Presented almost a year ago, the large SUV Xpeng G9 reaches the Chinese market with a charge of 480 kW promoted as “the fastest in the world” and autonomous driving that wants to compete with Tesla’s FSD.
After launching with a Affordable compact SUVXpeng has found real success with its P7 big sedan. The G9 is the new highlight of the range. A large SUV 4.89 m long and 1.94 m wide, which could get to europe in the coming months to consolidate the gradual launch of the Chinese brand. Meanwhile, it has just been officially marketed in China. The opportunity to discover a little more about him beyond his plastic, in the P7 straight line.
Despite its generous dimensions, the G9 is still an SUV with only 5 seats. Like the rival Nio ES8, the front passenger seat offers a leg rest. What to enjoy in the semi-reclining position of the 15-inch front screen. The central screen, also 15 inches, and the passenger screen are housed in the same module. Driver-oriented instrumentation is more compact at 10.25 inches, with no head-up display. Few physical buttons since Xpeng relies on voice commands and the integrated assistant in the multimedia system. The rear passengers are not completely forgotten in terms of comfort. They don’t have a dedicated screen, but do benefit from heated and massaging seats.
As for driving aids, Xpeng has long positioned itself as one of the Chinese leaders in this field. The G9 takes up the arsenal seen on the P7, notably with two Lidar integrated into the optical blocks. The Xpilot 4.0 system is based on 2 Nvidia Orin-X processors and claims to support level 3 autonomous driving (no hands on the wheel, on certain roads) on highways, urban highways, campsites. Xpeng hopes to be able to activate it in most cities next year and allow full point-to-point travel (with scheduled navigation) in 2024.
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The fastest charge on the market
It is through its mechanical setup that the G9 aims to stand out from the game, especially through its charging power. A few months ago, Xpeng launched its first 480kW S4 chargers. Based on the X-EEA 3.0 architecture, the G9 is the first model to harness this power. In fact, its 650X version is capable of charging at 4C, with a power that reaches 430 kW. Xpeng evokes 200 km of autonomy in just 5 minutes.
This 650X version offers a 175 kW front motor and a 230 kW rear motor. In total, 405 kW therefore, and 717 Nm with a 98 kWh NMC battery. The autonomy is 650 km in the CLTC cycle. This same battery is also available in a 230 kW propulsion variant, for a range of 702 km. But this version doesn’t seem to take advantage of super fast charging. The entry level will be the 230 kW propulsion version, with a 78 kWh LFP battery and a range of 570 km (still CLTC).
The first 480kW S4 chargers were deployed by Xpeng in Guangzhou, where it is based, last August. On the occasion of the launch of the G9, the start-up confirmed the opening of 6 new stations in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Wuhan. 50 more will open before the end of the year, and 500 next year. By 2025, Xpeng expects to have a network of 2,000 stations in China equipped with these chargers. Enough to compete with Nio’s battery swapping stations and Tesla’s supercharger.
xpeng has high hopes for the G9. He Xiaopeng reckons it should break the 10,000 units per month milestone next year and take the lead in China’s premium SUV market, ahead of the Audi Q5.