On April 27th, GAC Aion New Energy officially started pre-sales of Aion V, with a pre-sale price starting at 170,000 yuan. The new car is available in three ranges as follows:
-
Standard range 60 version with NEDC range of 400 km
-
Long range 70 version with NEDC range of 530 km
-
Ultra-long range 80 version with NEDC range of 600 km
Based on the parameters previously exposed, the new vehicle is positioned below Aion LX as a compact SUV. Looking at the current compact new energy vehicle market, Aion V’s competitors include XPeng G3, WM EX5, NIO U, BYD Song Pro EV and other models.
01 Three ranges with a pre-sale price of 170,000 yuan and up
The Aion V model is named the same way as the Aion LX, as 60, 70, and 80 models respectively. The longest range version of 600 km is consistent with the previously exposed news and adopts an all-aluminum body design.
According to previous information from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the energy density of Aion V’s battery reaches 173 Wh/kg, and its energy consumption is 15.40 kWh/100 km under NEDC operating conditions. If not calculating power grid losses, the battery capacity of the ultra-long range 80 version is around 77 kWh, while the domestic Model 3 long-range rear-wheel-drive version has a battery capacity of 78 kWh.
In this regard, if the price of Aion V’s ultra-long range 80 version is appropriate, then it will have a certain degree of competitiveness. In terms of range, NEDC 600 km is in the middle to upper level within the current market. However, in the compact SUV market, this range is quite advantageous at this level, but it still depends on the price, because “talking about competition itself without considering the price is to play a rogue game.”
We can look at the situation of models in the same level, among which XPeng G3 has two versions of NEDC range: 460 km/520 km; WM EX5 also has two versions: 400 km/520 km; NIO U has 400 km/500 km; BYD Song Pro EV has 405 km/502 km.From the perspective of the lowest range version, the starting price of Aion V 60 standard range model is 170,000 yuan, assuming the price is 170,000 yuan. With the strength of Aion V NEDC range of 400 km, it does not have a significant advantage relative to its competitors, firstly, it is not outstanding in terms of range, secondly, the price advantage is not obvious.
Let’s revisit the Aion S Meike edition 530, which is the mid-range model with NEDC range of 410 km.
The actual test result of this model is that Aion S drove 267 km at high speed, the displayed power loss is 379 km, and the power loss ratio is 1:1.423. The energy consumption rate is 17.1 kWh per 100 km, and the actual high-speed cruising range is 288 km.
It drove 267 km in city, the displayed power loss is 287 km, the power loss ratio is 1:1.075, the energy consumption rate is 13 kWh per 100 km and the actual city cruising range is 381 km.
The conclusion drawn is that Aion S has a solid city cruising range, but its high-speed cruising range is worse.
Referring to the data obtained from Aion S, Aion V’s actual cruising range is probably within this range or even lower. So with this range performance, what makes Aion V competitive in the market? I will explain this in the next section.
In terms of dimensions, Aion V’s length, width, and height are 4586/1920/1728 mm, and the wheelbase is 2830 mm. Looking at the comparison chart below, Aion V’s size is slightly higher than its competitors in all three aspects except that it is slightly shorter than BYD Song Pro EV in terms of length.
Based only on the size parameters, Aion V has a slight advantage in space. However, speaking of parameters, the specific space performance still needs to be explained in detail when we obtain the actual vehicle. Everyone can look forward to it, and also hope that Aion V’s actual test results can impress people like the PPT at the press conference.
Regarding the powertrain, the official did not provide specific information. According to the previously exposed news, Aion V is equipped with a permanent magnet synchronous motor with a maximum power of 135 kW and a maximum torque of 350 N·m, which is consistent with the middle and low-end models of Aion LX. Whether a higher power motor will be used in the high-end model is currently unknown, but based on the price range estimate, the entire series should have the same power parameters.
02 auto, 5G era?Back to the question in the previous section, how does Aion V Low Version compete with its peers? The answer lies in intelligence.
In early this month, GAC New Energy released the ADiGO 3.0 autonomous driving system. The promotional poster of GAC New Energy claims that Aion LX has achieved the world’s first mass-produced L3 autonomous driving. ADiGO 3.0 incorporates high-precision maps, which is explained as having a positioning accuracy of 0.1 meters and the ability to predict road conditions up to 1 km ahead.
And Aion V will also be equipped with the ADiGO 3.0 autonomous driving system. GAC New Energy claims that this is the only L3 autonomous driving option available for this class, and it is the second model in the world to be equipped with a high-precision map L3 autonomous driving technology for the entire speed range throughout the entire route, following Aion LX. However, the current definitions of L2 and L3 are still somewhat unclear, so we won’t get bogged down in the details and will focus only on the functional level.
Following the standard for Aion LX, the advanced driving assistance systems of all Aion LX models require additional purchase, and some models do not support it. The advanced driving assistance comes in two versions: the 25,800 yuan Lingzun Smart Driving Package and the 39,800 yuan Flagship Smart Driving Package.
The Lingzun Smart Driving Package includes ICA high-speed autonomous driving assistance systems, TJA congestion assistance systems, APA automatic parking, HWA high-speed lane change assistance systems, and other features. This is a standard L2 level driving assistance and can support automatic lane changes with turn signals.
The Flagship Smart Driving Package is priced 14,000 more expensive but includes high-speed highway autonomous driving assistance. The high-speed autonomous driving assistance uses 5 77G millimeter-wave radar and cameras with chips from Mobileye EyeQ4, combined with high-precision maps from Baidu (with decimeter-level accuracy), to achieve an experience similar to Cadillac’s Super Cruise. When regulations permit, it will be possible to drive hands-free and foot-free on highways.
In addition, Aion V will support features such as intelligent summoning, one-click parking, vehicle tracking, etc.
The key point is that Aion V will be equipped with Huawei’s latest-generation Balong 5000 5G chip. According to the official statement, there are three main advantages of using 5G technology: first, high transmission speed (over 100 times faster than 4G); second, low latency (1/50 of 4G, equivalent to one-thousandth of a second); third, broad connectivity (can connect millions of terminals at the same time). GAC New Energy also revealed in its announcement that it has independently developed a T-Box, which will be installed on Aion V in the future.If 5G technology is equipped on Aion V, leaving aside the actual experience effect, there is still a certain advantage in terms of differentiation. But would you still consider it as an option? That’s a question.
The key to the sales growth in 03?
After reading the core information, let’s take a brief look at the appearance and interior design of Aion V. Because one of the important reasons why Aion S sold well before is its appearance and interior design.
On Aion V, I once again saw the innovation of GAC New Energy’s designer. First of all, in terms of appearance, Aion V extends the “arrow piercing the clouds” design of the previous model. The official named this design “mecha beast”. The design style of the headlights is split, which further enhances the recognition of Aion V compared to Aion S and Aion LX. From the positioning point of view, the improvement of recognition is also good for differentiation.
The tail lights have also changed, no longer the through-type design on Aion LX, but a design style named “cosmic blade”. The special feature is that the end of the tail lights on both sides extends all the way to the rear door, forming an integrated design with the rear door handle. It looks more holistic, but personally, I think the design is novel, but something seems off.
From the official pictures, the interior of Aion V does not appear to have changed significantly compared to Aion LX, mainly in some details that have been modified.
Returning to the title of this section, could Aion V become the key to sales growth for GAC New Energy? I think it might.
Why say that? In fact, we can take a look at the entire market. In the low-end market for new energy vehicles, it mainly focuses on cars. Looking at this price range, there are not many models in the current market, and the product strength needs to be improved.
Based on the Aion V models provided, the model that sells the most is expected to be the 70 long-range version with an NEDC range of 530 km. If the price of this model is within 200,000 yuan or less, I think it is competitive.First, the NEDC range of 530 km of Aion V is in the upper middle level among its peers; second, the 5G + ADiGO 3.0 autonomous driving system has a certain level of publicity. Imagine when a salesperson introduces Aion V to an ordinary consumer, they will surely mention what high-tech features this car has. Sometimes consumers can be impressed by these “high-tech” features, thereby achieving differentiation.
In other words, Aion V not only provides high range in this segment but also has a leading “high-tech” slogan.
Looking at Aion LX, in addition to the impact of the overall environment, I believe the main reason for its poor sales is that GAC Aion’s brand strength cannot keep up with its selling price. But Aion V, positioned as a compact SUV, is different. If the price is indeed as I said, I believe that GAC Aion’s brand strength can keep up and has high cost-effectiveness.
In simpler terms, Aion V “shrinks” Aion LX and fights it at a lower level. We have also mentioned the competitive advantages of Aion V. Therefore, I believe that when GAC Aion fills the gap in its compact SUV field, Aion V may bring more considerable sales. Thus, Aion V may become the new sales growth key point for GAC Aion after the pandemic.
Closing Thoughts
This press conference did not release more information, but the short conference also revealed the road ahead for GAC Aion, with intelligence as one of the most critical differentiation.
We can also see that in the era of fast-growing internet, intelligent cars will achieve further evolution through 5G technology. The key is who will seize new opportunities to build its own automotive kingdom in the future. Because solving longer range is only a short-term advantage, in the long run, intelligence is the fundamental factor that will disrupt the automotive industry.
Therefore, is GAC Aion ready?
Author: Bai Long
Editor: Da Ji
Also worth reading:
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.