IM Motors CEO said the company's fifth model will be an EREV, set to become the latest after Avatr to look to gasoline engines to boost sales.
(IM Motors' Airo concept shown at the April 2023 Shanghai auto show. Image credit: CnEVPost)
IM Motors, the electric vehicle (EV) unit of SAIC Motor Corp, will launch extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), setting to be the latest EV maker to look to gasoline engines to boost sales after Changan Automobile's EV unit Avatr Technology.
IM Motors' fifth model will feature extended-range technology, which will make up for the poor battery range of only 200 kilometers and the inability to fast-charge in the current EREVs, local automotive media outlet Cheshi quoted the EV maker's co-CEO Liu Tao as saying in a February 22 report.
IM Motors had unveiled a concept car called the Airo, which looks close to an MPV (Multi-Purpose Vehicle), Cheshi's report said, adding that the company's fifth model is expected to be built on the Airo concept.
IM Motors showcased the Airo concept at the Shanghai auto show in April 2023, and CnEVPost took pictures of the model at the time.
IM Motors will introduce 2 all-new models codenamed E and F, one of which is expected to be the production version of the Airo concept, which could to be launched in 2025, Cheshi's report said.
Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is currently the only brand in China that fully applies EREV technology, and its first battery electric vehicle (BEV) model, the Li Mega MPV, will go on sale on March 1.
IM Motors' MPV will compete with the Li Mega when it goes on sale, Cheshi's report noted.
All the models currently on sale by IM Motors are BEVs, including the L7 sedan, and two SUVs, the LS6 and LS7.
The company is about to launch another model, the L6, an all-electric sedan that made it into China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) model catalog last month.
The IM L6 measures 4,931 mm in length, 1,960 mm in width and 1,474 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,900 mm, according to the catalog. As a comparison, the IM L7 has a length, width and height of 5,108 mm, 1,960 mm and 1,485 mm respectively and a wheelbase of 3,100 mm.
Speaking to local media in October 2023 after IM Motors launched the LS6, Liu said he saw a good chance for EREVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) in 3-5 years, especially EREVs.
IM Motors is a joint venture between SAIC, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech and Alibaba, with SAIC holding a majority stake.
It has had a lukewarm sales performance since its inception in December 2020, and hasn't reported monthly deliveries for the vast majority of the past two years. In January, IM Motors delivered 5,305 vehicles, according to figures it announced earlier this month.
Most of China's earliest EV startups targeted the BEV market in the beginning, but experience over the past few years has shown that PHEVs, including EREVs, are now a popular vehicle in the electrification transition.
In addition, the huge success of Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) in the EREV market proves that EREVs are more accepted.
Neta Auto, and Leapmotor are also offering EREVs, both of which initially offered only BEVs.
In late December, Avatr president Chen Zhuo said in a video program that the brand will launch two new models in 2024 and that four EREVs will be added to the company's lineup.
