The freshly revealed Nio ES7 falls under the same market category as the BMW iX, but unlike the latter, you can order it without a traction battery in China.
The car is 4,912 millimeters long, 1,987 mm wide and 1,720 mm tall with 2,960 mm of wheelbase. It costs between 468,000 and 548,000 CNY on the domestic market, but opting out of the traction battery can save you 70,000–130,000 CNY.
How are you supposed to get by without one, though? The manufacturer sees a few opportunities. First, you can rent batteries whenever you need them. Second, you can use a small battery pack for short trips and charge it often if you don’t need much range. Finally, you can use the small pack and swap it at dedicated battery-swap stations throughout China instead of charging.
If you do include the battery in your order, then it can be a 75-kWh pack sufficient for 485 kilometers (301 miles) of CLTC-rated range or a 100-kWh one rated for 620 km (385 miles). Dual motors that come with the car drive the wheels with 653 PS (644 hp / 480 kW) and 850 Nm (627 lb-ft) of torque. Sprinting from zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) takes 3.9 seconds, and the speed limiter sits at 200 km/h (124 mph).
Right now, customers are limited to the range-topping Premier Edition spec with a panoramic roof, heated/ventilated front seats, infotainment with a 12.8-inch touchscreen display, Nappa leather all around and a high-end 1,000W audio system. A voice assistant named Nomi is also included, projecting its virtual face above the central display.
SAE Level 3 self-driving is listed under WIP features so far, because the company has not yet obtained all the necessary certificates. You can see the bulges where video cameras and a LiDAR are installed above the windshield.
The car can tow up to 2 metric tons (4,400 lbs) and donate its power to external electric appliances, including stranded EVs. Its on-board computer is said to be processing up to 8 gigabytes of data per second.