- The available trims for the Li i8 have been reduced from three to one, and the price has been lowered.
- This comes just one week after the Li i8's launch, marking a new setback for Li Auto in the BEV market.
Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) has relaunched the Li i8 after its first electric SUV (sport utility vehicle) encountered poor initial reception upon its launch.
The company announced today that of the three original variants -- Pro, Max, and Ultra -- only the Max variant remains, with its price reduced to RMB 339,800 ($47,310), a decrease of RMB 10,000, or 2.86 percent, from the previous price.
The Li i8 was launched on July 29, with starting prices of RMB 321,800, RMB 349,800, and RMB 369,800 for the three variants, respectively.
With the discontinuation of the Pro and Max variants, consumers can now obtain a vehicle with the same configuration as the Ultra variant through paid options, with the total cost reduced to RMB 349,800, a decrease of RMB 20,000 compared to the Ultra variant.
Li Auto said in a statement today that the previous model versions of the Li i8 were complex, making it difficult for consumers to choose, and some high-end optional configurations were not supported.
More than 98 percent of consumers chose the Max and Ultra variants, far exceeding expectations, the company said.
Deliveries of the Li i8 will still begin on August 20, as previously announced by Li Auto.
This may be due to the poor performance of the Li i8 after its launch, representing its latest setback in the battery electric vehicle (BEV) market.
Some bloggers claimed on Weibo yesterday that Li i8 only received about 6,000 firm orders last week.
The relaunched Li i8 comes standard with a 97.8-kWh ternary lithium battery pack that supports 5C supercharging and has a CLTC range of 720 kilometers.
It is equipped with a dual-motor four-wheel drive system that can accelerate from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in 4.5 seconds.
The rollout of the Li i8 comes as Nio Inc (NYSE: NIO) sub-brand Onvo launched its L90 flagship SUV (sport utility vehicle), with the two models being widely compared on social media.
The Onvo L90 officially went on sale on July 31, with a starting price of RMB 265,800 including an 85-kWh battery pack, and deliveries began the next day on August 1.
($1 = RMB 7.1821)
