"Wei Xiaoli" as a leading new force, once a new car is launched, it will always cause a wave of turmoil in the auto market, such as the recently launched NIO ES6.
On the evening of May 24, the all-new NIO ES6 was officially launched. A total of three models will be launched, including 75kWh and 100kWh versions, with prices ranging from CNY 368,000 to CNY 426,000. If the battery rental plan is adopted BaaS, the starting price is CNY 298,000, the monthly fee for a 75kWh battery pack is CNY 980, and the monthly fee for a 100kWh battery pack is CNY 1,680.
Compared with the old 2022 ES6, the overall configuration and endurance have been improved to a certain extent under the same battery pack capacity, but the starting price is reduced by 18,000 yuan. Different from the previous new product launch, which required ramp-up and delayed delivery, the new NIO ES6 was delivered immediately after launch.
For the pricing of the new NIO ES6, there are still two different voices in the market.
Many consumers believe that this price is still a little expensive, and the ideal L7 of the next door starts at 319,800 yuan. However, some insiders believe that the new products have been upgraded to varying degrees in terms of power, intelligence, comfort and other aspects, and the competitiveness improvement is more obvious, which is its value.
Whether the new NIO ES6 is worth the price, let's go straight to the test drive experience.
Compared with the old and new models, the new ES6 has many highlights
It has been 53 months since its launch in December 2018 and the launch of the NT2.0 platform. NIO's first-generation ES6 has been the sales leader since its launch, with 127,611 units delivered as of April 2023, achieving the highest sales of more than 350,000 pure electric SUVs.
For such an important model for NIO, what kind of upgrade experience can its replacement bring us? Through the analysis of the highlights of the new car, we can quickly understand the main upgrade points:
1. Fine-tuning of the exterior and interior, the overall style is more simple. There are slight changes in body size and wheelbase, optimization of interior space, and more agility in the rear seats with 424 reclining.
2. The height of the vehicle is reduced by 55mm, and the headroom in the front row is increased by 14mm, and the headroom in the rear is increased by 75mm. The widest body in its class at 1995mm, bringing 1538mm of transverse space in the car.
3. Self-developed high-end seat platform, using Multi-Layer multi-layer comfort system, with the newly upgraded queen co-pilot, a comprehensively upgraded seating experience, more comfortable and advanced.
4.NT2.0 platform, full-stack self-developed intelligent chassis, front and rear five-link sports suspension design, equipped with new CDC electromagnetic suspension and ICC intelligent chassis domain control technology.
5. Adopt front induction asynchronous / rear permanent magnet synchronous motor, the maximum power of the front motor is 150kW, the rear motor is 210kW, more inclined to rear drive, acceleration 4.5s per 100 km.
6. The vehicle system is fully upgraded, and the use is more intimate and personalized; All models come standard with four NVIDIA Drive Orin X chips and 23 driver assistance functions as standard.
It is not difficult to see that the upgrade of the new NIO ES6 involves multiple dimensions, which can be described as full of sincerity. Except for the entry-level model, which has a cruising range of less than 500 kilometers, the competitiveness in other aspects is quite competent.
However, NIO owners can change the power 6 times a month, which is equivalent to running close to 3,000 kilometers for free a month, which can fully meet the needs of ordinary families. After experiencing it himself, Uncle Zhong found that it was quite fragrant. It only takes about 5 minutes to change the whole process, which is better than fast charging, and there is no need to grab the charging pile with other owners.
Comfort, more intimate and more advanced
Since the birth of the brand, turning the space inside the car into a "second living room" has always been the core concept of NIO's cockpit space design. With the new ES6, this concept has been fully unleashed.
First of all, let's talk about the body size, the length, width and height dimensions are 4854mm/1995mm/1703mm, and the wheelbase is 2915mm. In the mid-size SUV, it is a relatively "big" existence. Although the height of the body has been reduced by 55mm, thanks to the improvement of platform architecture capabilities, the height of the floor has been lowered, and the occupant headroom has been further optimized.
The data shows that the headroom of the rear occupants has reached 1272mm, and the angle of the rear seat backrest can be adjusted electrically within the range of 23-31°, and the seating space is significantly more, and the sitting posture is more free.
As for the seat with the highest frequency of use in the car, it comes from NIO's self-developed high-end seat platform, which is also the "only" of the current Chinese brand. Relevant personnel of NIO said that the supplier's seat solutions usually take into account the needs of various brands and different grades of models. It is enough to meet the national standard regulations, but if you want the ultimate sense of luxury and comfort, it is impossible to meet.
With the empowerment of the self-developed high-end seat platform, the new NIO ES6 is more functional and has more adjustment directions, which can realize zero gravity mode and comfortable lying mode. For example, the front main and passenger seats provide 20-way adjustment function, suspended four-way adjustable headrests, rear seat backrests are electrically adjustable, and 4/2/4 reclining form is adopted, and the expansion space can meet more cargo scenarios.
After actually riding, Uncle Zhong found that the tolerance of the new NIO ES6 is very high.
There were three people on the test drive, ranging from petite female passengers to stout male passengers. They can easily find a sitting position that suits them, whether it is legs, waist, head and shoulders, they can get good support and wrapping.
In particular, the breathability of the seat makes it feel stuffy even if the seat ventilation is not turned on in the hot summer.
Different from other brands, the soft setting of the seat makes fatigue more likely to occur over long distances. The all-new NIO ES6 seat has moderate softness, and has a noticeable feeling of rebound and support after sitting down, which can maximize the elimination of stress concentration points. In addition, the careful design of the headrest, backrest and seat cushion perfectly fits the physiological curve of the human spine.
As for the newly upgraded Queen's co-pilot, it has up to 22-way adjustment, which can realize one-button comfort mode, dual 120° sitting posture zero gravity posture, and heating, ventilation, massage, soothing are also a lot. It is no exaggeration to say that all consumers' imagination of seats, the new NIO ES6 can satisfy you one by one.
As soon as users enter the car, it is like returning to the warm and spacious living room at home, which is the luxurious space and ultimate high-end experience brought by the self-developed high-end seat platform.
Intelligent, practical and not cumbersome
As for the intelligence level, we will focus on the new NIO ES6 intelligent driving assistance system. Like the new ES8, it includes the Aquia supersense platform and the Adam supercomputing platform. Among them, the Aquia ultra-sensing platform contains 33 sensors, which adopts the fusion scheme of lidar + camera + millimeter wave radar + ultrasonic radar.
The Adam supercomputing platform is equipped with four NVIDIA Drive Orin X chips as standard, with 48 CPU cores, a total computing power of up to 1016 TOPS, more than the total computing power of 7 Tesla FSDs, and a very high hardware level.
Therefore, the all-new NIO ES6 can not only detect the type, position and speed of obstacles with high accuracy, but also cope with harsh weather environments such as heavy rain and fog, giving users a safer and more reliable intelligent assisted driving experience, and the actual experience is the same.
After the NOP navigation assistance system is turned on on the high-speed section, the driver does not need to set the cruising speed or other adjustments, only needs to put his hands on the steering wheel, and the vehicle will realize self-adjustment, self-change lanes, and enter and exit ramps in accordance with the set navigation route and legal requirements.
The all-new NIO ES6 is more like an old driver, which can predict the current road conditions in advance and slow down more comfortably; Overtaking is also more crisp and sharp, and the action is done in one go without dragging mud and water. Even when entering some tunnels, GPS positioning and HD maps can still be used normally.
In the future, the all-new NIO ES6 also supports the high-speed pilot power exchange function, not only to realize the automation from point A to point B, but also to fully automate the energy replenishment link, which is still very worthy of recognition for its intelligence and convenience.
Performance control, salt or sweet
In terms of performance control, I believe that most consumers are more concerned about. In the communication with NIO owners, Uncle Zhong found that the overlap between NIO owners and ideal owners is still relatively low. The ideal car owner may pay more attention to the comfort of space, but NIO owners also pursue the pleasure of driving.
Air suspension is no longer available as an option for all ES6 models, replaced by CDC adjustable suspension damping. The chassis structure has also been adjusted, with a five-link structure at the front and rear, and a virtual kingpin design on the front suspension, which is more oriented to the hardware and tuning of sports characteristics.
With the ICC Smart Chassis Domain Controller, the performance of the new ES6 chassis can meet a wider variety of individual requirements. It can also be upgraded through later OTA, and the driving experience can also be always new.
The all-new NIO ES6 provides four driving modes, different modes of steering feel, energy recovery strength, suspension hardness and motor characteristics are different, and even through personalized mode to achieve free combination, more catering to the needs of different driving habits.
The dynamic test drive section of the day included three road conditions: urban area, highway, and mountain road, as well as a site test drive including 100-kilometer acceleration, elk test, and pile detouring project, but the new NIO ES6 still performed with ease. The body following is the best enough, and there is no obvious "big car feeling" when driving.
In Comfort mode, the suspension is soft enough to quickly dissolve bumps caused by the road; The steering is so light that even girls can easily handle it; The overall acceleration is softer, closer to the acceleration experience of fuel vehicles.
In sport mode, the steering feels tighter, the suspension is tough enough, it has better support for the body, and when accelerating sharply or changing lines urgently, it will not cause the body to have a more serious roll roll.
Review
Combined with the whole vehicle experience, everyone agrees that the new NIO ES6 is not only comfortable enough to ride, but also has a great driving experience, which in general makes both drivers and riders feel very "refreshed". Whether it is the detailed design, the leading intelligence, or the smooth control, it is a new feeling.
Behind all kinds of innovative experiences, it is inseparable from NIO's full-stack self-developed hardware platform, which will become a powerful weapon for NIO to base itself on NIO. On July 1, the official version of NOP+ based on BEV will also be available. Coupled with the world's unique battery swap system, NIO's products have a multi-scene travel experience that is difficult for others to replicate.
The product is amazing enough, and the market and consumers take care of the rest.