What’s new: Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. Thursday launched the new version of its Luxeed S7 electric sedan, co-developed with Chinese carmaker Chery Automobile Co. Ltd., after fixing supply and delivery issues.
The new S7 vehicles debuted with a 20,000 yuan reduction on the price tag for three advanced models equipped with LiDAR remote sensing technology and an upgraded battery pack for the entry level model. A top-tier model was added with a maximum driving range of 751 kilometers, taking on Xiaomi’s newly released electric sedan SU7.
Buyers who placed pre-sale orders will get compensation with cash and device add-ons worth 13,000 yuan, Huawei said.
The changes were made in response to China’ increasingly competitive electric vehicle market, according to Richard Yu, chairman of Huawei’s smart car unit. Mass shipment of the vehicle will start as supply and production issues have been resolved, Yu said.
Yin Tongyue, chairman of Chery, said Thursday that the delivery delay of the S7 was due to the introduction of new technologies and production relocation. The issues have now been resolved to ensure supply, said Yin.
The context: Equipped with a digital cockpit powered by Huawei’s HarmonyOS 4.0 and an advanced assisted-driving system, the S7 is the first electric sedan marketed under Huawei’s Smart Selection business model. Previous releases were SUVs.
The S7 first debuted in November but has faced delivery delays. Data obtained by Caixin showed that 2,297 S7s were delivered between November and February. Yu had previously said that more than 10,000 S7s were ordered within the first two days of pre-sales.
While Huawei struggles to deliver its vehicles, competition in China’s electric car market has escalated since smartphone giant Xiaomi joined the battle with aggressive pricing. Since Xiaomi’s SU7’s launch in March, several electric carmakers have announced price cuts or specification upgrades.
In early April, Yu disclosed the plan to “relaunch” Luxeed S7.
Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com)
