The electric vehicle market continues to grow, and automakers in the industry have been releasing their own line of EVs. A new competitor, Xiaomi, is set to enter the market with its first EV, and it could be under $70,000.
Xiaomi SU7 Pricing
Company CEO Lei Jun said that Xiaomi's goal was to create a vehicle that was the "best looking, best driving, and most intelligent sedan under 500,000 yuan," which is equivalent to around $69,328. It makes the car within the price range of certain Tesla models.
The price announcement comes before the release of the SU7 as well as the test drives, which will be on Thursday. By then, the company will start taking orders. The car can already be seen on display in 29 cities in China, as reported by CNBC.
Since the goal of the company is to put the SU7 in the premium section of the market, then it will become a competitor for Tesla in the country, along with other China-based car brands like BYD, Nio, Xpeng, and Li Auto.
The release of the EV has been a long time coming, given that Jun announced that Xiaomi would enter the EV market three years ago. "I am putting my reputation on the line to fight for a vision I deeply believed in," the company CEO said in a post on X.
Xiaomi SU7's Technology
The company already has three independently developed and manufactured E-motors for the vehicle, namely the HyperEngine V6/V6s, HyperEngine V8s, and the HyperEngine Pre-Research Carbon-Sleeved Rotor.
All of them use innovative technologies like "Bidirectional Full Oil Cooling Technology, S-shaped oil circuit design, and staggered silicon steel laminations design," as per the blog post, which " rival the performance of traditional large V8 and V6 powertrains from the era of internal combustion engines."
The V8s have a maximum speed of 27,200 rpm, 425k output, and a 635N-m peak torque. It uses Bidirectional Full Oil Cooling Technology and an S-shaped oil circuit design for the motor. However, it is still in development and will be set for release in 2025.
As for the battery, it has also been developed within the company. The CTB Integrated Battery Technology was made possible using Inverted Cell Technology, multifunctional elastic interlayer, and a minimalistic wiring system.
It provides the vehicle with a maximum battery capacity of up to 150 kWh, as well as a theoretical CLTC recharge range of over 1200 km. The battery's temperature is then regulated with a dual-side water cooling solution for heat dissipation.
It also features a Battery Management System, which includes three independent thermal runaway monitors and alarms, and a warning system that works "around the clock." The battery used has already gone through battery safety tests and more than 1,000 safety verifications.
Additionally, it also boasts of autonomous driving using Adaptive BEV Technology, Road-Mapping Foundational Model, and Super-Res Occupancy Network Technology. With those factors, the vehicle could be well-suited to urban locations in autopilot mode.
