- Since the L90 began pre-sales on July 10, Nio shares have risen by 43 percent in Hong Kong.
- Nearly 600 vehicles for test drives are now available at over 400 Onvo showrooms across 140 cities.
Nio's (NYSE: NIO) sub-brand Onvo, targeting the family car market, began allowing Chinese customers to test drive its upcoming L90 flagship SUV (sport utility vehicle) today, as optimism surrounding the model continues to drive the company's stock price higher.
Test drives for the L90 opened at 10 am Beijing time on Wednesday, with nearly 600 vehicles available across Onvo's over 400 showrooms in 140 cities, the brand announced today.
On July 31, the L90 will be officially launched, Onvo said, marking the first time it has revealed the SUV's launch date, confirming a report by CnEVPost two days earlier.
Onvo has not yet mentioned the start time for the L90 launch event, though Chinese automakers typically hold new model launch events from 7 pm or 7:30 pm Beijing time.
Optimism surrounding the L90 continues to drive Nio's stock price higher, giving the electric vehicle (EV) maker a rare streak of consecutive gains in recent years.
As of press time, Nio's shares traded in Hong Kong were up nearly 9 percent to HK$39.35, extending their gains since the L90 began pre-sales on July 10 to over 43 percent.
At the close of US trading on Tuesday, Nio's ADRs traded in the US were up 10.84 percent to $5.01.
Onvo began pre-sales of the all-electric large SUV L90 on July 10, stating at the time that the model would be officially launched at the end of July with deliveries beginning on August 1.
The L90 will be one of the fastest-delivered models under the Nio Inc umbrella, as the company has high hopes for the model.
The L90's pre-sales starting price, including an 85-kWh battery pack, is RMB 279,900 ($39,040). Under the BaaS (battery as a service) battery rental plan, the pre-sales starting price is RMB 193,900.
Notably, the L90's price is expected to decrease further at its official launch, a common strategy in China's EV industry.
Two days before the L90's launch, Nio's domestic rival Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) will launch its Li i8 electric SUV on July 29.
Li Auto began pre-sales for the Li i8 on July 17, with an expected price range of RMB 350,000 to RMB 400,000.
The nearly identical positioning and launch dates of these two models have led to widespread comparisons, with the L90 being viewed as having significantly greater competitiveness.
Li Auto's shares traded in Hong Kong have been weak in recent days, currently down about 1 percent, though up about 6 percent since the Li i8 began pre-sales.
Since July 10, Li Auto has risen about 14 percent in Hong Kong.
($1 = RMB 7.1694)
