Li Auto, a Chinese automotive company founded by entrepreneur Li Xiang, has rolled out its second production vehicle. Called the L9, it is a large SUV that the company hopes will undercut the likes of Mercedes-Benz GLS and Range Rover with its attractive $70k-75k pricing (estimated).
It is now official that the SUV comes equipped with a roof-mounted LiDAR that casts 128 rays into the environment to assist a self-driving system on board. It also has five conventional radars, a dozen of video cameras and around as many ultrasonic sensors. Self-drivign will be limited to Level 2 at first, but the company claims software updates will eventually raise it to Level 4, eliminating the need for the driver to control the car in most situations.
A look inside reveals unusually laid out displays with no conventional dash screen. You can use either the HUD or a small screen on the steering wheel to display the gauges. There are also two 15.7-inch infotainment displays, but while the middle one offers access to most general in-car features, the one on the right is tailored exclusively towards entertainment.
Second-row passengers get their own 15.7-inch display mounted on the ceiling, rather than the seat back like in some other modern cars. All three seat rows have heating and ventilation functions, and the second row additionally benefits from footrests.
The traction battery on board runs dry after just 200 km (124 miles) of all-electric driving, but the car is a range-extender hybrid, so firing up the main 1.5-liter turbo will continue generating enough current for 1,200 km (745 miles) of combined range. The powertrain can exert up to 408 PS (402 hp / 300 kW) and 600 Nm (443 lb-ft) of torque. Sprinting from zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) takes nearly six seconds.
A production-ready sample of the Li Auto L9 will be present at the Beijing Auto Expo (Auto China) next month.