I have been interested in electric cars for one or two years and have always wanted to replace my gasoline car and fully embrace the new energy era. I have considered both the hybrid and pure electric routes, and have test driven both gasoline hybrid and pure electric cars. I found that the gasoline hybrid car needs to be charged every two or three days, which is a bit troublesome. In the end, considering that I do not have too many high-speed driving requirements, I decided to go for the pure electric route. Especially after the release of the 800V ultra-fast charging technology for the XPeng G9 at the Guangzhou Auto Show at the end of 2021, I learned that even with a regular fast charging pile, it can be much faster than the conventional 400V platform, which further dispelled my anxiety about queuing for charging when driving on highways in the future. With XPeng G9, I don’t need to queue on the highway, I can just take an exit in a mid-way city or county, and I can basically find a fast charging pile. Rest for half an hour to an hour and the driving range is replenished.
In fact, after the Guangzhou Auto Show, I was more inclined to the so-called thousand-mile version LX PLUS from GAC Aion because the XPeng G9 had just been released and other information would not be disclosed until April 2022. However, in January 2022, GAC held a press conference and provided a very disappointing configuration and price for the thousand-mile version, which basically meant that the car was not planned for actual production and sales, but just a hype. That made me sick. Then I continued to wait for the XPeng G9 and shared news and information with everyone on forums and car circles. Later, the Shanghai epidemic broke out, and XPeng’s press conference was delayed from April to June, which was disappointing. Then it was delayed again until August or so for the release of the interior, and blind orders began. I finally witnessed XPeng’s internal delays and wars. I was willing to wait for so long, so I decided to place a blind order. Then, at the end of September, I witnessed the “crash” after the official release with everyone. Originally, I planned to cancel the blind order, but at that time, the SKU had no cost-effectiveness, it was really meant for XPeng’s pure blood fans. I am a fan of gasoline cars who has not yet reached the level of pure blood fans. Unexpectedly, XPeng immediately changed its SKU and lowered the price, hey, after careful consideration, it was possible to make a move. I originally planned to buy the 702PRO, but later continued to learn about XPeng’s assisted driving technology and the future trend of electric cars. I felt that it was still better to go for the MAX model, so I studied the configurations and decided to take out a loan to buy the 650MAX. In my opinion, since I have chosen XPeng, I cannot be disconnected from the revolutionary process of electric car assisted driving technology in the past five years that can be foreseen. I believe that XPeng’s assisted driving technology can definitely rank among the top in China, which is its biggest advantage among the three new forces of electric cars (I think “three silly” is more easy-to-say though). We must continue to carry forward this advantage.Color-wise, I didn’t originally plan on spending 6000 on it, but after driving a white car for many years, I think I’ll go for Weiguang Blue. The color is very elegant and I like the light blue which gives a simple and minimalist feel. Additionally, the pre-order perks were applied, so I ended up spending an extra 1K just for the color. Of course, the pre-order perks can also be used to offset the car payment, but I chose to use it for the color. It’s a bit reckless of me to splurge when I don’t have much money. My bad…
I picked up the car just before the New Year’s Eve in December. XPeng had a goal to deliver a certain number of cars in December, and those who ordered Weiguang Blue had to wait for 2-3 months, which is a couple months longer than those who ordered white. I saw the actual car and found it quite satisfying. I already liked the Cohesion Blue of NIO, and I think the light blue of G9 is also OK.
Driving it, the dual electric motors are very powerful and the suspension is smooth. It’s more comfortable than a mechanical suspension on a gas car. I don’t want to mess with the geek mode, so I’ve been using the standard mode with moderate kinetic energy recovery, which is quite comfortable to drive. In the winter, the power consumption in the city is around 19-22 degrees Celsius, while on the highway it’s around 23-25. I’m not a very patient driver, so I just step on the accelerator when I want to pull out of the vehicle gathering area. It’s a moderate level of enthusiastic driving style. The power consumption is a bit higher than that of a single motor or a patient driver, but it’s about the same as other car brands with a single motor power consumption. This shows that the 800V silicon carbide platform of the car does have advantages in terms of energy consumption.
As for the air conditioning, I think it’s just average in terms of cooling and heating. It’s not as fast as some other cars. In other cars, I’m fine with 3-level air flow, but in XPeng, I have to raise it to level 5 to get the same effect. Maybe it has too many air flow levels, or maybe I have to adjust to the feeling.
Indeed, space is not XPeng’s strong suit. With a car of nearly 4.9 meters, adjusting my front seats all the way back to my comfortable sitting position causes the rear seat space to be quite limited. I think the leg rest actually takes up the foot space in the rear, and gives the impression that the back is not spacious. This was the impression of my family and friends upon seeing the back seat for the first time. Perhaps XPeng should increase the length of G9 to 5 meters or add some wheelbase for the next generation?
No car is perfect, especially a brand new model. After driving it for a few days, I discovered some issues with G9, which I have reported to XPeng’s customer service and technical staff. I hope they can improve in the upcoming OTA updates. XPeng, please keep up your good work and don’t let your supporters down!
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.