Aito launched the new M7 on September 12. It previously said it had more than 120,000 firm orders for the M7 by the end of December.
(Image credit: Aito)
Aito, the new energy vehicle brand backed by Chinese tech giant Huawei, is said to be updating the M7 in the second quarter, after the model's last facelift in September 2023 was a huge success.
Aito is expected to launch a facelifted version of the M7 in the second quarter, which will feature a family design language on the exterior, local media outlet 36kr reported today.
Since the M7 is less than a year away from the launch of last year's refresh, the 2024 facelift shouldn't get too much changed, the report said, citing unnamed analysts.
Meanwhile, a refresh of Aito's M5 SUV is also in the works, the report added.
Aito is a premium car brand launched by Seres Group with Huawei on December 2, 2021, and its first model, the Aito M5, was unveiled on December 23, 2021, with deliveries to begin in March 2022. The M5 is available in both extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) and battery-electric vehicle (BEV) versions.
On July 4, 2022, Aito launched its second model, the M7. On September 12, 2023, the brand launched an updated version of the M7, allowing for a significant price reduction. The M7 is only available in EREV versions.
On December 26, 2023, Aito officially launched the M9, available in both EREV and BEV versions. With a starting price of RMB 469,800 ($65,470), the M9 is the highest-priced Aito model.
Huawei has set a sales target of 600,000 units sold in 2024 for the Aito brand after internal calculations, the 36kr report said today.
Along with the M7, the M9 will be the other major sales driver for Aito, the report said.
Huawei's expectation for the Aito M9 is to sell more than 10,000 units per month, the report said, adding that a new model, the M8, which is built on the same platform as the M9, will be launched in the second half of next year.
Aito delivered more than 10,000 units per month for most of the second half of 2022, but performed weakly in 2023, with most months below 6,000 units.
The launch of the new M7 in September, with a RMB 40,000 lower starting price compared to the model previously on sale and the addition of a five-seat model, has been key to the Aito's huge success.
Aito announced on November 27 that the new M7 had received more than 100,000 firm orders after 2.5 months on the market.
By the end of December, the new M7 had received more than 120,000 firm orders and the M9 had received more than 30,000 firm orders after 7 days on the market, Aito said on January 1.
Aito delivered 24,468 vehicles in December, with the new M7 contributing 20,611, or 84 percent, Aito said previously.
The brand is continuing to increase its delivery capacity, which is expected to exceed 30,000 units in a single month starting in 2024, it said on January 1 when announcing December deliveries.
($1 = RMB 7.1754)
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