NIO is ramping up deliveries of the all-electric ES8
SUV in China and plans to have roughly 300 examples in the hands of customers
by the end of the month. The automaker unveiled the ES8 in April 2017 as a 7-seat
performance SUV targeting the Tesla Model X. Built locally in China, the ES8
costs the equivalent of US$ 69,000 before incentives.
By comparison, an imported Tesla Model X can easily
cost double that. It’s therefore little surprise that the company, only formed
in 2014, has secured 15,000 orders for the SUV, all with a US$ 770 deposit.
Powering the NIO ES8 are two electric
motors delivering a combined 643 hp while receiving juice from a 70 kWh
liquid-cooled battery. The SUV can run for up to 500 km on a single
charge, accelerate to 62 mph (100 km/h) in 4.4 seconds and top out at 180 km/h. On paper, it certainly stands strong against the Model X.
NIO intends on building 1,100 charging stations in
China by 2020. Furthermore, the carmaker will offer battery swapping for the
ES8 and according to Cheng, there will ultimately be 340 swapping stations
across the country.
For now, NIO is focusing on the Chinese market, but
Cheng suggested the company could also launch in the U.S., potentially with a
crossover.
