China and the automotive industry is quite an intriguing story. Initially China provided back-end stuff like chips and other stuff. Then it started getting stakes in companies like Volvo and MG. Now China’s presence is well and truly felt in the automotive industry.
Bestune has been one of the stars of the auto industry from China with the T99 being very successful for the FAW group. The T99 was first shown at the Beijing Auto Show 2018 and has been quite a success since its launch. We thought now is the right time to get our first taste of a Bestune and we were left quite impressed.
On the front of the T99 you can see a front grille which is made using a digital meteor shower and 118 chrome plated pieces. The hood gets its sporty looks thanks to two fake vents and the led lights are daytime running and three arrow shapes.
The T99 gets cameras under the side mirrors, a curved line that extends from the front till the end and chrome inserts beneath the doors. Moving towards the back we have a small spoiler, more chrome inserts underneath the bumper, sporty looking chrome exhaust tips and the name Bestune written in Chrome. So there’s a lot of chrome finishing going on here and we like it. The car gets lots of cameras on the front, back and even the sides.
The boot of the car is very interesting, not because of the fact that it has a massive 377 liters of space, but because this is one of the few cars that comes with a first aid kit. Look at it, how… safe is that.
The T99 has a 2.0 cylinder turbo that produces 224 horsepower and 340 Nm of torque. All the power is sent to all four wheels via a 6 spd DCT box that comes from Aisen, a company owned by Toyota. The engine is super smooth while driving and the only complaint we have is that while the Mcpherson front suspension is very stable, it is a bit stiff. Another thing that bugged us a bit was the AC which took time to catch and this can be a problem for the T99 in the UAE.
Step inside and the T99 looks very pleasing with a panoramic roof, Double tone leather, lots of speakers and wood inserts for the door panels.
The 12.3 inch infotainment crystal screen gave us Mercedes vibes and displayed the footage from the 360 degree camera very efficiently. The back seats are very nice and can seat 3 people. You can find 12V USB charging cables in the car and a huge center console storage.
The T99 comes with safety features like ABS, front and side airbags, ARP - Active Rollover Program, ESP - Electronic stability program, HHC - Hill Hold Control, Lane assist Control, forward collision warning system, Emergency braking, driver attention warning, traffic jam assist and of course the beeps from the parking sensors are always there to help you while parking.
All in all, the Bestune T99 is a very good car and we were quite impressed with it. However at 115,000 AED price it competes with some smaller Audi and Mercedes sedans and people might want to buy a prestigious German name over a lesser-known Chinese name but if you’re in the market for a top class, well rounded SUV then the T99 should be on your list.
