CHINA: 15.5 Million EVs This Year, Updated Denza N9 & Geely’s Galaxy Minivan

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Welcome back to EV News China.

Coming up today, EVs will hit 15.5 million sales this year,

the updated Denza N9, and Geely's Galaxy Minivan.

Plus stay tuned.

Later in the show, I'll tell you how the grid is coping in China

with the rapid expansion of EVs.

Welcome to EV News China,

the podcast dedicated to the world's largest EV market.

Each day, we bring you the latest headlines,

expert insights, and analysis from the heart of China's booming EV industry

and reveal how these developments are shaping the global EV landscape.

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Let's start with China increasing its total vehicle sales targets for 2025.

So, central governments targeting 32.3 million automotive sales this year.

That's up 3% compared to last year.

Let's talk EVs though.

The EV goal for this year is now adjusted to 15.5 million units.

That is still up 20% from 2024.

EVs are expected to reach a 48% sales share.

Of course, EVs include purebevs,

plug-in hybrids, and hydrogen.

The government's plan, supported by eight departments including the MIIT,

seeks to boost exports, raise manufacturing,

added value by about 6% every year,

and ensure stability sector next year.

Strategies focus on accelerating EVs in public fleets.

More personal car purchases,

expanding EV charging infrastructure,

and improving standards.

Addressing both international challenges like supply chain issues

and domestic obstacles,

like demand softness in some places,

and more competitive pressures.

In the first eight months of the year,

from January to the end of August,

China sold 9.59 million EVs.

So that's up 36.3% on the same time last year.

And it's currently at 45% of all light vehicle sales,

BYD leading the way with an almost 30%

EV market share last month in August.

Now, talk about the speed at which vehicles get updated in China.

Not quite a mid-cycle refresh,

but Denza is already updating the N9

after six months of being on sale.

So the N9 is a large vehicle,

and it is adding new paint options.

The large plug-in hybrid SUV is priced from 389,000 yuan.

That's about US$54,000 equivalent.

And it combines a pure electric range of 202 kilometres,

of course, with the 2.0-litre petrol engine as well.

It's 5.25 metres long, so a really big beast, this one.

Really 3.125 metre wheelbase.

If I said it looked very much like a Range Rover Velar,

I mean, I'm not saying it looks like a Range Rover Velar,

but certainly if those kind of vehicles appeal to you,

it's not a million miles away from a Range Rover,

it's got a 13.2-inch instrument panel,

a 17.3-inch centre screen,

and another 13.2-inch passenger display.

It's got a 50-inch augmented reality head-up display,

26-speaker system, and some new interior colours as well.

The six-seat layout has zero gravity passenger seats,

which are heated, ventilated, massaged, of course,

in a two-plus-two-plus-two formation.

The second row gets tables, a big screen,

wireless charging, their fridge as well.

Third row seats also, heated and electronically controlled,

dual-chamber air suspension, Godseye B,

driver-resistant system, and since its launch in March,

over 20,000 units have been delivered

at this very premium but very large vehicle.

Denzer achieved more than 20 per cent year-on-year sales growth.

The other car I've been talking about, the N8L,

the long version of the SUV line-up joins next year.

You can check out recent episodes of the podcast

to hear me talk about that as well.

But this vehicle looking, well, certainly extremely premium

in these new pictures.

Now, let's talk a little bit about Geely's Minivan,

the Galaxy V900.

It's an E-rev or range-extended vehicle.

The Galaxy V900 is going to be the E-rev version

of the LEVC L380.

So let me decode that if you're new to Chinese EVs.

An LEVC, which otherwise known as the London Taxi Company,

are going to make an MPV,

a big people carrier called the L380.

Now, specifications have been published

by Chinese regulators.

The new model from Galaxy under the Geely brand,

it's called the V900, and this is a range-extended version.

So it takes the L380's design, which is, I mean, again,

it's a big Minivan people carrier.

There's not so much you can do with this very soft,

I would say aerodynamic front end,

and a very vertical rear as well,

because ultimately this is an enormously long vehicle.

So taking that styling,

which that vehicle is coming to the UK, by the way,

with LEVC branding.

With the roof mounted lidar, massive grille,

active air intakes, sliding rear doors,

5.36 meters long.

So it's even bigger than the Lee Mega Minivan.

Seating choices are either a 2 plus 2 plus 2

with some more boot room,

or an eight seat in four rows of two,

the final row folding flat into the floor.

Power comes from a 1.5-litre engine with 120 kilowatts

as a range extender, never driving the wheels,

solely range extender, top speed 190 kilometers an hour.

Battery options, either a 43 or 50 kilowatt hour pack,

the big one from CATL, offering a ton of range.

But the vehicle on which it's based, the LEVC L380,

of course, all part of the Geely family,

should come to the UK next year, actually.

Whereas the Geely version, the Galaxy V900,

which is the plug-in hybrid, or EREV,

is coming later this year in China.

Could the UK get that?

Maybe badged as the LEVC with a range extender.

We'll wait and see if markets outside of China

embrace this current trend of EREVs.

We'll have to wait and see.

Huawei and BAIC are next,

because they're going to invest $2.8 billion,

or 20 billion RMB, over the next three years

in their Stilato design,

the assisted driving, the smart cockpit features,

and vehicle quality.

They're forming a dedicated team, a Stilato team,

and building a unique supply chain, they say,

and a sales system just for that brand

under their new alliance model.

Stilato is one of five car brands under Huawei's alliance.

It's called the Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance.

Also includes the Cerys Group,

Ito brand, Cherry's Luxead brand,

JAC's Maxtro brand, and SAIC's Shangyi brand, or Shangyi.

Stilato's first car is called the S9.

It was out last year.

The second one is under pre-orders at the minute.

I think it's the S9T.

We should see some more,

I mean, anytime this week about that, really.

Both the S9 and S9T are both BEVs and EREVs.

The S9T BEV uses a 100 kilowatt-hour battery

from Huawei.

The S9T is the EREV using Huawei system

for a battery-only range, they say, of 354 kilometers CLTC.

It's huge.

So investing into that Stilato brand

under Huawei's big push into electric vehicles.

Next up, let's talk about another MPV.

These vehicles are very popular to go

plug-in hybrid or EREV.

You need to move a bunch of people around.

This one looking a little more conventional.

So whereas the one that I mentioned before,

which was the Geely Galaxy or the LEVC,

had a little stubby nose.

Not quite a ID buzz nose, which is very little front,

but certainly very little at the front.

This one, which is the Voya, has more of a bonnet.

But again, this is a large minivan,

a large people carrier.

Still got that pretty much sharp drop at the back,

that flat vertical rear-end.

It's good for aero and maximizing space, of course.

This one looking a little more conventional.

A few more chrome bits on this, for instance.

And so this is Voya introducing the Dream MPV in China.

In eight trims, plug-in hybrid and pure bev,

all of them, though, are going to be a 2 plus 2 plus 3.

5.3 meter body, pretty much the same as the car

we were just talking about, 3.2 meter wheelbase.

If you're buying the EREV or plug-in hybrid,

you've either got the Kan Peng or the Xiang Kun editions.

And so that really changes what technology you get inside.

Integrating, again, Huawei's technology, the Harmony Space 5.

The plug-in hybrids combine the 1.5-litre engine

and dual motors.

So all wheel drive on this.

You're always driving on electric power, of course.

These range-extended engines.

You can either have a 210 kilowatt motor up the front

and 160 at the back, or you can pretty much flip it around.

150 at the front and 230 at the rear on the two different options.

Pretty much the same performance on either option.

And two battery sizes as well.

And again, this is the current trim with EREV's

massive, massive batteries in these plug-in hybrids.

62.5 kilowatt hour.

That's about the size of the battery I had in my Hyundai Kona

when I had one of those for a year.

And that thing drove forever and ever.

And I would never have ever wanted to put an engine inside it.

But in this Voya MPV, that's just the battery.

So in the full electric version, they go for a 108.7 kilowatt hour battery.

They say, with the dual motors, again, CLTC range of 700 kilometers.

Now, since 2020, Voya has expanded with their SUV called the Free.

They've got a sedan.

They've got a minivan.

Abroad, they're badged as encourages.

The dream MPV continues to evolve with bigger batteries

and more advanced interiors.

Again, using Huawei in this, the Huawei Next Generation Driver Assistance Technology.

And, you know, again, a bit more, it's in a two-tone color if you want it,

which always looks a bit more premium, doesn't it?

Inside, it's a bit blingy inside.

It's very Mercedes inside, with lots of chrome accents and things like that.

But again, sliding rear doors and seating lots of people.

We should find out some more details about this again very soon, I believe.

All right, let's continue on the podcast.

Let's talk about the Zika 7X.

That is a mid-size SUV.

And if I said that the Zika 7X reminded some commentators online

of a Porsche Macan, quite a lot of a Porsche Macan, according to some people,

then you've got an idea in your mind's eye what the Zika 7X looks like.

It's a mid-size electric SUV.

They're now updating it with more power and a bigger battery,

whilst maintaining the exterior, which is very recognizable.

The top rear-wheel drive model now produces 370 kilowatts of power, up to 310.

And the all-wheel drive variants feature a new front unit of 215 kilowatts

in addition to the new rear unit as well.

Battery pack size is either 75 or 103.

This Zika 7X, again, I mean, I find the Porsche Macan to be very pleasing to my eye.

This looks fantastic.

Really love the look of this.

Massive battery size is 900 volt architecture.

So that's up at Lucid Territory, right?

They charge so quick.

Tech improvements include NVIDIA's Thor U chip.

Lots of advanced drive resistance features and navigate on autopilot.

High-speed drive-resistant systems as well.

The pricing and design, I think, are pretty much consistent.

Otherwise, they've made it better.

It goes further.

More performance and keeping the price the same.

Significant enhancements in both performance and range and onboard intelligence as well.

Big glass panoramic roof on this full-width light bar across the back.

But otherwise, very subtle badging on the back and looking, I think, very much like the rear end,

a bit Porsche Macan, a bit new Model Y from Tesla-ish, if that makes sense.

Very clean rear end.

Side profile and the front quarter view as well, looking very German and very pleasing to my eye.

Zika 7X, incredible technology in a mid-size SUV.

Hey, we'll take a break. I have a slurp of coffee.

And when we come back, we've got some IM motors to talk about and GAC opening up in Europe.

Stick around. Back in a moment.

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All right. Welcome back to the podcast now. I am motors. It's the premium brand from SAIC.

We have them over here. Solders MGs. Well, they're Solders IMs, but they're MGs anyway.

This is a new large SUV from IM Motors, and this is called the LS6. Will we get this?

I wonder. This is certainly a very large vehicle. This is, you know, kind of Porsche Cayenne,

perhaps territory. It's a five-seat model, though, and it comes in both fully electric

and range-extended versions. There's a new digital chassis. The Nvidia are in X chips, 800-volt

platform. This sits on with their all-new electric motors they've developed for this.

The range-extended version has, they say, again, 800 volts architecture, but 450 kilometers on

battery power alone. Safety gets a big boost with their tire burst stability control for blowouts,

anti-rollover control, and super rear-wheel drive handling, they say, which makes it feel

like an all-wheel drive off-road need. But four-wheel steering as well with a 4.49-meter

turning radius. Tons of technology on this. They're the IM brand, very much the premium bit

of SAIC. Inside, is it a yoke steering wheel, or have they just cut away the top in the picture

so that you can see the nice big screen? Whoops, and it looks to me like a yoke steering wheel

comes with this. There's LiDAR on it as well, 520-line LiDAR sensors. Huge screen in front of the

driver. I thought that was the only screen, and then I saw the big central screen as well that

kind of pretty much covers the passenger side too. So just tons of glass inside this thing.

Again, seats look wildly comfortable inside the new IM LS6, really impressive in whatever

guys it comes in, but will we get it overseas? I'll wait and see. I can tell you that overseas,

the first European spare parts distribution center for GAC has been set up in Rotterdam.

Part of the logistics hub is GAC's strategy to serve Europe and to expand overseas. During the launch,

GAC's international president promised more localized operations and a global network

for quick, reliable service. Certainly, I think from the perspective of someone in the west,

it's something that if you're buying a Chinese-made car, an MG, a Polestar, etc.,

you don't worry about so much, but I think if you are being asked to go out on a limb on maybe not

a Leap motor because you go to your local Stellantis dealership and you're surrounded by familiar

logos and things, but something like, well, something like a BYD, which you might not

be familiar with, something like an Amoda or a J-Coup or even a Geely because they're

going to start selling Geelys over here under their own brand actually. Under the Geely brand,

you might think twice about what if it goes wrong in three or five years time and when I get it

serviced. Certainly, when I had my MGs and the ZS EV, they always honored the warranty claims,

but boy, oh boy, with the parts a long time to arrive. None of it was mission critical,

really was sensors and stuff like that. So it wasn't really a big deal and it might be an

MG problem or an SAIC problem, but anyway, GAC saying that the parts distribution will be

improved for quick reliable service in Europe, making customer the experience of customers

a top priority, they say, with streamlining stock management across Europe. Faster deliveries

in real time tracking the dealers that deal with these GAC vehicles should not have inventory

issues and have happy customer support as well. Now let's talk about Hong Chi. Now Hong Chi

has been best known, oh Hong Chi, maybe I should say, for his Chinese state cars for decades and

decades now. First arrived over here in Europe with the EHS9. It was in Germany as well at the

Paris Motor Show last year. They showed off a luxury sedan, the EH7 and the SUV, the EHS7

and started deliveries over here. Now the IAA show in Munich, they showed off a fully

electric EHS5. That shares much of its design with its combustion sibling. 2.9 meter wheelbase,

length 4.76 meters, a lot shorter than the EHS7, which is almost five meters long.

No specifications confirmed differently for the European market. Two-wheel drive, rear-wheel

drive we think, 85 kilowatt hour lithium-ion battery, we think in this and again no pricing

announced. The EHS7 is about £60,000 or euros. It's a premium vehicle and so this again is,

I would say, again from the pictures and looking at it right up against Tesla Model Y,

Nissan Aria, VW ID for Territory. So the five will certainly cost a lot less because you're being

asked to go on a limb and once again go and spend your hard-earned money with the Hong Chi

brand, which I'm guessing most people have never heard of. But if you do take the gamble,

you're going to get very advanced ADAS systems with cross-traffic alerts and 360 degree

detection, 18-way electronic adjustable heated cooled massage seats, the rear seats recline as well,

big infotainment display of 15.6 inches, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, all the streaming apps,

and four-zone voice control as well, vehicle to load support. It's got it all in it, so we'll

wait and see the pricing that they come with. Now there's pre-sales opening up for the

Gauchan 7, that's a MPV as well, and this one at 290,000 yuan, the one a high-spec family vehicle

in the sub 300,000 market. There is even a special mobility version of this vehicle,

which makes perfect sense because again with these MPVs, these mini vans, tons of space.

This one though, if you're thinking, oh I've seen how they do that because the back,

the whole of the back hinges up of an MPV for instance, and then the wheelchair just goes in

the back. No, this is out of one of the side doors, incredible. And the seats, if you are sitting in

the, I suppose, getting out of your wheelchair and getting into the second row captain's seats,

the chair spins round and then the vehicle lowers it on, I don't know, like the way

that a lifeboat would be lowered out of a cruise ship, I suppose, comes out almost to

the ground and you can get inside the back of your vehicle that way. What an amazing piece of

innovation if you have some mobility needs there. This MPV, the Gauchan 7, over 5 meters long,

over 3 meter wheelbase, big MPV class vehicle, they say they've given it agile steering

tech for U-turns in tight spaces. This is all fully loaded with standard LiDAR and their

coffee pilot ultra system. Brilliant. And parking spot to spot autopilot, they say,

with 200 parking scenarios and a 96% accuracy in that. They have their hybrid system,

and so pretty high performance, 5.7 seconds, 0-62 miles an hour in a big MPV on this one.

And again, very luxurious inside, side curtain airbags that go all the way down the side of

the vehicle, loads of safety measures, and again, very high tech vehicle that I don't think will

be coming overseas as far as I can tell on this one. Really interesting. And finally,

how's the grid coping in China? What are some regions and areas doing in terms of infrastructure?

Well, we can look at one of the regions, the Xizang Autonomous Region. They've just put out

some data. They just, for the first eight months of the year, delivered 3.72 million kilowatt

hours into their new energy vehicles, up over one and a half, 1.7 times what it was

in the first eight months of last year. The state grid, the Xizang Electric Power Company,

says the growth in electricity demand there is because of NEVs rolling out fast in the region.

The network has almost 500 charging locations, or piles as they call them, charges,

762 charging guns, reaching major locations. The chairman of the state corporation grid there

says that surging NEV demand is pushing up the grid, but it's all being invested in.

Since 2021, the state grid has put about 3.4 billion US dollars equivalent, that's 24.5

billion you want into fixed assets locally, like a new transmission project now in operation,

to cope with the expanding NEV adoption in that region. So fascinating to look at little

areas of the world, particularly in China, about everywhere is doing their bit

to roll out electric vehicles. And that is your podcast for today. If you're enjoying

EV News China, I'd love to hear any feedback on the show, the kind of stuff you want to know,

as we try and decode what's happening in the east for listeners and EV buyers in the west.

Thank you for listening. I'll catch you on the next one.

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CHINA: 15.5 Million EVs This Year, Updated Denza N9 & Geely’s Galaxy Minivan

Ford Galaxy

Porsche 959

Land Rover Range Rover Velar

D9 Denzer

Volkswagen Id Buzz

Hyundai Kona

Zeekr Zika 7X

Porsche Macan

Tesla Model Y

Porsche Cayenne

Nissan Aria

About this episode

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