Overview

The Skywell BE11 is a Chinese electric family SUV you’ve likely never heard of. Most Chinese EVs in the UK have been sold in the guise of established British marques so far, but with its European product certification, Skywell is looking to make a go of it wearing its own garbs with the BE11. 

The car is about the size of a Skoda Enyaq, or a tad bigger than the new Ford Explorer, so it’s got some tough competition to fend off if it wants to top its class. Like many Chinese e-SUVs, the BE11’s face has about as much nuance and character as a half-used Dove bar, and the interior isn’t much better, either. 

It appears to have taken some European styling cues inside, what with its polished drive select dial, wooden panels and brushed aluminium accents, but it’s pretty devoid of imagination. More on the interior later.

30

The Skywell BE11 can be optioned with either a 72kWh or an 86 kWh battery for respective ranges of 248 miles and 304 miles, according to WLTP figures. It’s not an especially quick car, with a zero to 62mph time of 9.6 seconds and a 93mph top speed, but it’s decently sized inside, at 4,720mm total in length and 1,908mm width.

We test all new cars at Parkers, and so we’ve given the Skywell BE11 a go. Read on for the full review, or head over to our how we test cars page to find out how we reached our verdict.

What’s it like inside?

It would appear the designers back at Skywell base took a hefty dose of inspiration from some of the BE11’s European and Japanese competition when thinking about how the interior might come together. 

In my eye, the BE11’s interior has the mien of an old BMW, or a Nissan perhaps – business like, with its dark colour palette and wood furnishings, though ultimately all sent through the Tesla processor. 

30

So stylistically, it serves me up no grievances – if anything I like the way it looks, if a bit dull – but it can’t hold a light to those aforementioned manufacturers in terms of build quality. Once you start prodding around the BE11’s cabin, you realise where certain corners have been cut. 

The plastics felt cheap and nasty, while the door handles would flex and shift in my hand when pushed and pulled. Some of the metallic inserts were a saving grace, but the cabin just didn’t have the premium feel that its design might’ve suggested. 

The dashboard is dominated by an enormous landscape-orientated infotainment display, front and centre. It’s an impressive piece, Tesla-eque in its proportions, but I got the impression that its software wasn’t fully baked yet when I jumped in. The menus can be accessed via widget-like app buttons, and they’re easy enough to navigate through, but there was a lot of dead space.

30

Not necessarily surprising given the size of the screen, but it appeared more like computer software bunged into an infotainment display, rather than a bespoke system optimised for the car it was in.

In the time since my drive, the infotainment system may have become more refined – my car was a pre-production model – but these were my initial impressions. 

Safety 

The Skywell BE11 hasn’t yet been crash tested by Euro NCAP – we’ll report back here if it ever does – but the e-SUV does at least come with a healthy provision of safety equipment as standard.

30

For example, I benefitted from a 360deg top-view camera when trying to park, which was especially helpful because the BE11 is no field mouse. It also comes with adaptive cruise control and blind spot recognition as standard, among a few other features.

Comfort

The BE11 is a reasonably comfortable car. While the upholstery trim doesn’t scream opulence, it’s pleasant enough to the touch, and the nine-way electrically adjustable seats allowed me to find the perfect position with ease. As a pretty big car, I found I had a wealth of headroom and shoulder room in the front, and plenty of legroom in the rear. Four full-sized adults could easily get comfortable in the BE11, but five might be squeeze.

What’s it like to drive?

With just 204hp at my disposal, the BE11 didn’t feel very punchy. Even some of the humblest EVs on the market have enough low-down torque to push you back into your seat when you put your foot down, if only a little way, but the Skywell wasn’t having it. 

30

With 236ftlbs of torque in a car that weighs almost 1,900kg – for a 0-62mph time of 9.6 seconds – the BE11 just couldn’t get its power down with any great urgency at all.

There was no instantaneous shove to help me get away from the lights like we’ve become accustomed to in EVs. In fact, planting my right foot into the accelerator engendered the kind of languid response I would’ve expcted from a weak ICE car, which was a bit disappointing.

Once up to speed, the BE11 was decently refined and comfortable on the road. It could be a bit wayward when the front end went light under acceleration, but overall it was pretty neat and tidy. However, it would also roll quite dramatically into corners with its springy suspension set up, which was a a bit alarming at times.

30

The BE11 also has incredibly light and numb steering, which provided me with next to no road communication. After only a short while I started tip toeing round corners, rather than hanging the car through them with an expectation it would behave in an orderly manner.

It’s not a very refined piece of mechanical engineering, but the BE11’s suspension tune was at least capable of isolating me from most road imperfections.

What are the trims?

There’s only one trim on offer for the BE11, so everything on the car comes as standard. It’s a generous provision, given that you get that 360deg camera and electrically adjustable seats – amenities that would usually be the preserve of a top-spec e-SUV model. However, it has strong and abundant competition in this class.

The highly coveted Renault Scenic, for example, starts from touch over the BE11’s asking price of £36,995. It may not be as well-equipped in base-spec form, but the Scenic is still a far more impressive car.