Xiaomi SU7 buyers may face long waiting times for deliveries
Chinese company Xiaomi is warning potential buyers of the SU7 electric sedan that they will have to wait four to seven months, a sign of the high demand for its first-ever vehicle.
The maker of smartphones and other consumer electronics started taking orders on Thursday, reporting that 88,898 pre-orders had been placed in the first 24 hours.
According to Reuters checks on Xiaomi’s car app, deliveries of the standard SU7 model, priced at CNY 215,900 ($29,870 or roughly Rs. 24,89,900), could take 18-21 weeks.
The SU7 Pro model may take 18 to 21 weeks to be delivered, while the most expensive model, priced at CNY 299,900 (approximately Rs. 34,58,709), may take 27 to 30 weeks.
The SU7, whose design has been compared to Porsche’s Taycan and Panamera sports car models, has been launched amid a cutthroat price war in the world’s largest car market, where more than 40 brands are vying for consumer attention.
On Monday, Huawei-backed company Aito offered discounts of up to CNY 20,000 (roughly Rs. 2,30,000) on its new M7 SUVs until the end of April, while Xpeng also offered subsidies of up to CNY 20,000 on its flagship electric SUV G9 for a limited time.
In addition, Chery announced that it would offer tax breaks, trade-in subsidies and cash rebates on some of its best-selling gasoline-powered cars.
While the market is challenging for newcomers, analysts have noted that Xiaomi has more cash to burn than many other EV startups and its expertise in smartphones gives the company an edge in smart dashboards — a feature that Chinese consumers value.
As part of the campaign to kick-start sales, Xiaomi also released two special versions of the car, called the “Founder’s Edition,” which come with freebies like refrigerators. The first 5,000 of the cars were sold out immediately.
A second round of Founder’s Edition sales has started, but it was not yet clear how many units would be sold.
© Thomson Reuters 2024
