‘Premium’ and ‘affordable’ don’t usually go together. But Changan, through judicious engineering and design, may just have made that possible. Cutting costs is unavoidable, but if done strategically, the savings pile up and meet the demands for quality at reasonable prices.
This is exactly what the mid-tier CS35 Max Lite set out do, having been updated to challenge the success of its direct competitors.
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PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
The CS35 Max Lite’s exterior is not as outright sporty or trendy. Its casual, subdued design serves as a deliberate counterpoint to its rivals. The huge grill, functional bumper intakes, raked hatch glass, squinting LED headlamps, and matching taillights all demonstrate Changan’s bold design intent. Upswept creases on the front fender and lower door lines terminate on the high belt line, and the rear hatch glass angle blends well with the shape of the C-pillar and rear quarter panels. It’s a relaxed, non-aggressive look.
There’s very little overhang on the rear and front bumpers, giving it a compact profile. Especially from the rear view, it’s muscular, but it doesn’t look like it’s flexing too much. The blacked-out wheels disappear into the wheel wells, especially with the pearl white paint. All around, its graceful silhouette gives it a sleek appeal.
InteriorPHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
Wide-opening doors make ingress easy. As this is the Lite variant, the sports seats are wrapped in fabric and feature four-way manual adjustment. These are also lightly bolstered, making them comfortable during travel. The bodywork’s rakish angles are repeated in the interior with red pinstripe accents, almost to the point of overdoing it. Clearly, Changan didn’t exercise nearly as much restraint as it did with the exterior.
The dash layout is typical for Changan: elegant and technical. It reminds me of the aesthetic used by Japanese luxury brands, which likely served as inspiration for the Chinese automaker. Not a blatant copy, mind you—just a hint of impetus. The screens are large, but integrated into the dash’s sculpted lines; they don't scream for attention. The climate control buttons are also laid out like keys on a keyboard on the dash’s edge, with a hazard light switch in the middle. It’s a deliberate and useful layout for physical controls.
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
The gear lever and drive mode selector sit on top of the elevated center console with a deep receptacle underneath. This cubby provides a 12-volt DC socket, type-A and type-C USB plugs, and enough space for a small bag. Rear passengers will unfortunately miss the illumination from the tilting sunroof, but they at least get a USB port and an air-conditioning vent. There is plenty of legroom in the back, but taller passengers may need more headroom.
Sound quality from the four-speaker sound system is surprisingly decent. Credit goes to the digital signal processors that can be tuned for taste, or even trick you into hearing a non-existent subwoofer. Overall, build quality rivals legacy brands that Filipinos trust in this market segment.
Engine performancePHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
Torque from the small turbo comes early and strong, with just a hint of turbo lag. There’s also a steering wheel button for ‘Attack’ mode meant for overtaking, which downshifts one or two gears automatically to provide instant torque. The engine response and DCT shifting aggression are varied over six different driving modes: Smart, Eco, Comfortable, Normal, Sport, and Race.
Race mode changes the infotainment screen display to show instruments like steering wheel angle, turbine pressure, and lap times. It also pipes in fake engine sounds through the speaker system. It’s more gimmick than performance, but the novelty of knowing how much boost you’re squeezing into the cylinders is still nice to have.
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
All the torque down on the rev range is efficiently transferred to the front wheels by the excellently tuned seven-speed wet-type dual-clutch transmission. A set of paddle shifters would make it a sportier drive, but the driving modes do the shifting so impeccably that having them would just be redundant. Just choose the appropriate driving mode through the selector aft of the gear lever, and it picks the proper gear for you effortlessly.
With the DCT always keeping you in the correct torque range, the CS35 Max Lite is fuel-efficient when driven sensibly. Fuel consumption figures were well above 17km/L on the expressway, and more than 10km/L in heavy traffic.
Ride and handlingPHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
The CS35 Max Lite aims for sporty dynamics, and it certainly gives off that impression. The ride isn't stiff, but body roll stays minimal; to be clear, it’s nowhere near luxurious either. Handling is slightly better than the typical high-ground-clearance crossover that’s driven at the front wheels.
Even with the high torque, it doesn’t squat much during hard acceleration, nor does it dive its nose when braking abruptly. The electric power steering is well-coordinated with the active drive mode. Steering effort is light when it’s on Comfortable, and slightly tightens as you go up to Sports or Race mode. All in all, the car demonstrates composed handling, even when driven spiritedly. Whether on smooth pavement or uneven and wet roads, the ride is pleasant overall.
Extra featuresPHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
The CS35 Max Lite’s safety suite includes anti-lock brakes, electric brake force distribution, traction control, electronic stability control, and brake assist. The electronic parking brake with auto hold works great with the dual-clutch transmission moving to neutral automatically. The DCT also works seamlessly with the hill-start assist and hill-descent control. However, on this test unit, the cruise control system wouldn’t work with the steering wheel buttons, and I’m not sure how the rollover mitigation system works. It’s also worth noting that the Lite variant only has driver and front passenger airbags, but it does have collision auto-unlock. Rear ISOFIX points and child locks also come standard.
For added safety, the tire pressures on all four tires can be displayed on the extra screen to the left of the instrument panel. There’s also a space-saver spare tire mounted under the floor of the trunk. The smart keyless system with central door locks makes entry easy and also allows you to start the car with the press of a button.
Other features on the Lite include full LED lights all around and PM0.1 cabin filters. As the name suggests, the car can filter particles as small as 0.1 microns, an upgrade from most filters that only block particles larger than 2.5 microns. As a result, the cabin should be much better protected against outside pollutants. While a power tailgate would have also been a nice inclusion, the CS35 Max Lite settles for a manual one.
VerdictPHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
Don’t let the affordable sticker price fool you—the CS35 Max Lite offers features that can match those of premium car brands. There’s no denying Changan economized on certain parts like the tires, but even those aren’t bad. The touch areas like the control knobs and steering lever switches are all prime examples where it did not skimp.
The noise, vibration, and harshness is mediocre, but it could be worse for the price it’s being offered at. That’s the business strategy less popular brands like Changan use to compete: match or surpass quality and features while keeping the ownership costs down. Overall, the CS35 Max Lite is another excellent value proposition from Changan.
SPECS: Changan CS35 Max Lite 2027PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
Price: P1,109,000
Powertrain: 1.5-liter turbocharged I4
Transmission: Seven-speed wet-type dual-clutch transmission
Power: 180hp
Torque: 300Nm
Layout: Front engine, front wheel drive
Seating: 5
Score: 9/10
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres
PHOTO BY Raymond Figuerres