The Xiaomi EV Thread

You Thought Taycan Turbo Was Bad? Smartphone Maker Xiaomi's First Car Has Electric Motors Named V6 And V8

The Xiaomi SU7 also rides on an architecture named "Modena" after Ferrari's hometown

When the Porsche Taycan debuted in 2019, purists were infuriated by Porsche’s decision to name the top trim level “Turbo” despite the car being fully electric and not actually having a turbocharger. For the most part people have gotten over it — or at least, they should have by now — but there’s a new contender for their ire. Chinese company Xiaomi, the second-largest smartphone maker in the world, just unveiled its first car, and it has electric motors named V6 and V8.

No, seriously. The new Xiaomi SU7's electric motors have been dubbed “HyperEngines” by the brand, and they come in three different varieties. The V6 and V6s versions will be available at launch for the SU7, while the more powerful and faster-revving V8s motor will be offered starting in 2025. The company is also working on an even wilder carbon-sleeved electric motor that’s currently in the prototype phase. Xiaomi purposefully named the electric motors after internal combustion engines, too.

 
Smartphone on wheels? Xiaomi reveals 495kW electric car with big ambitions

Chinese consumer electronics giant Xiaomi unveiled its first electric car this week, with its boss declaring ambitions of becoming a global automotive powerhouse despite fierce competition at home.

Beijing-based Xiaomi, which is the world's fourth-largest smartphone manufacturer, is also a leading provider of tablets, smartwatches, headphones, and electric scooters.

The company announced in 2021 its intended foray into electric vehicles, joining a trend that has seen several major Chinese tech companies pivot towards the highly competitive sector.

Xiaomi boss Lei Jun took to the stage in Beijing on Thursday to unveil the SU7, a sedan that is scheduled to enter the market in 2025.

The four-door boasts a sleek design, with traces of Porsche Taycan in its profile and hints of Jaguar at the rear, and it has the power to play with the big guns on the market.

 
Controversial ex-BMW design boss Chris Bangle back in the automotive saddle

Chinese tech giant Xiaomi has some big ambitions for the automotive industry.

Late in December the company revealed its first electric car, a high-performance luxury sedan called the SU7, and declared its ambition to become a global automotive powerhouse. Read more about the SU7 here.

To help achieve this the Chinese firm has enlisted some big names from the automotive design world. That department is already led by ex-BMW stylist Sawyer Li, who oversaw the SU7 project, and now Xiaomi has hired the controversial former BMW design head Chris Bangle as a consultant.

The announcement was made on the X social media platform by Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun, as spotted by Motor1, and the firm has also released a video showing Bangle admiring the SU7 and its proportions.

 
Xiaomi's SU7 EV goes in retail soon, only the Max version to have LiDAR

Xiaomi announced its SU7 EV in December last year but didn't reveal the full specs and most notably we didn't get a pricing breakdown. Now a Xiaomi spokesperson shed some extra details, ahead of the imminent market launch.

He confirmed that only the SU7 Max configuration will feature a LiDAR system for advanced self-driving features. Additionally, the Chinese government gave permission to Xiaomi to distribute 14 retail-ready units. This signals the SU7's arrival in stores and start of test driving.

As far as pricing goes, the spokesperson wasn't very specific, merely confirming that it will be below CNY 500,000 (€65,000) starting price, which surprises absolutely nobody.

 
Xiaomi officially denies SU7 EREV is coming

After introducing the SU7 EV, Xiaomi started a 100 Q&A session on Chinese social medial channels so that people can get answers to all their questions. In the last part of the session, Xiaomi's spokesperson denied all rumors about an upcoming EREV version of the SU7.

A couple of months ago, rumors were pointing at an EREV version of the SU7 after Xiaomi recruited EREV engineers from other companies. However, Xiaomi has officially stated that an EREV car won't be coming in the next few years. Instead, the Chinese tech giant will be focusing on developing its fully-electric Modena EV platform.

 
Xiaomi trademarks Hyperfactory and Gigafactory names in China

Xiaomi applied for a couple of intriguing trademarks. "Xiaomi Automobile Gigafactory" and "Xiaomi EV Hyperfactory" were registered by the company, suggesting the next steps it plans to take on its EV journey.

Beyond the factory names, which suggests high production rate, we also get some material and product related trademarks. We have the “Xiaomi Titan” and “Xiaomi Titan Alloy” clearly pointing toward the Xiaomi’s own alloys. We have the “Xiaomi Super Motor” as well - this one does not need any explanation. As of now, the trademark status is "awaiting review" at the China National Intellectual Property Administration Trademark Office, leaving us to wonder about Xiaomi's grand plans for the EV space.

 
Xiaomi SU7 - subtle changes and big aspirations

Xiaomi just unveiled its debut EV - the SU7 sedan. However the company has had a last minute change of heart and will be changing a few minor bits about its design ahead of the market launch.

According to documents published by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Xiaomi has chosen to tweak several elements of the SU7. Xiaomi reduced the brand's name to a more reasonable size. Additionally it added new 21-inch wheels, brake calipers in various colors, and carbon fiber mirror caps.

Targeting competitors like the Porsche Taycan and Tesla Model S, Xiaomi has equipped the SU7 with dual motors. The top-tier SU7 model boasts an impressive 664 horsepower (673 PS / 495 kW), catapulting it from 0 to 100 km/h in a mere 2.78 seconds.

Xiaomi estimates the SU7 sedan can cover up to 800 km between charges. The 800-volt architecture ensures rapid recharging, allowing the vehicle to regain as much as 220 km of range in just five minutes at a fast-charging station.

 
Xiaomi shows SU7 winter testing footage as price leaks

Xiaomi made the SU7 EV official last month, but didn't out any sort of pricing information for either of its two versions (SU7 and SU7 Max). This being Xiaomi, which built its brand on 'bang for your buck' in the mobile world, made a lot of people hopeful about the pricing of its first EV.

According to purported information coming from an insurance company in China, the top trim version of the SU7 Max will retail for CNY 361,400, which currently translates into €47,300.

That may be more than you were expecting, but let's not forget that the SU7 Max has 673 hp, accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.8 seconds, and has a top speed of 265 km/h. It's also got a 101 kWh battery. We'd say the 'Xiaomi way' is still intact - these are better specs than you'd get from any similarly-priced EV.

People in China are speculating, based on the price for the top-trim version of the SU7 Max, that the base model SU7 will be priced at around CNY 250,000, which right now means €32,800. This is, keep in mind, just mere speculation. For his part Xiaomi boss Lei Jun has repeatedly denied rumors of low prices, saying the car "will be a bit expensive" since it will match the performance of luxury cars.


 
Xiaomi SU7 mass production set to start in February

Xiaomi's SU7 is set to begin the mass production phase in mid to late February, according to local media reports in China. We assume that means right after the Chinese New Year break ends, which would be on February 19. There's no point in starting the production process before the Chinese New Year, since the huge festival will cause an interruption to it anyway.

As is always the case with such things, it will initially start slow - only 2,000 are expected to be made in March.

 
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