Nio continues its European expansion by unveiling a new large electric SUV aimed at families. The EL8 is Nio’s flagship SUV offering in Europe, and it promises not only oodles of interior space but also advanced safety tech and performance befitting a manufacturer’s top offering. It’s also relatively slippery for a large SUV, with a claimed drag coefficient of 0.25 Cd.
Powering the EL8 is a pair of electric motors: one 241 horsepower permanent-magnet motor drives the front wheels, and a 402 hp induction motor drives the rear wheels. Their combined total output of 643 hp and 627 pound-feet of torque is enough to propel this big SUV to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 4.1 seconds. That’s a lot of performance for a heavy SUV, and stopping power is ensured by six-piston front calipers gripping large rotors.
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Nio is targeting luxury SUV buyers with the EL8
Nio expects to snag buyers away from established automakers' large electric SUVs with the EL8, which costs nearly €100,000 with the battery pack included.
With the larger 100-kilowatt-hour battery pack, Nio says the EL8 should be good for a WLTP range of 317 miles. The EL8 features a 75 kWh battery as standard, which should provide about 250 miles of WLTP range.
With a total length just shy of 5.1 meters, or 201 inches, the EL8 is 24.5 centimeters, or about 10 inches longer than the smaller EL6, enough to gain a third row of seats. It is available in a six-seater configuration with or without a console and a built-in fridge between the second-row seats. All seats are electric as standard and Nio says they can gain new functions via over-the-air updates.
Gallery: Nio EL8
When the third row of seats is up, space in the trunk is limited, but their backrests can be folded electrically, increasing the maximum load volume to 810 liters, or 28.6 cubic feet. With the rear seats down, Nio says you can fit four large suitcases in the back.
The standard wheel size for the EL8 is 20 inches, but you can go up to 21 or 22 inches at an extra cost. Nio promises the vehicle will remain very quiet and comfortable thanks to standard dual-chamber air suspension, active and adaptive dampers and double-glazed windows.
The EL8 features a new 16.3-inch head-up display, 2.5 times larger than what it previously put in its vehicles. It is projected directly onto the windscreen and is complimented by a 12.8-inch portrait-style OLED central display and a smaller 10.2-inch driver’s display. Rear passengers get a 6.6-inch display. The voice-controlled digital assistant Nomi can be summoned from any of the EL8’s six seats, including from the third row.
With lidar and a total of 33 sensors and cameras on the outside, the EL8 can detect obstacles and vehicles up to 680 meters (2,230 feet) away, and it can see pedestrians at a distance of 220 meters (721 feet). Just like a Tesla, the Nio can also record what’s going on around the car when parked and also begin recording automatically in the event of an accident; you can also start recording manually, like on a traditional dash cam, if you witness something in traffic that’s worth saving.
You can get the Nio EL8 in Europe for €82,900 ($88,800) without the battery included (and you have to pay a monthly fee for the battery-as-a-service scheme), or €94,900 ($101,600) if you also want to buy the battery. It’s available in Norway, where Nio has four battery-swapping stations, and in Sweden, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.
