Chinese electric car manufacturer Xpeng released information about two new models it intends to introduce in 2019, one of which is expected to compete with Tesla’s Model Y.
The company currently offers four models for purchase: the P7 sedan, the P5 sedan, the G3 sports utility vehicle, and the larger G9 SUV, which will start receiving deliveries to customers in October.
In order to take on market giants like Tesla and the BYD company, which is funded by Warren Buffett, and earn market share in China’s rapidly expanding electric car market, Xpeng has been aggressive in its vehicle launches.
Xpeng President Brian Gu gave some tidbits of information regarding the two new models scheduled for 2023, despite the fact that the business has not yet given names or much specifics.
A so-called B-class vehicle will be one of the vehicles, and a C-class vehicle will be the other. The classes describe the vehicle’s size. To put things in perspective, the company’s G9 SUV is a C-class vehicle, while the P7 sedan is a B-class automobile.
The B-class car, according to Gu, is “actually going to target [an] even larger market segment” than the P7 sedan and will be on sale in the first half of next year. In comparison to Tesla’s mid-sized Model Y SUV, he claimed the car is a “strong competitor.”
According to Gu, the C-class product would be released in the second half of 2023.
“Given the premium and large format positioning, the number may be limited in terms of contribution,” Gu remarked in reference to the C-class model. “But again, it’s still going to be targeting a brand-new segment that we did not cover before,” he added.
The new cars, according to Gu, won’t be sedans. Regarding the kind of vehicle they will be, he made no remarks.
The CEO claimed that in terms of size and price, the B-class car will be “different” from the impending G9.
“So there’s minimal cannibalization from our model positioning and lineup,” Gu said.
The Model Y from Tesla is frequently among the best-selling electric cars in China. However, Xpeng and its competitors Nio and Li Auto are attempting to take on the American giant in the largest electric car market in the world, which is seeing more competition.
The company’s wider-than-expected loss in the second quarter of the year and disappointing delivery guidance for the third quarter, which sent its stock plunging, were disclosed following the release of information about Xpeng’s new automobiles.
Gu claimed that the corporation will enter a “growth cycle” with the release of the G9 and its new vehicles the following year.
