NIO arrives in Europe with premium ambitions and battery replacement stations

This article is part of a special 2023 newsletter. Launched over 100 times to discover, powered by Millennium bcp.

a no is a young Chinese manufacturer founded in 2014, and despite an enthusiastic initial reception — Tesla will be next, it has been said — in these few years of life the challenges to overcome were more than many, largely due to the turbulent years that was the world.

Despite everything, it managed to grow, but the losses continued to accumulate. In 2022, sales increased compared to 2021 (+34%), but losses amounted to €1.9 billion (260% jump).

The increase in losses can be explained by the large investments made by the young Chinese manufacturer, not only in the development of new products, but also in the expansion of new markets.

After “wetting your toes” in the European market with its arrival in Norway in 2021, in October last year it announced its expansion to Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden.

It won’t stop here and there is a possibility to come to Portugal in 2025. But, nevertheless, it may not be with the NIO brand with ambitions beloved, but with a new affordable electric vehicle brand that NIO Group intends to launch in the European market. Find out more about this development:

Charge the battery? Why don’t you change it?

NIO proves itself in the European market with the peculiarity of being able to subtract the price of the batteries from the price of the car, rather than leasing them – a method we’ve already seen at Renault in the past.

This gives access to a unique service that allows you to exchange a dead battery for another charge at select stations, called power exchange stations. The process takes five minutes, but NIO already has a new generation of terminals that reduce that time to three minutes or less.

At the moment, NIO already has 1,100 battery exchange stations, most of them in China. With its expansion in Europe, the Chinese manufacturer intends to open 100 power switching stations by the end of the year in the «old continent».

NIO European domain

NIO’s entry into Europe – via Norway – happened with ES8a large electric SUV, has some potential rivals in the Tesla Model X or the new (and introduced this year) Volvo EX90.

But expanding into more European markets, the Chinese brand has unveiled three new models: the ET7, ET5 and EL7. Which translates to two electric cars and an SUV, respectively.

We were able to drive New ET7a large salon (more than five meters in length) rivaling the Tesla Model S, and … we liked:

ET5 for “Attack” Model 3 and company

Logic dictates that NIO ET5 Both are smaller but still long, at 4.79m in length. It will compete with NIO on Tesla Model 3, but also with BYD Seal, Hyundai IONIQ 6, Volkswagen ID.7 or even BMW i4. to meet the part beloved.

It is distinguished by the three batteries available: 75 kWh, 100 kWh and … 150 kWh. The latter should arrive later and not only is it one of the largest batteries to outfit the car, it’s also a solid state one. Something that has already been announced for the larger ET7, being one of the first builders to offer such an option.

NIO announces an autonomy of 550 km to 1000 km for the ET5. There is only one caveat: these values ​​are compatible with the Chinese CLTC course, which is more lenient than WLTP.

Although we have many batteries to choose from, at the moment there is only one motor option. This includes two electric motors, one for each axle – 150 kW (204 hp) at the front and 210 kW (286 hp) in the rear – for a total of 360 kW (490 hp) and 700 Nm.

In addition to the saloon, the NIO ET5 will be accompanied by a van, already considering the preferences of European consumers. And it could reach the “old continent” next June.

The EL7 is the top of the range in SUV form

Curiosity: The NIO SUV was born with the designation “ES” followed by a number. Audi did not appreciate the fact that these designations are so close to those used on their “S” models. After a lengthy legal process, NIO had to change its name and chose the letters “EL”.

Thus, the SUV born in China ES7 reaches Europe EL7. As the designation suggests, this SUV is equivalent to the ET7 sedan, assuming the role of the top of the range – it remains to be seen if the ES8, which has been recently revamped (should change to EL8), will be marketed in more European countries as well. From Norway.

We have EL7 Audi Q8 e-tron and BMW iX are some of its main competitors. It has two batteries to choose from, 75 kWh and 100 kWh, allowing an autonomy of up to 509 km, this time on the WLTP cycle.

This large SUV (4.91 meters long) also comes with ample “firepower” thanks to its two electric motors, one per axle – 180 kW (245 hp) in the front and 300 kW (408 hp) in the rear – for a total of 480 kW of power, the same as 653 hp.

This article is part of Special News 2023. Over 100 launches to discover, powered by Millennium bcp.