Nio undercuts Tesla Model Y with £24k Onvo L60 SUV for China
New Onvo L60 claims the lowest drag coefficient of any SUV around
Chinese EV firm's new family-focused brand launches with an ultra-efficient, battery-swapping crossover
The first model from Nio's new family-focused EV brand Onvo is a Tesla Model Y-rivalling crossover that majors on practicality and efficiency.
Called the L60, it's due on sale in China from September at a starting price equivalent to just £24,000 - undercutting its chief rival by a notable margin.
There's no word yet on plans to bring the Onvo brand to the UK, but the L60 would probably be priced closer to £40,000 if it came here, to achieve a comparable cost gap.
Onvo – previously known by the codename Alps – is the first of two new EV brands being launched by fast-growing Nio. The other, codenamed Firefly, is expected to launch with a much more affordable compact EV designed with a specific focus on the European market.
The L60 showcases how Onvo will target family buyers in the upper premium segment, with an overt focus on interior space, safety and utility.
It claims a significant advantage over the Model Y in being equipped with 900V electrical architecture for ultra-rapid charging and will be equipped with a choice of three BYD-supplied battery packs offering 344, 454 or 620 miles of range (according to China's generous CLTC test cycle).
The L60 is also more efficient than the Model Y, Nio claims, with a consumption rating of 5.1mpkWh - a figure that owes much to its slippery silhouette. Nio claims the L60 is the most aerodynamically efficient SUV on the market, with a drag coefficient of just 0.229Cd.
Full dimensions remain under wraps, but the Chinese company said the short overhangs maximise space in the cabin and "with ingenious storage design, every occupant can bring along their own luggage".
The L60 is equipped with the same advanced driver assistance functions as Nio's own EVs.
It's also compatible with the firm's trademark battery-swap stations, meaning it can gain a fully charged battery in just three minutes at more than 1000 sites across China - as well as being able to top up conventionally at 25,000 of Nio's own public chargers.