[CHN] Xpeng Mona M03 sedan 2024

4200blu · 28 Agosto

On the evening of August 27, Xpeng launched the Mona M03 electric sedan at a press conference in Beijing. Perhaps the biggest news is the price range, which is even lower than previously leaked figures on the Internet, that we reported. The car will be available in three versions priced between 119,800 and 155,800 yuan (16,800 – 21,850 USD). The three versions are as follows:

Xpeng Mona M03 received over 10,000 firm orders in 52 minutes following the launch, Xpeng announced. The company’s CEO, He Xiaopeng, mentioned that the name Mona “M03” was chosen as a tribute to the Tesla Model 3.

It should be noted that deliveries of the Max version of M03 will not begin until after Chinese New Year in 2025, but deliveries of the other two versions will commence in September. When the Xpeng Mona M03 entered pre-sales, no substantial details were announced regarding the interior—subsequently, some information leaked before today’s launch.

As we were already aware inside the M03 adopts a Tesla Model 3-style minimal layout. This means that it does not have an instrument panel, and neither does it have a head-up display. Instead, everything is displayed on the centrally mounted infotainment screen. This is an ultra-clear large screen with a size of 15.6 inches and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 chip with 16GB RAM. The system and screen support 360-degree panoramic images and 3D perception-rendered maps. In the case of the 3D dynamic field of view maps, these are rendered in real time, reflecting the actual conditions rather than based on memory.

However, unlike Tesla, Xpeng offers a large number of options. These include a pluggable instrument panel for 599 yuan (84 USD), a fragrance dispenser, an adjustable soft pillow for the headrest along with memory foam waist support, and an ice crystal sun shade.

There are virtually no physical buttons in the car, and the two-spoke steering wheel only features two scroll wheels. To compensate for the lack of buttons, the car can be controlled using both gesture control and voice control, meaning that not everything has to be controlled via physical touching of the infotainment screen. The car has four voice zones, and voice interaction can be independently used to control both the front and back rows and can support up to 20 seconds of continuous dialog with multiple instructions being executed at the same time.

Compose 7.1 .4 panoramic sound. As standard, the car comes with a 1.22 square meter panoramic sunroof featuring low-E laminated glass, giving 99.9% protection against ultraviolet and 97.6% protection against infrared rays.

Buyers can choose between three interior colors: morning mist gray, mid-day blue, and night gray. As previously reported, the car comes with a trunk space of 621 liters, which can easily fit one 28-inch and four 20-inch suitcases without adjusting the seats. The space is expandable to 1602 liters with the seats folded down – the rear seat has 4:6 split-folding and is reclinable. The car features leather seats, and the front seats provide both heating and ventilation.

The Xpeng Mona M03 (see specs) has dimensions of 4780, 1896, and 1445 mm, along with a wheelbase of 2815 mm, so the EV is slightly larger than Model 3. The car is available in five colors: Xinghan Rice, Xingyao Blue, Night Black, Nebula White, and Xingque Gray. Only the base 515 km range version uses the less powerful 140 kW motor.

Both the other versions use a more powerful 160 kW motor and all cars are front wheel drive. Maximum torque is 225 and 250Nm, respectively. All cars use lithium iron phosphate blade batteries from BYD subsidiary FinDreams. In the case of the 515 km range version, this uses a 51.8 kWh battery pack, whereas the other two versions use a 62.2 kWh pack. Curiously using this pack the car has either a 620 km range in the standard version or a lesser 580 km range for the Max version. It is not currently apparent why the Max version has a lower range, presumably it is heavier.

12 ultrasonic sensors and 7 cameras offering L2 intelligent driving ability. Xpeng claims the car has the strongest perception ability in its class along with the best automatic parking. There is 100 percent coverage of high-frequency parking scenarios along with a 95% parking success rate and includes situations such as where a space is partly obscured by a column.

However, the Max version, which will be released after Chinese New Year in 2025, will have capabilities that far exceed this, and Xpeng claims it’ll be the only product with high-end intelligent driving capabilities within the 200,000 yuan (28,100 USD) price range. It seems as if Xpeng may be offering XNGP on this version but is currently coy just saying that there are no limitations and it’ll be possible to use in the whole country with ease.