A 10 Grand Family Hauler That Folds Its Third Row Flat for Real Life

There's a certain magic in a car that can be one thing on a Tuesday and another on a Saturday. The new Forthing Xinghai V6, unveiled in Chengdu on August 8, tries to pull off that trick with a price tag that starts at just 89,900 yuan (around $12,600). The headline grabber is the optional Huawei Qiankun driver-assist system, which for the first time lands in a six-seat SUV under 110,000 yuan. But step back from the tech talk and the real story is about space—how a car under 4.9 meters long makes room for six people without turning the third row into a punishment.

Pricing That Makes You Do a Double Take

Four versions of the V6 are on the table. The base 400km Luxury model costs 89,900 yuan, while the 510km Premium is 104,900 yuan. Then there are the two Qiankun editions—the 400km Qiankun Premium and the 510km Qiankun Flagship—priced at 104,900 and 124,900 yuan respectively. The non-Qiankun cars already had their prices announced earlier; the new additions are the two Huawei-assisted variants. Expect the official launch in September.

What does that money get you? Both 400km versions pack a 45.5kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, while the 510km cars step up to a 60.5kWh pack. Fast charging is standard across the range. For city driving, Forthing quotes an energy consumption of just 11.8kWh per 100 kilometers—a figure that suggests real-world range won't be a fantasy.

The Third Row That Disappears

Here's where the V6 gets clever. The dimensions—4,835mm long, 1,900mm wide, 1,755mm tall, with a 2,900mm wheelbase—place it firmly in mid-size territory. That's a full step down from the 5.2-meter full-size six-seaters. So the challenge is obvious: make the third row usable when needed, and invisible when not.

Forthing's answer is a third row that folds and tumbles flat into the floor. With both rear rows stowed, you get a completely flat cargo area of 1.63 square meters and a maximum luggage volume of 1,630 liters. Even with all six seats up, there's still 513 liters of trunk space. Plus, there's a 70-liter frunk under the hood—a rare sight in this class.

For a family of three or four running daily errands, you can drop the third row and turn the V6 into a spacious four-seater with a cavernous load bay. Weekend trips with the in-laws? Flip the seats back up and you've got six proper seats. It's a flexible setup that makes the most of a modest footprint.

Huawei's Driver-Assist, Minus the Fancy Stuff

The two Qiankun versions use Huawei's ADS 5 SE system, which relies on 10 cameras, 12 ultrasonic sensors, and 3 millimeter-wave radars—no lidar. That hardware enables highway NCA (Navigated Cruise Assist), city LCC+ (Lane Centering Control Plus), smart parking, and CAS 5.0 active safety. In practice, that means the car can handle lane keeping, adaptive cruise, automatic lane changes, and ramp entry/exit on highways, plus traffic light recognition and obstacle avoidance in the city. Parking is covered with remote and memory functions.

But don't expect the full-fat ADS 5 experience. The city NCA and the park-to-park 3.0 feature that Huawei showcased at the ADS 5 launch won't be available here. That's a deliberate cost-cutting move—and it's honest about it.

Inside: Big Screen, Smart Voice, Solid Safety

Step inside and you're greeted by a 15.6-inch 2.5K central touchscreen running on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8295 chip. The voice assistant is powered by Baidu's voice tech and Ernie large model, supporting wake-free commands, continuous dialogue, dual-zone recognition, and even dialect understanding. It's the kind of cabin tech that used to be reserved for cars twice the price.

Safety is another strong suit. The body uses high-strength steel for 76% of its structure, with 28.4% being 1500MPa hot-formed steel. The battery pack is protected by a 1080MPa high-strength steel shield and an 800°C fire-resistant coating. For a family hauler, that's reassuring.

Why This Matters: The Democratization of Driver-Assist

Huawei's Qiankun system has been steadily trickling down from luxury models. Earlier this year, the Huajing S brought ADS Pro and HarmonyOS cockpit to a starting price of 149,800 yuan. Now, the V6 goes further, offering a pared-down ADS 5 SE for just over 100,000 yuan.

This isn't just about price. It's about making advanced driver assistance accessible to the mainstream. The term 'smart driving equality' gets thrown around a lot, but the reality is that a full high-level system—with lidar, high compute, and extensive calibration—is still expensive. For a 100,000-yuan car, that's a heavy burden.

So Huawei created the SE tier. It strips out the costly extras, keeping the features that matter most for everyday driving: highway assistance, adaptive cruise, smart parking, and active safety. It's a pragmatic trade-off that brings the essential benefits to a wider audience.

For Huawei, this is about scale. The company says its Qiankun system is now on over 50 models from 25+ brands, with over 1.9 million vehicles equipped and 12.8 billion kilometers of assisted driving logged. To keep growing, they need to tap into the mass market—and a 100,000-yuan six-seater is exactly that.

For buyers, it's a chance to get a taste of Huawei's driver-assist without breaking the bank. Sure, it's not the full experience, but it's a solid entry ticket. And for a family car, that might be enough.

The Takeaway: A Smart, Flexible Family Companion

The Forthing Xinghai V6 isn't trying to be a tech flagship. It's a pragmatic family vehicle that understands the real-world needs of its buyers: space that adapts, a price that doesn't sting, and a driving assist that actually helps on long trips and in tight parking spots.

At around 100,000 yuan, you're getting a six-seater with a clever folding third row, a big screen, and Huawei's name on the driver-assist system. That's a compelling package for families who want a car that can handle the school run, the grocery haul, and the occasional road trip without fuss.

Is it perfect? No. The third row won't win awards for legroom, and the SE system lacks the full city NCA. But for the price, it's a remarkable balance. If you're in the market for a budget-friendly family SUV that doesn't skimp on smarts, the V6 deserves a spot on your test-drive list.