EBRO s700 HEV: 140 kilometers to Segovia to discover how the new Spanish hybrid SUV performs on the road… and on medieval cobblestones

The EBRO s700 HEV expands the Spanish brand's SUV range with a self-charging hybrid powertrain that aims to combine performance, efficiency, and ease of use without relying on a charging point. To see how all these elements translate beyond the technical specifications, we took a 140-kilometer route between Madrid and Pedraza , crossing the Sierra de Madrid mountains and the area around the Somosierra mountain pass before venturing onto secondary roads and finally driving through the narrow cobbled streets of one of Spain's best-preserved medieval villages.

The destination also held a special allure for this test. Pedraza, in Segovia, is a walled medieval town that has preserved its historic center virtually intact , with a single traditional gate, cobbled streets, stately homes, a main square, a castle, and walls. Its golden age occurred during the 16th and 17th centuries thanks to the production of merino wool cloth. The contrast was hard to beat: seeing how a Chinese-made SUV with cutting-edge hybrid technology handles itself among centuries-old buildings and on a surface that bears little resemblance to the asphalt of a highway.

4,55 meters and a clearly family-oriented approach

The EBRO s700 HEV measures 4.553 mm in length, 1.862 mm in width, and 1.696 mm in height , with a wheelbase of 2.671 mm . Its curb weight is 1.692 kg, and it has five seats. Ground clearance is 177 mm , while the approach and departure angles are 19,2 and 27 degrees, respectively.

It's not meant to be an off-road vehicle, something made clear by its front-wheel drive and its very design, but those dimensions proved especially interesting on a route where, upon reaching Pedraza, the conventional asphalt disappeared, giving way to irregular and cobbled streets.

Externally, it retains the familiar design of the S700, with a well-proportioned body and a presence closer to that of a traditional family SUV than to some of the more daring designs coming out of China. The result is a substantial car without being overly cumbersome, something that becomes important when you leave the highway and the road begins to narrow.

A spacious interior that improves where it really matters.

The interior retains virtually the same layout as the other versions of the s700, but the HEV introduces some particularly successful modifications.

The most important change is seemingly simple: EBRO has brought back a row of physical controls for some of the climate control functions . At a time when most manufacturers are moving virtually all controls to the touchscreen, having accessible buttons without taking your eyes off the road represents a real improvement in ergonomics. The gear selector has also been redesigned, adopting a more conventional look and a synthetic leather trim.

In front of the driver are two 12,3-inch screens , one for the instrument cluster and the other for the multimedia system. Even the Comfort trim includes features such as LED headlights, a rearview camera, a power tailgate, and 18-inch wheels, while the Luxury trim adds surround-view cameras, Eco Skin upholstery, heated front seats, a head-up display , 19-inch wheels, and a Sony sound system.

The S700 continues to stand out primarily for its feeling of spaciousness. It's a car designed for traveling with five occupants and offers a well-utilized cabin, with a high driving position and a good sense of available space.

As for the trunk, the official EBRO specifications state a base volume of 369 liters, 484 liters depending on the load configuration, and up to 1.269 liters with the rear seats folded down.

224 hp and a hybrid system that works in three ways

The big news is under the hood. The s700 HEV uses a hybrid system consisting of a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine producing 143 hp , which operates on the Miller cycle, and two electric motors.

One of the motors develops 136 hp and acts primarily as a generator , while the other delivers 204 hp and powers the front wheels . The combined maximum system output reaches 224 hp (165 kW) and the maximum torque is 295 Nm . The high-voltage battery has a capacity of 1,83 kWh and uses NMC chemistry.

The transmission is a 1DHT automatic specific to the hybrid system , and its operation changes continuously depending on the vehicle's needs.

It can move for short periods using only the electric motor; work as a series hybrid, using the gasoline engine to generate electricity while the electric motor drives the wheels; or operate in parallel, with the combustion engine and the electric motor both contributing to traction.

The interesting thing is that the driver doesn't need to manage any of these processes. The vehicle itself automatically selects the most efficient strategy based on battery charge and power demand.

From Madrid to Somosierra: where the S700 HEV had to prove its balance

The first few kilometers from Madrid served to verify precisely one of the main arguments of a self-charging hybrid: ease of use.

There's no need to worry about charging a battery or constantly selecting different operating modes. The system decides for itself when to use electric power, when to start the combustion engine, and when to combine both.

The route towards Pedraza also allowed one to gradually leave the urban environment to face the motorway and later increasingly demanding roads in the vicinity of the mountains.

The S700 HEV debuts a chassis specifically tuned to better suit European market preferences , featuring a slightly firmer suspension and recalibrated steering. The front suspension uses a McPherson strut design, while the rear boasts an independent multi-link system.

On highways, its purpose becomes clear: it's fundamentally an SUV designed for long journeys. The chassis setup aims to control body roll without sacrificing shock absorption, and the steering has sufficiently progressive assistance to keep the car stable at high speeds.

When demanding full power, the hybrid system has a unique characteristic. Maximum power delivery isn't instantaneous after flooring the accelerator; instead, the electronics require a brief interval to coordinate the operation of the different motors. Once all the thrust is delivered, the performance lives up to the advertised 224 hp; in independent tests, the S700 HEV recorded a 5,8-second acceleration time from 80 to 120 km/h.

From the mountain pass to the streets of Pedraza

But the most interesting part of the route came when leaving the expressways.

The roads near Pedraza allowed us to verify the work done on the chassis in a much more demanding scenario than the motorway, with changes of support, linked curves and a less uniform surface.

And then came the least conventional test: introducing a 4,55-meter-long hybrid SUV with technology developed in China into the historic layout of a Castilian village with narrow streets and cobblestone pavement.

Pedraza retains its medieval structure, its walls, and a single historic entrance to the town, while much of its streets maintain their traditional cobblestones. Precisely for this reason, it provided an interesting setting to test aspects that rarely appear in a technical specification sheet: the ease of modulating the accelerator at low speeds, the suspension's performance over continuous irregularities, and maneuverability in tight spaces.

How much fuel does the EBRO s700 HEV consume?

EBRO homologates a WLTP combined fuel consumption of 5,7 l/100 km , with 5,5 l/100 km in the low-speed cycle, 4,8 l/100 km at medium speed, and 4,9 l/100 km in the high-speed phase of the homologation procedure. The fuel tank has a capacity of 51 liters . During our test, we observed a consumption of approximately 5,2 l/100 km in urban and suburban driving , while at 120 km/h on the highway, consumption can reach around 7 l/100 km.

Price and range of the EBRO s700 HEV

The range is structured around the Comfort and Luxury trims . Currently, EBRO's official configurator lists the s700 HEV Comfort starting at €27.490 , while the Luxury trim adds €2.000, starting at €29.490 , before any additional options.

It's a relatively small difference considering that the Luxury trim adds features such as surround-view cameras, a head-up display, heated seats, a Sony sound system, and 19-inch wheels.