Xiaomi has made a spectacular entrance with its electric sedan. Huawei aims to maintain its lead by adding a new SUV to its lineup. The Luxeed R7, designed in partnership with Chery, hopes to become a new benchmark in the market.
The arrival of Xiaomi in the automotive sector has made headlines in the Chinese and international press. However, let’s not forget that another electronics giant has also been disrupting the Chinese automotive market for several years. Huawei already has an edge over its rival, as its sales are expected to exceed half a million this year, and this division is already profitable.
This advantage now allows the Luxeed brand, created by Huawei in partnership with Chery, to launch its first SUV, the R7. A model that will be a top rival for Xiaomi’s future SUV.
To design this model, Huawei did not complicate matters by simply adapting the style and technologies of the S7 sedan to the format of a … Model Y. Finally, a bit larger though, as expected for a Chinese model! The Luxeed R7 thus mirrors its profile on that of Tesla, but at 4956 mm long, it is as imposing as a BMW X6.
The technical specifications are expected to be similar to the sedan: 215 kW in rear-wheel drive, 365 kW in dual motor with all-wheel drive. Batteries of 82 or 100 kWh at 800 volts are anticipated for a range of over 700 km on the CLTC cycle (over 550 km WLTP).
The Luxeed R7 is expected to start at less than 300,000 RMB (38,000 €). The brand’s arrival in Europe is not yet confirmed, but seems inevitable in the medium term.