Author: Chris Zheng
Question: Is there any SUV that is more family-friendly and expedient than the Ideal ONE?
Li Xiang: The 2021 new Ideal ONE.
On the evening of May 25, 2021 Beijing time, Li Xiang unveiled the 2021 new Ideal ONE at the Ideal Automobile R&D Center. Here’s a simplified version that you can skim:
- Upgraded three-in-one rear-drive motor assembly, increased fuel tank capacity from 45 L to 55 L
- WLTC range of 890 km / NEDC range of 1080 km
- Maximum external discharge output power of 2200 W
- Debut of mass-produced 8 million pixel 4K cameras, equipped with the advanced Ideal AD driver assistance system
- Upgraded seat sponge, front and rear electric seats + waist massage
- Third-row space increased by 41 mm, trunk can accommodate 20-inch + 26-inch suitcases / the largest baby stroller
- Supports free conversation voice across phonetic zones and tones
- Added Deep Green pearl paint and Tech Blue cold light paint, and newly designed dual-color sports rims that reduce wind resistance by 3%.
And the most crucial one: a unified national retail price of 338,000 yuan, with the option of Baby Blue, Deep Green pearl paint, and Tech Blue special paint edition for 348,000 yuan.
Longer, Farther, Stronger & More…
This is the 2021 new Ideal ONE. It looks like nothing has changed, but everything is different.
First and foremost, the most noticeable feature is the WLTP range of 890 km and the NEDC range exceeding 1080 km. Range optimization comes from three aspects:
Firstly, the 2021 model has updated the motor, control and differential three-in-one motor assembly, with a more compact structure. With the same motor power, 10 L of volume has been released to the fuel tank. Secondly, Ideal’s latest “fuel-saving mode” runs the range extender in a highly efficient speed range, reducing fuel consumption by about 10% under WLTP conditions. Finally, the new motor achieves both high integration and energy efficiency, ultimately reducing overall fuel consumption by 15%.
Perhaps some people may question, why optimize the range of a car that can be refueled?
If you, like me, have driven over 2500 km on a single trip, you will understand that even though the convenience of refueling far exceeds that of charging, you still hope for a larger fuel tank, even larger — Consumers’ ultimate expectation is always an infinite power source.Let’s talk about the real highlight – intelligence. As an annual model update, the Ideal ONE 2021 has made intensive deployments in both intelligent cockpit and intelligent driving.
Firstly, the Ideal ADAS system has been comprehensively upgraded. In terms of perception, the front 1.3-million-pixel and 52-degree field-of-view monocular camera has been upgraded to an 8-million-pixel, 4K-level camera with a 120-degree field-of-view. The increased field-of-view and higher-resolution visual perception can significantly enhance the lane keeping ability of Ideal ONE in bends and improve its perception ability for accident risks of cut-ins ahead.
Additionally, the 2021 version of Ideal ONE features five Bosch fifth-generation millimeter-wave radars with a detection range of 150° and more than 110 meters, providing a 360-degree radar perception coverage of the surroundings.
In terms of computing platforms, the 2021 version of Ideal ONE comes with two self-developed Journey3 chipsets from Horizon Robotics, which integrate with advanced map capabilities from Gaode Map. Ideal promises to push the NOA semi-autonomous driving ability with navigational assistance, covering all national highways and urban expressways in Q3 2021.
The efforts of Ideal ONE 2021 in the cockpit mainly focus on the voice assistant. Prior to this, Xpeng’s “full-scenario voice interaction” has been leading the way. Now, Ideal ONE’s vehicle-level free conversation capability supports continuous conversation, invalid text rejection, interruption at any time, and visible speaking – in other words, Ideal has caught up with Xpeng’s full-scenario voice interaction. (However, Ideal ONE also has its own ace in the hole: locked sound area and context dialogue across sound zones – more on this in the following content.)
Moreover, two paint colors, Deep Green and Tech Blue, are added to the 2021 Ideal ONE. Among them, the real vehicle texture of Deep Green is very close to the British Racing Green on Jaguar or MINI, which is the most stylish color offered to date by Ideal.
As for the interior, the biggest change is that the heavily criticized steering wheel design of Ideal ONE has been replaced by a well-textured metal material, elevating the overall design sense of the steering wheel.Are there any more updates? Yes. In terms of design details, the Ideal ONE has a new front grille design, new L-shaped front turn signals, and low-speed turning assistance lights. The interior has been updated with color-matched speaker covers on the door panels and rearview mirrors without frames to enhance the overall sense of refinement.
The Ideal ONE 2021 model has undergone both major updates involving the powertrain system and assisted driving features as well as minor updates such as changes to the shape of the rearview mirror.
But what we want to ask is, after all these updates, is there a complete and systematic product logic to support this series of internal and external updates in the long run?
Li Xiang’s Product Persistence
Contrary to popular belief, it is not easy to update an older car model.
Since the first delivery in December 2019, up to April 2021, a total of 51,575 Ideal ONEs have been delivered. Since 2021, the monthly sales volume of the Ideal ONE has exceeded 4,500 units.
For a medium-large SUV with an average transaction price of over RMB 300,000 defined by a start-up brand, the Ideal ONE has undoubtedly been successful. However, it is not enough to satisfy Li Xiang–in a previous conversation with Zhang Ying of Jingwei, Li Xiang said, “A popular product can sell more than 100,000 units a year. After becoming a smart car, this number will continue to increase.”
Five hours before the press conference, Li Xiang published a long blog post discussing “The Upgrade Model of Hardware Product Managers,” once again emphasizing that product managers who explore the essence of user needs should create “popular products.”
From the product rhythm of Ideal Automobile (Ideal ONE is the only model currently on sale) and strategic planning (sales target of 1.6 million vehicles by 2025), it can be seen that Ideal is undoubtedly aiming at the goal of creating popular products.
Is there a way to connect all the updates of the Ideal ONE 2021 model, such as the AD advanced driver assistance system, WLTP 890 km, front and rear dual-row electric seats with massage, full-car free dialogue voice support for locking and crossing sound areas, maximum 2200 W external discharge power, and a third-row space increase of 41 mm?
Let’s go back to Ideal Automobile’s mission: to create a mobile home, to create a happy home. All the core updates of the Ideal ONE 2021 model are aligned with this mission.
All the updates mentioned above can be easily attributed to the three key concepts of Ideal Automotive’s mission: mobility, happiness, and family.
Mobility: As an extended-range electric SUV designed for long-distance journeys, Ideal ONE continuously optimizes energy consumption, improves design, and achieves a single-charge cruising range of up to 890 km under WLTP standards.
Happiness: During long journeys, Ideal ONE effectively reduces driver fatigue and makes the ride more pleasant for passengers. This is demonstrated through features such as front and rear dual-row electric seats with massage functionality, as well as the ability for all passengers to engage in free conversation through in-car voice assistants, especially with the “locked sound zone” feature. By turning off the microphone pickup for certain seats, such as the back right seat where a chatty child may be seated, the Ideal ONE driver can easily minimize unnecessary distraction and maintain a peaceful environment.
The “cross voice zone” feature also adds to the ride’s comfort for passengers as it allows them to synchronize seating functions between the first and second rows using voice commands. For example, if a front seat passenger activates the massage function through the voice assistant, a rear passenger can simply say “I want it too”, and the second-row seat will follow suit.
These detailed refinements to the car’s functionality reflect the Ideal Automotive team’s commitment to anticipating the needs of families in diverse and practical scenarios, as evidenced by the careful pre-installation of four microphone sets throughout the vehicle.
Family: Two important updates around the concept of “family” are the 2200W external power output and the additional 41mm of space added to the third row of seats.
Ideal has even created a table showing the typical power consumption levels of camping appliances such as electric grills, toasters, coffee makers, etc., all of which are well below 2200W. This allows the vehicle to function as an outdoor generator in remote areas where access to stable electricity is limited. Once the power cell’s state of charge (SOC) drops to 17%, the operating system automatically starts the booster generator which, combined with the 55L fuel tank, makes the Ideal ONE the ultimate outdoor power supply.
Finally, the third-row seating space has been expanded by 41mm. Although not intelligent or electric, this physical upgrade is still highly valued and relevant to the overall mission of Ideal Automotive. As Li Xiang mentioned in a previous internal lecture, “Ideal serves families and designs cars for families.” At another event, Fan Haoyu, the vice president of Ideal Automotive, stated, “from day one, Ideal has not only been designed for drivers, but for every passenger in the vehicle.” This concept contributes to the introduction of the third-row seats in the Ideal ONE 2021 model.For a family, every member in the family is extremely important, including the rear passengers and the third-row passengers.
Therefore, the third-row space needs to be expanded, but it cannot be moved forward to affect the second-row space. Similarly, due to the positioning of the ideal ONE family car, it cannot be moved too far back to affect the trunk space and the risk of collision safety.
Finally, Ideal has redesigned the backrest of the second-row seats and “stolen” some space from the thinner seats, while the third-row seats have been slightly moved back, achieving consistency with the previous model. The Ideal ONE 2021 model also has a trunk that can accommodate two suitcases, 20+26 inches, or a maximum size stroller.
This is the 2021 Ideal ONE. What is Li Xiang’s product obsession? The question at the beginning of the article is the answer: more family-oriented, more expedition.
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.