XPeng P7 Sedan — First Impression

After a 12 months of preparations, XPeng is able to begin deliveries of its automobiles in Europe. Initially, there was a cautious begin in Norway with the XPeng P7 sedan and the XPeng G9 SUV. Now, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg are subsequent. The remainder of Europe will observe, however in every nation, a gross sales and repair infrastructure have to be organized.

To organize the launch, quite a lot of journalists from these international locations had been invited to Amsterdam, the European centre of XPeng logistics, to get acquainted with the fashions for the European markets. XPeng is beginning with its prime fashions, the SUV G9 and the sedan P7. The corporate has smaller fashions accessible on the Chinese language market as effectively, and new fashions on a model new platform are in growth.

Table of Contents

XPeng P7 Intro

Like many others, XPeng has selected a toolbox structure, like VW’s MEB. It’s known as the “Good Electrical Platform Structure,” SEPA2.0. This permits a far larger vary of variants than a basic platform with a hard and fast chassis. The primary mannequin on this new platform, the G6 SUV, was proven on the current Shanghai Auto Present.

What’s now provided in Europe are the most recent fashions of the primary technology of BEVs designed by the corporate. Every mannequin did have clear enhancements over the earlier one. The P7 nonetheless has a 400V powertrain structure, whereas the G9 is already on 800V. In addition to technical variations the driving force will hardly discover, a 400V structure has a sensible max charging capability of 175 kW and an 800V structure that may cost with 350kW (and even 400kW with some chargers).

The day began for me, after the espresso and tour of the power, with a take a look at drive of the G9 in the direction of our lunch vacation spot. That evaluate has its personal article. After the lunch, a P7 was assigned to me.

Description of the P7

The P7 is a pleasant, huge sedan within the E-segment. It’s too huge for my style, however that isn’t the automobile’s fault. It isn’t solely huge, with the legroom within the again for a working government, but additionally luxurious. The seats haven’t simply heating, but additionally a therapeutic massage perform. It’s after all accessible to the chief within the again, not only for the chauffeur within the entrance and the assistant driving shotgun.

As with all fashionable electrical vehicles, it has quite a lot of driving modes. They’re sporty, regular, eco, and one-pedal. The present crop of totally electrical vehicles is so good at driving that there’s nothing to check in regular every day site visitors. For many who wish to know the way good it’s at taking a nook at pace, go to a race circuit. The capacities are far exterior what will be examined on public roads in a protected approach.

The excellence these days is on the Superior Driver Help Programs (ADAS). Probably the most used are one-pedal-driving and cruise-control. Each needs to be trimmed to the driving force’s style. Different vital options are blind-spot warning, lane protecting help, driver consideration, beside quite a lot of security options that I hope by no means to check.

For actually testing all of the ADAS features, the test-drive of about 2 hours was too quick. I did expertise they labored, I did really feel it enhanced my security and made driving simpler. However I couldn’t take a look at all or attempt to tune them to my liking and driving type. I’ll ask for an extended testing interval later this 12 months.

The P7 is obtainable in three variations. There’s a lengthy vary model, a efficiency one, and a WOW, exhibit, impress the ladies/guys model with wing doorways. There was not a winged automobile accessible for us journalists, and personally I don’t see the distinction between commonplace efficiency and further efficiency. Each have extra energy beneath the hood than is usable in regular site visitors.

Specs at EV-Database.org for the XPeng P7:

Battery — 82.7 kWh with about 500 km/311 miles of vary on a full cost.
Motor — 202 kW and 440 Nm rear-wheel drive. (Lengthy Vary)
Motor — 348 kW and 757 Nm all-wheel drive. (Winged, Efficiency)
Charging — 175 kW DC and 11 kW AC.
Curb Weight — 2,020 kg / 4,453 lb) Lengthy Vary
Curb Weight — 2,140 kg/4,718 lb Efficiency
Curb Weight — 2,180 kg/4,806 lb Winged Efficiency
Towing not permitted
Euro NCAP not but examined
Wheelbase (2998mm/118”)
Size * Width * Peak — (4888mm/192”) * (1896mm/74.6”) * (1450mm/57.1”)

Observations concerning the P7

Let me begin with the seats. They don’t seem to be good; they’re nice. They’re electrically positioned and adjusted in any approach the driving force or passenger likes. They provide not solely heating but additionally a therapeutic massage perform. It was defined to me as a strategy to preserve me awake whereas driving, however it could seemingly put me to sleep. It is extremely stress-free. The good shade and end additionally deserves a point out. The steering wheel will be adjusted with a lever beneath the console, similar to almost each different steering wheel.

Even when doing a take a look at drive, bear in mind to avoid wasting the configuration of your seat, as a result of the seat will withdraw backwards to make it simpler so that you can get out of the automobile. If not saved, it’s important to place the seat once more. Maybe there’s a perform to recall the final place, however it’s not computerized and I didn’t search for it.

I didn’t use the parking help. Maybe I ought to have, as a result of I’m changing into horrible at parking, however when parking backwards, the positioning mirrors reposition downwards to see the road and different vehicles. Good contact. I typically do it manually, however then I’ve to place them again once more when driving regular.

The again seat head rests block the view within the rear-view mirror only a bit. When overtaking, I exploit the rearview mirror to test the gap to the automobile I simply handed. Utilizing the positioning mirrors could make you misjudge the gap, as a result of they don’t seem to be flat however convex. Maybe I ought to have seemed for a digital rear view mirror perform. With the variety of sensors and cameras protecting observe of the environment of the automobile, it needs to be accessible.

Whereas the rear bench/seats are formally vast sufficient for 3 adults, I’ll invite no one for an extended drive sitting on the middle place — no less than not with my sort of vast physique. It’s extra a bridge between the 2 seating positions than a 3rd seating place. It’s tougher and has much less leg room and place in your ft.

An government sitting within the again and having a nap or working is unlikely to complain concerning the leg room. And the seats are heated similar to within the entrance. The cupholders and USB plugs are what you’ll be able to count on from a automobile on this class.

All in all, it’s an important cabin with an important sound system … that I didn’t take a look at. My ears aren’t working correctly anymore, and with out my listening to aids, I’ve problem following a dialog. I adore it when it’s silent in a automobile, and the P7 has sufficient soundproofing to make it snug for me. Even half deaf, many vehicles have an excessive amount of street and driving noise within the cabin to my liking.

Going all the best way to the rear of the automobile, the trunk was an enormous as you might count on of a automobile this measurement.

When driving, I hardly discover the remainder of the cabin, however I’m very a lot in touch with the person interface. With fashionable electrical vehicles, there’s a new approach of designing the best way drivers work together with the car. There’s a huge touchscreen, and there are hardly any bodily knobs and switches in any respect. Not the perfect interface for somebody like me who likes to maintain his eyes on the street and work together with the automobile by contact. It turns into worse while you want studying glasses for the display however can’t have glasses on when driving.

The person interface shouldn’t be as dangerous as some fashionable vehicles, however I might respect extra that I can do by contact with out the necessity to have a look at the display, deciphering complicated menu buildings. To not point out that my outdated parchment pores and skin is usually not seen by the touchscreen.

Managing a automobile by way of a touchscreen is difficult. Don’t begin about getting used to it — I’ve a automobile with a contact display, and touchscreens had been the rationale I stayed with my Nokia 3310 till having a battery electrical automobile pressured me to transition. I now have a Samsung S21 5G top-of-the-line mannequin, not an affordable one thing with third fee components, and after over three years with a smartphone, I nonetheless suppose the Nokia 3310 was a greater device to make voice calls.

Good touchscreens are OK when configuring the automobile when parked and having the handbook in your knees. For something that may (or must) be carried out whereas driving, I feel bodily knobs and switches are superior.

And now the ADAS suite:

Adaptive Cruise Management
Automated Pace limiter
Adaptive Flip Management?
Ahead Distance Monitor
Ahead Collision Warning
Auto Emergency Braking
Site visitors Signal Recognition
Pace Assistant System?
Clever Excessive Beam
Blind Spot Detection
Energetic Lane Change
Lane Coordination Management?
Lane Departure Warning
Lane Preserve Help
Enhanced Lane Preserve
Rear Collision Warning
Rear Cross Site visitors Help
Door Open Warning
Autonomous Parking
Driver State Monitoring
Parking help with 360° digicam

I didn’t take a look at all of those. To be sincere, I didn’t discover or contact most of those.

The motive force state monitoring was most likely the supply of repeated warnings to concentrate to the street, particularly after I was targeting tough driving conditions. There was a voice commenting on my driving, a sound sign, and my seatbelt was tightened a couple of occasions. If I used to be falling asleep, very efficient intervention. On this drive, it was a distraction.

I used adaptive cruise management (ACC) to drive about 100 kilometers on 100 km/h highways and 80 km/h roads. Rush hour was simply beginning, and plenty of different drivers didn’t just like the relaxed approach of driving of the ACC. I feel the ACC was configured for a driving surroundings with a keep-your-lane system. In Europe, we’ve got a keep-to-the-right regulation. This creates totally different driving habits that had been dealt with sub-optimally.

Lane preserve was good. Site visitors signal recognition labored, however when there was a pace restrict for an off-ramp, it utilized it to the primary street, warning me I used to be driving too quick.

All in all, the XPeng P7 is a good automobile. It wants some tuning to the idiosyncrasies of Dutch (European) driving. However with over-the-air (OTA) updates attainable, it should seemingly get lots higher over time.

For these driving lots of kilometers professionally, typically exterior rush hour, the value and vary will make this a really enticing automobile. I can see lots of taxi firms changing their Mercedes E-Class diesels (now the most well-liked cab in some European international locations) with this automobile. The combination of luxurious, vary, and value is good. The Mercedes EQE sedan lacks leg room and head room within the rear seats for ideally suited use as a taxi cab. The EQE SUV does supply extra, however is in one other value class.

Rereading what I’ve written, it is vitally important and doesn’t replicate my enthusiasm for this automobile. It’s a mistake I typically make when discussing the standard, and execs and cons, of a product. Jack Scarlett of Fully Charged voices how I really feel concerning the P7 much better than I can do myself. His video is value your time.

All pictures by Maarten Vinkhuyzen or XPeng.

I do not like paywalls. You do not like paywalls. Who likes paywalls? Right here at CleanTechnica, we carried out a restricted paywall for some time, however it at all times felt unsuitable — and it was at all times robust to determine what we must always put behind there. In idea, your most unique and finest content material goes behind a paywall. However then fewer folks learn it! We simply do not like paywalls, and so we have determined to ditch ours.

Sadly, the media enterprise remains to be a tricky, cut-throat enterprise with tiny margins. It is a unending Olympic problem to remain above water and even maybe — gasp — develop. So …