Author: Shidi

On December 6th, the long-awaited IDEAL OTA 3.0 version officially started to roll out. This version also includes the update of the 2020 IDEAL ONE, but due to the inconsistency of the hardware carried by the old and new models of the IDEAL ONE, the content of the updates obtained by the old and new models is different.

Let’s first talk about the 2020 model. After this version update, the 2020 IDEAL ONE will obtain the “visual parking” function. Before using this function, users can search for parking spaces on the central control screen or press the OK key on the left side of the steering wheel to start parking.

Currently, this function only supports horizontal parking spaces and vertical parking spaces. However, there may be obstacles such as fire pipes near the parking spaces in some residential areas or shopping malls, or even the external rearview mirrors of neighboring cars, which the cameras may not recognize. In addition, IDEAL ONE itself is more than five meters long, which makes it difficult to park in some narrow parking spaces even for human drivers. Therefore, when using the visual parking function, the car owner still needs to keep their attention at all times.

As for the 2021 model, the newly added feature after the update is the “navigation-assisted driving” function, which is also the biggest difference between the old and new models.

Based on a series of hardware upgrades such as the assisted driving chip and the number of millimeter-wave radars, the feature can guide drivers in and out of on and off ramps, recommend lane changes and adjust speed intelligently based on the speed limit within high-precision map areas. Essentially, it has the same features as the current new generation driving assistance systems.

In addition, when the navigation-assisted driving is activated, the high-amplitude map on the central control screen will automatically switch to the lane-level navigation interface, displaying surrounding road information, including cones, on and off ramps, double solid lines and other information. When a truck cuts in from a side lane or a car merges into the lane, the vehicle will actively send a prompt saying “please pay attention to the front vehicle”.

The logic optimization between the ADAS and seat belts involves that the adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assistance among other ADAS functions cannot be activated when the front and rear seat belts are not fastened. To prioritize passenger safety while driving on the road, the unfastened rear seat belts are made a necessary requirement to enable the ADAS functions, which is mandatory for all new ADAS systems and a first in the industry.

These are the differences between the Ideal ONE’s old and new version of the Ideal OTA 3.0. The Ideal OTA 3.0 update for the infotainment system “Ideal buddy” and other features are available in old and new models. A new feature includes setting Netease Cloud Music as the default music media and adding voice commands to switch between main/following roads in Amap navigation and control tailgate opening, lock and window closing, and speed limit prompts.

Overall, the Ideal OTA 3.0 is a significant step forward for the new Ideal ONE, despite the “Navigation ADAS” function being delayed by nearly three months. It brings new driving experiences to car owners. The actual road performance of the function will be updated promptly in the future.

Furthermore, the Ideal ONE is among the domestic independent new energy vehicles that have developed intelligent driving assistance systems, including XPeng and NIO. However, the Ideal CEO Li Xiang has stated that the NOA function will be a standard configuration for all Ideal cars and will not be sold separately.

Aimed to create a smash hit

On December 1st, Ideal Automobile released the November delivery results. The data showed that Ideal Automobile sold 13,485 new cars, making it the first among new energy vehicles to sell over ten thousand vehicles per month as a single product. It is also the first domestic brand to achieve monthly sales over ten thousand in the price range above CNY 300,000. Thanks to the excellent product strength, we must admire the new records achieved by the Ideal ONE time and time again.

The domestic luxury auto market has been dominated by foreign brands for a long time, with BBA and Lexus leading the sales rankings. Domestic brands have also attempted several high-end transformations, but they have been obstructed repeatedly.The average transaction price of a vehicle from the automaker, Li Xiang, is ¥338,000, which has surpassed mainstream luxury brands such as Audi (¥322,000), Volvo (¥326,900), and Tesla (¥300,300). Both from the price range and the actual sales dimension, Li Xiang has successfully entered the luxury car market.

As the first model and the only product under the Li Xiang brand, the ONE has shouldered all the automaker’s hopes. However, in the face of new forces in the automotive industry such as XPeng and NIO that have swiftly arranged a lineup of “SUV + Sedan” and further occupied market share, the ONE has already overcome skepticism from all sectors.

Of course, the ONE’s success is also due in no small part to some critical decisions made during its development process, such as range extension, six-seater, four screens, and whole-car voice. These crucial decisions also imply that product development in the intelligent EV market should always be grounded in the theory of user-centric design.

At the same time, we firmly believe that Li Xiang will be able to realize its plan of making every car a hit and bring it to us.

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.