-v7/?pid=4658
http://chinaautoweb.com/car-models/great-wall-haval-h5/?pid=6253
http://chinaautoweb.com/car-models/liebao-feiteng/?pid=21006

Maybe the author can keep his political biases at the door when reviewing a vehicle....

[JohnM]

Cuban roads being what they are and tourists being what they are, the main aim of the tour group is probably cheap to buy and simple to repair.  Everything works in Cuba, just not perhaps up to the standards we expect.  When it doesn't work, they stop using it. 

Love the country and it's people.  The rental machinery is always interesting and unless you get the vehicle with under 10k on it, the shocks will be shot due to being driven by tourists who have yet to adjust to roads in random levels of repair.

The last rental was an interesting almost new Chinese sedan - very well equipped, modest finish and a little crude in handling, overall pretty tight - basically a 2013 package with 1998 execution.  I always try and rent something novel when I'm there.  It's not about reaching the top of the mountain, it's the journey.

Cheers,
John M.