The seven-seater ES8 can accelerate to 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph) in 4.4 seconds
Chinese electric-car maker NIO has launched sales of its first vehicle three years after the company was founded, undercutting the price of a rival model from Tesla Inc.
The seven-seater ES8 can accelerate to 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph) in 4.4 seconds, according to the company. The braking distance of the SUV, equipped with 5 millimeter wave radars, is 33.8 meters (111 feet).
NIO is also offering some Tesla-esque features and perks including an in-car artificial intelligence system and a charging portal that it says will let drivers change their car batteries in just three minutes.
The interior does have a Tesla-sque appeal with advanced features equipped. The AI system called NOMI uses the latest EyeQ4 technology by Mobileye. The SUV boasts an all-wheel-drive setup with adaptive air-suspension.
NIO is looking to take its own market share by targeting customers who would normally feel that the Tesla models are beyond their reach.
According to Chairman William Li, a battery-swap station can be assembled within a day and carmaker will also offer other free services including on-road assistance.
China is already a major market for Tesla (TSLA). It reported revenues of more than $1.5 billion from the country in the first nine months of this year, up from just $570 million in the same period a year earlier.
The company also wants to eventually expand sales beyond China, including to the U.S. It already has offices around the globe, including in California, London and Munich.
According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, automakers had already announced plans to sell as many as eight million electric vehicles a year by 2030, equivalent to about nine percent of current global sales.