Xiaomi's first EV undercuts Tesla's price while offering longer range

Chinese technology giant Xiaomi’s first electric car, the SU7, will take on Tesla’s Model 3, undercutting Tesla’s price while beating it out on specs, at least on paper.

Reminiscent of smartphones, the SU7 will come in three models: the SU7, SU7 Pro, and SU7 Max. The base model SU7 will go on sale in early April in China for 215,900 Chinese yuan (~$29,903), nearly $9,000 cheaper than Tesla’s Model 3, while the Pro and Max versions will be priced at 245,900 yuan and 299,900 yuan, respectively, according to Reuters.

Check out our first look at the SU7 from MWC earlier this year.

How Xiaomi plans to take on competition

In an already saturated Chinese EV market, Xiaomi aims to stand out by scaling quickly, offering performance at competitive prices, and delivering an innovative integration into the Xiaomi ecosystem of products via the company’s self-developed Hyper OS for cars, according to Reuters‘ reports.

So far, Tesla’s Model 3 has taken the crown as the best-selling new energy sedan in China by offering 372 miles of range at nearly 500,000 yuan (base model starting at 245,900 yuan). But with Xiaomi’s entrance into the market, a new contender may take the crown.

The electronics giant turned EV maker claims a 434-mile range for the base model using a 73.6kWh battery, the Pro with 516 miles of range with a 94.3kWh battery, and the Max with 503 miles with twin motors and all-wheel-drive.

Considering Xiaomi’s SU7 is offering more range at a lower price tag, it’ll be interesting to see how Xiaomi’s SU7 will do in such a competitive market. Depending on its success at home, we might see the SU7 coming to more markets, although the company has said that there are no plans to do so currently.