Category: Nio

Insurance registrations for week ending Apr 30: Tesla 11,500, Li Auto 8,100, NIO 2,600

shared the numbers, saying its sales last week far outpaced those of other local new car-making brands.

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) today shared sales figures for the major new car makers as well as luxury car companies in China for the last week of April, which is worth a look, even though many automakers have already announced deliveries for last month.

For the week ending April 24 to April 30, Li Auto sold 8,100 units, far more than any other new carmaker brand, it said today on Weibo.

Li Auto continues to be in the top five luxury brands selling in China, the highest-ranking Chinese brand on the list, outpacing other traditional luxury brands besides Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi in weekly sales, it said.

Li L7 delivered more than 10,000 units in its first full delivery month, making it one of the preferred luxury five-seat SUVs for more families, Li Auto said.

Li Auto didn't specify what statistic that sales figure was based on, though apparently it was insurance registrations. Its figures for the first three weeks of April were 7,200, 6,300 and 4,177.

Previously, we had access to those numbers every Tuesday, and it was Li Auto's practice to share some of them later to show off that it was leading the pack among car-making newcomers.

The major third-party providers of Chinese auto insurance registrations data, as well as Weibo bloggers, stopped sharing them in April, though Li Auto continues to share some of them.

Li Auto delivered 25,681 vehicles in April, another monthly high while surpassing the 20,000-delivery mark for the second consecutive month, according to data it released on May 1.

vehicles sold 11,500 units in China last week, according to a table shared by Li Auto. The figure for Tesla was 10,300, 12,500 and 6,973 units in the previous three weeks.

The US electric vehicle maker sold 75,842 China-made vehicles in April, including exports, according to data released earlier today by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

The sales include sales in China as well as exports, and the breakdown is expected to be available in the coming days.

NIO (NYSE: NIO) sold 2,600 units last week, according to Li Auto. The company sold 2,000, 700 and 1,316 units in the first three weeks of April, according to the previous data.

NIO's deliveries in April fell further to 6,658 units, as its product switchover continues, according to data released on May 1.

(NYSE: XPEV) saw sales of 2,500 units last week. It sold 1,900, 1,300 and 904 units in the first three weeks of April.

XPeng delivered 7,079 vehicles in April, down 21.36 percent from 9,002 a year ago, but up 1.1 percent from 7,002 in March.

sold 2,300 units last week, a figure that was 2,100, 1,600 and 1,476 units in the first three weeks of April.

, Denza, and sold 3,200, 2,700, and 2,600 units last week, respectively.

Among the luxury brands, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi had the highest sales last week with 19,400, 15,700 and 14,500 respectively, according to data shared by Li Auto.

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NIO rumored to officially launch new ES6 on May 24

NIO will officially launch the new ES6 and announce the price on May 24, with deliveries expected to begin within days of the launch, according to local media.  |  NIO US | NIO HK | NIO SG

NIO rumored to officially launch new ES6 on May 24-CnEVPost

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NIO (NYSE: NIO) unveiled the new ES6 on the first day of the Shanghai auto show on April 18, but did not announce an official launch date or price. Now, a new report provides additional information.

The new ES6 will be officially launched on May 24, and its price information will be announced at that time, local auto industry media D1EV reported on Thursday after visiting several NIO stores in Beijing.

The model's show cars will be available at NIO stores from the day of launch, and consumers who have recently reserved the car will be invited to test drive it in batches, according to the report.

Compared to the old ES6, the new model will keep only in the Sport version, with the previously available higher-priced Performance and Signature versions optimized to become the new ES7 model currently on sale, the report said.

Deliveries of the new ES6 will begin at the end of May, the report said, citing salespeople at NIO stores.

William Li, founder, chairman and CEO of NIO, unveiled the 2023 ET7 sedan and gave the debut of the new ES6 SUV based on the NT 2.0 platform at a brief launch event on the first day of the Shanghai auto show on April 18.

Li did not announce the SUV's exact specifications or pricing at the time, saying only that the model's official launch would be in late May.

Nevertheless, NIO has already started allowing consumers to reserve the model with a RMB 5,000 deposit.

In an interview with local media at the time, Li said that the delivery schedule for the new ES6 would be different from NIO's previous models and that deliveries would begin soon after the launch.

Pricing information for the new ES6 has not been released, and Li said in that interview that NIO would not engage in a price war, so the model's price would not be set particularly low.

For reference, the old ES6 based on the NT 1.0 platform was previously offered in three versions -- Sport, Performance and Signature -- with starting prices of RMB 386,000 ($55,840), 426,000 and 496,000 respectively.

For NIO, the new ES6 will be a model of strategic importance, as it will be the least expensive of NIO's SUVs.

From January to August 2022, 32,877 ES6 units were delivered, contributing 46 percent of NIO's total deliveries of 71,556 units during the period, according to figures monitored by CnEVPost from the company and the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

The new ES6 is now widely seen as being powerfully equipped and competitively priced, which has sparked discontent among some owners who previously purchased the ES7 SUV.

Last month, several ES7 owners formed a WeChat group to collectively express their dissatisfaction that the upcoming new ES6 means NIO has betrayed them.

Launched on June 15, 2022, the NIO ES7 is the company's second model based on the NT 2.0 platform and the first SUV on the second-generation platform.

The NIO ES7 is currently offered in two versions, priced at RMB 468,000 and 548,000 including the battery. If consumers choose to purchase using the battery rental service BaaS, the starting price is RMB 398,000.

NIO began deliveries of the ES7 on August 28, 2022, with a cumulative total of 15,123 units delivered by the end of January this year, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.

The NIO ES7 is similar in appearance and key specifications to the new NIO ES8, but smaller in size and less expensive. Previously, the model that sits behind the flagship ES8 in NIO's product array was the ES6.

Although NIO has not released information on the specifications of the new ES6, a regulatory filing in January has revealed the core specifications of the model.

The new NIO ES6 measures 4,854 mm in length, 1,995 mm in width and 1,703 mm in height, and has a wheelbase of 2,915 mm.

For comparison, the old ES6 is smaller, measuring 4,850 mm in length, 1,965 mm in width and 1,758/1,731 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,900 mm.

The new ES6 will be equipped with dual motors supplied by NIO's motor division XPT, with a maximum power of 150 kW and 210 kW respectively, the same as the ET5 sedan.

This specification is lower than the motors of the ES7, which has dual motors with a maximum power of 180 kW and 300 kW, respectively.

($1 = RMB 6.9120)

NIO suffers complaints from ES7 owners who believe upcoming new ES6 hurts their interests

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NIO to open new NIO House in Germany on Jun 1

The new NIO House will be located in Düsseldorf and is set to become NIO's third such facility in Germany.  |  NIO US | NIO HK | NIO SG

NIO to open new NIO House in Germany on Jun 1-CnEVPost

(Image credit: NIO)

NIO (NYSE: NIO) will open a new NIO House in Germany next month, as the Chinese electric vehicle company ramps up its efforts in Europe.

NIO's NIO House in Düsseldorf will open on June 1 local time, according to an article posted yesterday on the company's European version of its mobile app.

Düsseldorf, known for its elegant shopping streets, is also an important business location, especially in the fashion, advertising and telecommunications sectors, according to the article, which did not reveal the exact address of the NIO House.

The new NIO House will be the third flagship showroom of NIO in Germany.

On December 16, 2022, NIO opened its first NIO House in Germany, located on Kurfurstendamm in Berlin.

On March 30 of this year, NIO opened its second NIO House in Germany, located in the heart of Groβe Eschenheimer StraBe in Frankfurt.

NIO co-founder and president Qin Lihong was on site for the Frankfurt NIO House opening ceremony.

NIO House is the flagship showroom of NIO, which also includes the smaller NIO Space in China.

The NIO House is much more than just a space to display and sell vehicles, it is a space for NIO to offer a quality lifestyle to car owners.

NIO's goal is to transfer its entire suite of services in China to overseas markets, including the NIO House and its signature battery swap service.

NIO introduced the ET7, EL7 and ET5 to European consumers at the NIO Berlin launch event last October 7. The EL7 is known as the ES7 in China.

ET7 deliveries in Europe started last October and EL7 deliveries began at the end of January. ET5 deliveries in Germany started on March 31.

NIO opens new NIO House in Frankfurt, its 2nd in Germany

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NIO to adopt NXP’s 4D imaging radar that provides greater road safety

4D imaging radar enables cars to detect and classify objects such as other vehicles and vulnerable road users on highways and in complex urban scenarios and at distances of up to 300 meters.  |  NIO US | NIO HK | NIO SG

NIO to adopt NXP's 4D imaging radar that provides greater road safety-CnEVPost

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Dutch-headquartered computer chip maker NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ: NXPI) today announced that Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker NIO (NYSE: NIO) will adopt its 4D imaging radar solution, which offers benefits far beyond those of traditional radar.

4D imaging radar will significantly improve the performance of front radar in today's vehicles, and NXP's imaging radar technology extends the functionality of radar from measuring range and speed to include direction, angle of arrival and elevation measurement, the chipmaker said.

These vehicles will be able to detect and classify objects such as other vehicles and vulnerable road users on highways and in complex urban scenarios and at distances of up to 300 meters, bringing greater road safety and driving comfort to end users, according to a press release.

Fine-resolution point clouds enhance environmental mapping and scene understanding, enabling the detection and classification of objects beyond the range of human vision while measuring object speed in virtually all weather and light conditions, according to NXP.

The technology is a key step in improving road safety and saving lives by allowing a car to "see" a motorcycle traveling close to a large delivery truck or a child entering the road between parked cars.

NXP's imaging radar solutions are ideal for advanced, high-performance front radar applications, it said, adding that as part of NXP's full family of radar products, they offer seamless performance scalability and software and hardware design reuse across radar platforms.

The combined radar processor and transceiver chipsets provide efficient advanced radar processing and high-performance RF technology to support Level 2+ and higher-level autonomous driving services, NXP said.

"Together with NXP, we’ll be able to take the next step toward improving driver experiences," said Kevin Pan, assistant vice president of NIO supply chain development.

In China, EV makers rely on vision cameras as well as LiDARs for assisted driving sensors. The mainstream technology route is vision-based, with millimeter-wave radar and LiDARs providing assistance.

4D imaging radar, as an extension of millimeter wave technology, provides the ability to accurately measure height, which can effectively complement the advantages of vision sensors and improve the recognition of stationary and hidden targets in critical scenarios.

As for the cost, the mature automotive electronics industry chain and manufacturing process provide a broad room for improvement after 4D imaging radar is mass-produced on a large scale.

In addition to the partnership with NXP, NIO Capital, with William Li, founder, chairman and CEO of NIO, as a managing partner, invested in SinPro, a local Chinese 4D imaging radar manufacturer, last month.

SinPro announced on April 12 that it had closed a series A funding round of several hundred million RMB, led by NIO Capital and an investment fund under Xiaomi.

The emergence of 4D imaging radar technology will drive smart cars in a safer and smarter direction, Ian Zhu, another managing partner at NIO Capital, said at the time.

NIO plans to launch EV priced below 30,000 euros in Europe, report says

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NIO seeks satisfaction, but likely to get little charge, from defamation lawsuit

NIO has accused a blogger of deliberately misleading readers by saying it discriminates against Chinese consumers.

This article by Doug Young was first published in The Bamboo Works, which provides news on Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong and the United States, with a strong focus on mid-cap and also pre-IPO companies.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

Key Takeaways:

  • NIO has sued a blogger, accusing him of writing an intentionally misleading blog post saying the company discriminates against Chinese consumers.
  • The company is seeking a public apology and 2 million yuan in damages, but its stock has lost about two-thirds of its value since the story's publication last year.

We start our week with a spin into the electric vehicle (EV) realm, where NIO Inc. (NIO.US; 9866.HK), one of China's homegrown leaders, has sued a blogger for writing a misleading post about the company.

In this case, NIO accused the blogger, named Cheshiji, of deliberately writing the post to give the erroneous impression that it charges Chinese higher prices for its cars compared with consumers in other markets.

The story contains many elements about a risk that's relatively unique to China, namely the potential for falling victim to negative publicity, often with a hidden agenda, from media and key opinion leaders (KOLs).

In many instances, the hidden agenda is an effort by a rival to bad-mouth its competitor. Another underlying agenda could simply be efforts by Chinese nationalists to attack a company or individual whom they perceive as being too pro-foreign.

When something like that happens, there really aren't too many options for the company under attack. Contrition is always the easiest, especially when the negative publicity comes from official state-run media.

We've written about such instances involving names like retailer Miniso (MNSO.US; 9896.HK) and sportswear maker Li Ning (2331.HK), which both came under attack last year for doing things perceived as too pro-foreign.

Another option is to sue the person or media behind the story, though the damage awards in such cases are usually quite small. The most extreme step is to complain to police, and in a few cases such complaints have resulted in high-profile arrests of rogue writers. But by the time such arrests happen, the damage to a company's reputation has already been done.

The latest case involving NIO included many of these elements. It dates back to early June last year, when the blogger Cheshiji, who has 6.5 million followers, published a story on his account on the hugely popular short-video site Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.

In the story, Cheshiji accused NIO of discriminating against Chinese by selling its ES8 SUV model for 470,000 yuan ($68,000) to 630,000 yuan in China, compared with a range of 410,000 yuan to 460,000 yuan in Norway.

In its lawsuit, NIO called the story misleading, characterizing it as an apples-to-oranges comparison. It noted that the models sold in China include batteries, whereas the Norway models don't; and it said the blog post also ignored the fact that Norway exempts NIO's cars from import duties and value-added tax.

NIO said it believed the blogger was aware of the differences and deliberately wrote the story to create the impression the company discriminates against Chinese buyers.

NIO is seeking 2 million yuan in damages and a public apology.

It's impossible to precisely quantify how the story may have affected NIO's reputation. But the company's US-listed American depositary shares (ADSs) peaked at $24.08 shortly after the story came out and have moved steadily downward since then.

They now trade at about one-third of that, closing Monday at $7.81, meaning they have lost about $25 billion in market value since the original story was published.

Hired gun?

While NIO doesn't say it outright, its suggestion that Cheshiji's efforts were intentional raises the question of the blogger's motivation. In this case the implication is that the influential blogger was paid by someone to publish the story, almost certainly a rival EV maker that could profit from the damage to NIO's reputation.

Obviously, the loss of $25 billion in NIO's market value can't be attributed to a single negative blog post. And the fact that other Chinese EV makers like (LI.US; 2015.HK) and BYD (1211.HK; 002594.SZ) peaked around the same time indicates a broader industry trend.

But the post-peak declines have been far milder for Li Auto and BYD, showing the post may have cost NIO billions of dollars in additional loses due to reputational damage.

Price discrimination against Chinese consumers is a touchy subject in China, and even has some foundation in truth. Major global luxury brands charged Chinese consumers much higher prices for their goods than in other global markets for years, justifying their policies by saying they were simply capitalizing on Chinese consumers' willingness to pay higher prices.

Starbucks (SBUX.US) faced similar allegations about a decade ago when China's main TV broadcaster came out with an investigative story showing how the chain was charging higher prices for an identical cup of coffee in China compared with most other global markets.

In that case Starbucks stayed mostly silent, and let China's online community come to its defense by calling the TV report petty and biased.

In terms of rivals paying for coverage to smear their competitors, another famous case, also about a decade ago, saw a reporter paid to write negative stories about construction equipment maker Zoomlion (1157.HK).

That case ultimately resulted in the reporter's high-profile arrest and jailing. Yet another similar case saw a rival of leading bottled water maker Nongfu (9633.HK) use the media to accuse the company of failing to meet certain quality standards.

And the list goes on.

The main point is that China is still a bit of a “Wild West” when it comes to the country's media, both official state-owned outlets and also hugely influential newer social media. Both types wield large influence over public opinion, and are often used by companies and other organizations to spread misinformation that works to their benefit.

China's court systems aren't very well equipped to punish the scoundrels, as reflected by the relatively small 2 million yuan that NIO is seeking for a case that may have cost the company billions of dollars in market value.

The criminal justice system could provide bigger deterrents to such behavior. But in this case, public prosecutors are playing an increasingly conservative role for what is really a matter of civil, and not criminal, offenses.

NIO sues vlogger for $290,000 for spreading false information

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Deutsche Bank on Apr China EV sales: Li Auto shines while NIO struggles

Edison Yu's team continues to expect most automakers to be aggressive, as market share is a top priority.

China's major electric vehicle (EV) makers announced their April deliveries yesterday, and Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu's team provided their take, as usual.

"April sales were generally better than feared for most OEMs we track with the exception of NIO who is struggling at the moment from both weak demand for its sedans and a major production platform transition for its SUVs," the team said in a note sent to investors yesterday.

continues to impress, setting a monthly delivery record and showing continued strong traction for its three models in the premium SUV segment, the team said.

As a backdrop, Li Auto delivered a record 25,681 vehicles in April, surpassing the 20,000-delivery mark for the second consecutive month.

NIO deliveries fell further to 6,658 in April as the product switch continued. XPeng delivered 7,079 vehicles in April, essentially unchanged from March, and the company appears to be on the cusp of emerging from the mire of weak sales that lasted about one year.

Here is the full text of Yu's team's note.

April sales were generally better than feared for most OEMs we track with the exception of NIO who is struggling at the moment from both weak demand for its sedans and a major production platform transition for its SUVs.

Li Auto continues to impress, setting a record for monthly deliveries, demonstrating continued robust traction in the premium SUV segment with its 3 models.

's volume held in about flat MoM as new P7i ramps up.

Overall, we continue to expect most OEMs to be aggressive as market share is the #1 priority. Although there were no big price cuts announced at the Shanghai Auto Show, our view is that there is likely another wave of price cuts to come as industry demand remains soft.

Moreover, the price of lithium carbonate has dropped dramatically this year which provides more cushion on the gross margin side.

April OEM recap

Li Auto delivered 25,681 vehicles (+23% MoM, +516% YoY), beating our forecast and setting a new monthly record. This includes >10,000 units of the L7 in its first full month of deliveries (vs. 7,702 in March).

XPeng delivered 7,079 vehicles (+17% MoM; -55% YoY), slightly below our expectations. The P7i mid-cycle face-lift should help volume in May/June as management expressed confidence in the order book.

XPeng officially revealed the G6 at the Shanghai Auto Show last month and this will be the most important product for the company this year to grow sales (double current monthly sales by end of 3Q), set for late June deliveries.

NIO delivered only 6,658 vehicles (-36% MoM, +31% YoY), below our forecast. Demand for ET5 and ES7 appear to be getting weaker sequentially while the rest of the portfolio is undergoing a platform transition (except for ET7 getting an interior upgrade this month).

Deliveries of the new EC7 began on 4/28, a few weeks earlier than anticipated, suggesting operational execution is on track. The new ES6 is expected to begin deliveries toward end of May (NIO's best selling SUV model).

delivered sales of 8,101 vehicles (+22% MoM; +279% YoY). The average order value for 001 shooting break sedan is 336k RMB and 009 luxury MPV is 527k. Zeekr's upcoming X model is expected to garner higher relative volumes with starting price of just 190k (deliver in June, targeting 40,000 units for 2023).

NIO deliveries fall further to 6,658 in Apr as product switch continues

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NIO’s deliveries fall further to 6,658 in Apr as its product switch continues

NIO's deliveries fall further to 6,658 in Apr as its product switch continues-CnEVPost

NIO's deliveries in April fell further to 6,658 units, as its product switchover continues, according to data released today.

This is up 31.22 percent from 5,074 units in the same month last year, but down 35.85 percent from 10,378 units in March.

Below is its press release, as the CnEVPost article is being updated.

NIO Inc. (NYSE: NIO; HKEX: 9866; SGX: NIO) (“NIO” or the “Company”), a pioneer and a leading company in the premium smart electric vehicle market, today announced its April 2023 delivery results.

NIO delivered 6,658 vehicles in April 2023, representing an increase of 31.2% year-over-year. The deliveries consisted of 1,713 premium smart electric SUVs, and 4,945 premium smart electric sedans. Cumulative deliveries of NIO vehicles reached 327,255 as of April 30, 2023.

In April 2023, the majority of deliveries were attributable to ET5 and ES7, while NIO has been upgrading its product offerings from NIO Technology 1.0 (NT1.0) to NIO Technology 2.0 (NT2.0).

In late April 2023, NIO started to steadily ramp up the production and delivery of the EC7, a five-seater smart electric flagship coupe SUV from NT2.0.

On April 18, 2023, NIO debuted the All-New ES6, a smart electric all-round SUV, at the Shanghai Auto Show. Derived from NT2.0, the All-New ES6 will bring user experiences beyond expectations in terms of design, performance, comfort, intelligence, safety, and sustainability. NIO expects to officially launch the All-New ES6 and commence deliveries in May 2023.

The All-New ES8, a smart electric flagship SUV based on NT2.0 that was launched at NIO Day 2022, is expected to commence deliveries in June 2023.

At the Shanghai Auto Show, NIO also launched the 2023 ET7, a smart electric flagship sedan based on NT2.0. The 2023 ET7 boasts more than 15 product upgrades, providing users with a more comfortable driving and riding experience, a more refined interior and a more intuitive digital experience. Deliveries of the 2023 ET7 will start in May 2023.

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NIO plans to launch EV priced below 30,000 euros in Europe, report says

NIO aims to grab market share from Volkswagen by introducing a model priced below 30,000 euros to the European market, a German magazine quoted William Li as saying.

NIO plans to launch EV priced below 30,000 euros in Europe, report says-CnEVPost

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

NIO (NYSE: NIO) aims to grab market share from Volkswagen by introducing a model to Europe priced under 30,000 euros ($33,060), according to a Reuters report today.

William Li, the founder, chairman and CEO of the Chinese electric vehicle company, told German magazine Der Spiegel about the plan, according to the report.

"Yes, in terms of price that means we are also attacking Volkswagen more strongly than before," Der Spiegel quoted Li as saying, without providing further details.

Li has previously said on several occasions that NIO is creating two sub-brands codenamed ALPS and Firefly to target the broader mass market.

On January 26, NIO co-founder and president Qin Lihong said at a face-to-face communication with owners that NIO is preparing models for a sub-brand codenamed ALPS, with deliveries expected to begin within 2024.

The Firefly project is also in the planning stage and will be delivered first to European consumers, Qin said.

A smaller model of NIO is in development and will debut in Europe and is expected to be available in the third quarter of 2024, according to Qin.

A source told CnEVPost on January 31 that NIO's F4 plant for the Firefly project will be located in Chuzhou, Anhui province, while the F3 plant for the ALPS project will continue to be located in Hefei, which is home to two current NIO plants.

The F4 plant will also assemble vehicles for the Firefly project and produce some parts, the source said, adding that the brand will initially produce vehicles mainly for export to Europe, with production scheduled for the third quarter of 2024.

The Chuzhou plant will produce small cars priced at around 100,000 yuan (15,000), the source said.

The F3 plant, which will remain located in NeoPark, will mainly produce models under the mid- to high-end sub-brand internally codenamed ALPS, targeting a market with prices ranging from RMB 150,000 to RMB 300,000, according to the source.

On February 21, local media Cailian reported, citing sources familiar with the matter, that NIO's fourth vehicle assembly plant will be located in Chuzhou, Anhui province, and will produce models of the Firefly.

The Firefly model will first be sold in Europe, targeting the Volkswagen POLO market, Cailian said, citing the source, adding that, like NIO's other products, they will support battery swap.

Compared to the main NIO brand and the ALPS program, the Firefly models will have weaker smart driving features, but they will still have a significant smart advantage over the European carmaker's offerings, the source said.

NIO is currently switching models based on the NT 1.0 platform to the NT 2.0 platform, while the ALPS project, which targets a price tag of around RMB 200,000, will be based on the NT 3.0 platform, a Yicai report said on February 21.

The main NIO brand's models are too large for European consumers, and the Firefly project's smaller models will be more popular with European consumers, Yicai said, citing an unnamed NEV company executive.

NIO's ALPS sub-brand will have its own sales channel and half as many models as NIO brand, report says

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