Jia Haonan from the copilot temple
Smart car reference | WeChat official account AI4Auto
The latest official news about the ideal new car L9 has been released.
In short, everything they should give is given. For example, the positioning of the “dad car” matches the super large size of X7 and GLS, and its price is only half of theirs.
What’s more, things you didn’t expect are also included.
The car is equipped with 21 speakers and all seats have massage and heating functions.
What’s most important is the “package” on the roof of the L9:
Yes, it comes with a laser radar.
Among medium to large-sized SUVs, regardless of the age or nationality, the L9 is the world’s first mass-produced vehicle equipped with a laser radar.
And there are three of them on it.
The ideal, which has not been recognized for its intelligent capabilities, is now “doing its best” by maximizing hardware. The software level has not yet seen its true form.
What Kind of Car is L9
Let’s first take a look at the latest leaked information.
The appearance is completely exposed for the first time:
The overall design style is similar to that of the Ideal ONE with the same DNA, both with slender penetrating headlights. The difference is that there is an extra pair of ADAS indicator lights on both sides of the headlights.
This is an innovative design by the Ideal, what is it used for? Reminding other vehicles “I have activated intelligent driving”.
This approach is consistent with how the Ideal has always been cautious about safety. However, there are probably not many people who can understand the ADAS indicator lights at this stage. Perhaps Ideal’s approach aims to further standardize intelligent driving through policy promotion?
In addition, the L9 does not use a large air intake grille like the Ideal ONE because the range extender does not directly participate in driving and does not require a large amount of air intake.
This also makes the L9 look more like a pure electric car.
Regarding the interior, we did a video interpretation when the official information was released two days ago. It has a large space and multiple screens, the dad car attribute is maximized, even the bottle warming device is prepared for you, and there are two:
All that’s left is for the body of the Ideal L9 to have the words “single dog forbidden“.
One of the highlights of the L9 is the high-end car audio system, which brings domestic car audio configuration to a new level. Moreover, it is so high that others might not be able to reach the ceiling even if they raise their hands and jump.
The L9 is equipped with 21 speakers and a powerful sound system exceeding 2 kilowatts. It is said that both hardware and software development of this audio system, as well as post-adjustment, were completed by Li Xiang’s team alone. They even hired many key members from top acoustic manufacturers.
In terms of size, the L9 has a length of 5.2 meters and a wheelbase of 3100mm, which is comparable to that of the GLS, Range Rover, and BMW X7. These models are also direct competitors of the L9. However, the starting price of these imported large luxury SUVs is at least one million yuan.
In comparison, the L9’s price range of 450,000 to 500,000 yuan, coupled with its obvious comfort attributes, has unbeatable value for money.
After the detailed information was released, netizens had their own opinions. Some even exclaimed that it was such a great deal, and they got ready to change their car. Let’s focus on what criticisms people have of the L9.
What do you think of the criticisms of the L9?
However, the key feature of the L9 should still be its intelligent capabilities.
“Top of the Head” – Highlights of L9’s Intelligence
The most eye-catching feature in the L9’s intelligent configuration is the front-view LIDAR on its roof.
According to previous reports, the Hesai AT128 LIDAR on the roof of the L9 has 200 meters detection distance, 128 equivalent beams, and a horizontal field of view of 120°x25°.
In addition, there are also two front-side blind-spot LIDARs, with the model name Livox HAP from DJI, with a detection distance of 150 meters and a horizontal field of view of 120°x25.4°.
The L9 is equipped with five millimeter-wave radars, twelve ultrasonic radars, and twelve cameras. Among them, the camera serving ADAS is an 8-million-pixel camera. The underlying computing power uses two NVIDIA Orin-X chips with a total computing power of 508 TOPS.
In terms of intelligent cockpit, the L9 provides functions such as partitioned voice recognition and interaction on five large screens, supported by two Qualcomm 8155 chips.
In terms of intelligent driving hardware configuration, the Ideal L9 adopts the most advanced solid-state lidar, the best chip, and currently the highest resolution in-vehicle camera in the market.
Both the quantity and quality are first-rate.
As for the user experience, it depends on Ideal’s research and development capabilities.
While everyone is focusing on price and configuration, why should we pay attention to the intelligence of the L9?
Because this is Ideal’s first complete answer to intelligence.
The early models of Ideal ONE used Mobileye’s package solution for intelligent driving, but fell behind in the number of sensors and the range of perception compared to competitors.
In practice, this system also had shortcomings, such as the inability to identify goods vehicles on the side and lane markings.
In 2021, the upgraded Ideal ONE abandoned Mobileye and adopted domestic Horizon chips and Ideal’s self-developed intelligent driving algorithm, and hardware has also been upgraded. The basic functions have caught up with competitors, completing the previous gaps, and can be considered as catching up with peers.
Competing with self-developed strength in the field of “Intelligent cars”, the L9 is Ideal’s first product.
Is Ideal truly a “new” force or a conventional automaker in disguise?
Can they catch up with their peers in terms of intelligent technology?
What is the future direction of Ideal’s intelligent vehicles?
L9 is the answer.
Done.
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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.