Writing by: Wu Jingtao
Baojun Launches DJI Edition KiWi EV
On September 15th, the 2023 Baojun KiWi EV was officially launched, with three models including the Smart Trend Edition, Smart Luxury Edition, and DJI Edition, with a price range of 87,800-102,800 yuan.
In terms of appearance, the new car basically continues the design of the old version, with new clover-style wheels and three new colors added, including Twilight, Matcha, and Mocha.
As for the interior, the new KiWi EV adopts a dual-screen design consisting of two 10.25-inch screens. The car’s system supports desktop customization, natural voice interaction, map navigation, and vehicle control settings. The interior is decorated with a large area of suede material, and the seats are made with a diamond-stitched technique.
Regarding power and range, the Baojun KiWi EV is equipped with a permanent magnet synchronous motor with a maximum power of 40 kW (the top-of-the-line DJI Edition’s maximum power is increased to 50 kW). The battery capacity is 31.7 kWh, and the NEDC range is 305 km (301 km for the DJI Edition). The vehicle’s maximum speed is 115 km/h, and it provides three driving modes: economy, standard, and sport.
Among all the models, the most attractive one is the top-of-the-line DJI Edition vehicle, as it is equipped with the “Sensus Drive system” developed in collaboration with DJI’s drive team.
In August, we tested this autonomous driving system on the test track. Interested friends can look back at our previous articles and videos.
On the hardware side, the DJI version of KiWi EV is equipped with a set of forward-looking stereo cameras, four surround-view cameras, one millimeter-wave radar, and 12 ultrasonic radars. It uses smart driving domain controllers with a calculation power of 16 TOPS. The vehicle has Level 2+ assisted driving capabilities.
At the end of the press conference, Baojun also released a short video as an Easter egg. The video shows a small pure electric SUV that looks like the Jimny. Its tough off-road style and three-door design quickly caused a heated discussion online.
It is reported that the new car is likely to be officially unveiled at the end of this year, and this 15-second video has aroused everyone’s appetite.
GAC Aion releases supercar
On September 15th, GAC Aion held its first brand night after completing “mixed reform” in Guangzhou. At the event, GAC Aion announced the brand’s new logo – AI Divine Arrow.
At the press conference, Aion also released its new high-end brand, Hyper Haobo, and its first new car – Hyper SSR pure electric supercar under the Haobo brand.
In terms of appearance, the Hyper SSR adopts a standard sports car body structure, with dimensions of 458319881238mm and a very low height. The shape of the large headlights on both sides is narrow and almost extends to the center of the front of the car.
“`The front bumper of the car features a sharp aerodynamic kit, while the doors adopt a very eye-catching and personalized automatic butterfly wing design.
The back of the car features uniquely styled wing-shaped taillights and is equipped with an electrically operated lift wing and a large size rear diffuser.
The Hyper SSR is dubbed “China’s First Supercar” by EAON and the performance parameters of the car were announced at the launch event. The new car uses the power layout of front and rear dual motors and features EAON’s self-developed two-speed four-in-one high-performance motor. It is equipped with self-developed cartridge batteries.
The maximum horsepower can reach up to 1225ps and the peak torque on the wheel can reach up to 12000N·m, and the acceleration time from 0 to 100km/h for the track version is only 1.9 seconds!
In addition to its powerful mechanical performance, the Hyper SSR also features an AI track technology system, which includes a DriverFirst intelligent cockpit, an AI track traction system, and an Ace Digital Coach function, to intelligently help the owner improve their track performance.
To “control” such powerful power output, the Hyper SSR uses a carbon fiber car shell, as well as an ultra-high-strength body with a torsional stiffness of up to 50000 N·m/degree. The tires adopt a low heat generation and low expansion rate design and use a specially designed compound, with a front wheel size of 245/35 ZR21 and a rear wheel size of 305/30 ZR21.
In terms of price, two models of the Hyper SSR have been launched, with the Hyper SSR priced at 1.286 million yuan and the Hyper SSR Ultimate track version priced at 1.686 million yuan. The new car has officially opened for pre-sale, and according to circulating online information, the deposit amount is 190,000 yuan.
After delivery, the car also provides the privilege of being recommended for entry into two top supercar clubs in China, “SCC” and “19th Highway”.## Hengchi 5 officially enters mass production
On September 16th, Hengda Motors announced via its official Weibo account that its first model, the Hengchi 5, has officially entered mass production at its factory in Tianjin, marking “an important moment for Hengchi Motors.”
The Hengchi 5 is built on the H-PLATFORM 3.0 intelligent pure electric platform, with dimensions of 472519251676mm and a wheelbase of 2780mm. Currently, there is only one power configuration consisting of a front-wheel-drive single motor. The maximum power of the motor is 150kW, and the maximum torque is 345N·m. Its official 0-100km/h acceleration score is 7.8 seconds.
Equipped with lithium iron phosphate batteries provided by CATL, the battery capacity of the Hengchi 5 is 72.8 kWh. According to the CLTC standard, its cruising range is 602km. The presale price is CNY 179,000.
The Hengchi 5 achieved its first vehicle offline on December 30th last year and opened for presale on July 6th this year. Hengda Motors claims that “the total number of orders for the Hengchi 5 exceeded 37,000 within less than 15 days.” The new car will start delivery in October.
Regarding the company’s operational situation, the post stated, “Hengchi Motors overcame numerous difficulties and strived upwards. In the second half of last year, facing enormous business challenges, all employees of Hengchi Motors worked as one and never gave up, step by step reaching the presale and mass production stage.”
Hengchi Motors also stated that it will accelerate its other car models’ research and development and mass production work. The Hengchi 6 will begin production at the end of this year and go into mass production in the first half of next year. The Hengchi 7 will begin production in the first half of next year and go into mass production in the second half of next year.
NIO updates its vehicle delivery time estimates
On September 16th, a netizen discovered that NIO has added a display of the estimated delivery time after the current lock-in and production time on the vehicle ordering page. The waiting time for the three highly anticipated models on the NT2.0 platform, the ET5, ET7, and ES7, were all displayed.
Among them, the ES7 has the shortest waiting time, 11-13 weeks, followed by the ET7, with a waiting time of 13-15 weeks.
ET5 has the longest wait time, which is up to 22-24 weeks. Ordering now with a locked order means delivery is expected to be around early March next year. Along with the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday lineup to view and test drive cars, the popularity of new cars can be seen.
ET5 is planned to begin deliveries on September 30th. According to the information disclosed during the NIO Q2 conference call, ET5 will have more than 10,000 deliveries in December, and preparations in all aspects are well underway, with internal goals higher than 10,000.
Tesla Officially Reduces Car Prices by RMB 8,000
Recently, some media outlets disclosed an internal email from Tesla, which stated that Tesla will provide users with a RMB 8,000 insurance subsidy.
The email stated that for all Tesla Model 3 and Model Y delivered between September 16th and September 30th, if users purchase insurance in the Tesla store and the insurance includes compulsory insurance and vehicle damage insurance, Tesla will provide an insurance subsidy of RMB 8,000.
This subsidy applies to all new, display and second-hand China-made Model 3 and Model Y cars, and the subsidy will be directly subtracted from the car price at the time of final payment.
Some media outlets called Tesla’s direct sales store, and sales consultants confirmed that the information in the email was accurate. At present, Tesla Model Y rear-wheel-drive version is available, and if the purchase procedures are completed and the car is picked up before September 30th, you can enjoy a RMB 8,000 insurance subsidy.
According to Tesla’s Chinese official website, the expected delivery time of Tesla Model 3/Model Y has been shortened again. The delivery time of the Model 3 rear-wheel-drive version is expected to be shortened to 1-8 weeks, and the delivery time of the four-wheel-drive high-performance version is expected to be shortened to 1-10 weeks.
The expected delivery time of the Model Y rear-wheel-drive version is 1-4 weeks, and the delivery time of the Model Y long-range version and high-performance version is expected to be shortened to 1-10 weeks.
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.