Xpeng P7 Completes Cold Weather Testing

Xpeng’s P7 electric sports sedan completes cold-weather validation and nears ever closer to the start of production. The P7 was scheduled to launch in the second quarter of 2020, but with the disruptions in China caused by the Coronavirus outbreak, that timeline could possibly be pushed back a bit.  

The P7 will be Xpeng’s second offering and first sedan, after bringing the G3 electric SUV to market in early 2019.

The Xpeng P7 during cold-weather testing

The P7 will launch with what Xpeng calls “Level 2.5” autonomous driving features. However, the P7 will have the hardware in the vehicle to deliver level 3 autonomy. Xpeng will then upgrade the cars via an OTA software update within a year of the vehicle’s launch at no extra charge. The G3 electric SUV currently offers Xpeng’s XPILOT 2.5 hardware as an option, and the take rate on that is around 90% according to XPeng’s President and Vice Chairman, Brian Gu.

“We are proud of the P7’s exceptional performance in the most testing winter conditions,” Jack Xu, Vice President of Xpeng Motors, said of the results. “The test results are a credit to Xpeng’s engineers, and to the superior quality systems of the P7.”

The P7 is equipped with the latest generation of CATL prismatic battery cells, with a pack capacity of 80.87kWh achieving NEDC driving range of 650+ km (RWD version) and 550+ km (4WD high-performance version) respectively.

In addition, the P7 is equipped with an advanced battery thermal management system, with functions such as high-temperature cooling and low-temperature heating and insulation, minimizing the impact on driving range. The battery uses high thermal conductivity materials, with large heat exchange surface area to deliver high heat exchange efficiency.

The Xpeng P7’s interior

The P7 will be offered in rear-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive configurations, with the all-wheel-drive model being a high-performance version. In addition to the 196 kW (263 HP) rear motor, the all-wheel-drive version adds a 120 kW (161 HP) front motor which drops the P7’s 0-62 time from 6.7 seconds for the base model, to 4.3 seconds for the AWD version, according to Xpeng. That gives the all-wheel-drive P7 basically the same 0-62 figure that the Tesla Model 3 Long Range all-wheel-drive can deliver. And that’s relevant, as these two EVs will most likely be cross-shopped. 

The P7 will cost between $38,400 and $52,600, depending on trim and options. Again, putting it squarely against the Tesla Model 3 in China. 

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