A turquoise car in an exhibition gallery, in the middle of a decor reminiscent of an apartment, between a flat-screen TV, smartphones or even a treadmill. This is how Xiaomi chose to exhibit for the first time this week in Paris the SU7, its first car, a 100% electric sedan. But if the general public will be able to discover it until July 30 in the 3rd arrondissement*, its commercialization in Europe is not imminent.
“The SU7 is being marketed in China, but there is no date or official announcement today regarding its launch on the international or French market,” Guillaume Berlemont, marketing director of Xiaomi France, told BFM Business. “This is all under study. But this study will obviously take time.”
“We need to gain experience on the Chinese market, finish delivering all of this year’s orders, increase the factory’s capacity and take the time necessary to launch a car, which requires experience and a network,” continues Guillaume Berlemont. All of this is under study and within a time frame. In a few years, we will be ready to receive the SU7 or other future models in France as well.
On the sidelines of the group’s annual conference last week in Beijing, the brand even seemed to be counting on the arrival in Europe of a model other than the SU7, according to Frandroid.
Target: Top 5 car manufacturers in the world
The dazzling success of the sedan in China and the ambitions of the brand’s founder, Lei Jun, to be among the world’s top five manufacturers within 15 to 20 years have created a certain frenzy around the model.
At the Beijing fair in late April, Lei Jun was one of the stars of the show and welcomed other automotive industry bosses with great fanfare. At that time, Xiaomi had already claimed more than 75,000 orders for the SU7. In June, almost 10,000 units were produced. A first. And Xiaomi is currently looking to increase daily production at its factory, according to local media.
The SU7 is priced below its main competitor in the country, the Tesla Model 3, which is enough to attract orders, pending a certain profitability.
Xiaomi aims to deliver 100,000 cars this year, which would be impressive for a brand that decided to launch into electric cars only three years ago. This change of strategy is due to the decline in sales of electronic products but also to the threat of sanctions on US soil.
From 600 to 800 kilometers of autonomy
Xiaomi offers two versions of the SU7, a base model with a 73.6 kWh battery that claims to have over 650 kilometers of range. And a Max version equipped with a 101 kWh battery for 800 kilometers of range. Depending on the version, two engines are available, the HyperEngine V6 and the V8, developed in-house by Xiaomi. The most powerful version could reach 0-100 in 2.78 seconds.
*Exhibition at the Galerie Joseph 7 rue Bailly in Paris III, until June 30.
Source: BFM TV
