There is a lot of expectation for the project of the Chinese technology giant Xiaomi to throw a electric car to the market. A project about which its co-founder and executive director, Lei Jun, has given new and interesting details this week.
According to Mr Lei: “Xiaomi’s car manufacturing has progressed beyond expectations and the prototypes recently successfully completed winter testing.«.
As we recall, Xiaomi, the world’s third-largest smartphone maker by sales volume behind Samsung and Apple, first announced plans to begin development of electric cars in 2021.
At that time, Xiaomi indicated that it intended to invest up to 10 billion yuan, or 1.3 billion euros, in its new electric car division over the next 10 years. A clearly insufficient amount to launch a brand, and which includes, in addition to research and development, the launch of its own factory.
Xiaomi’s first production model, a saloon codenamed MS11, was shown off in a series of images leaked to Chinese social media in January. A proposal that is expected to be presented throughout this year, with a production that Lei himself has indicated will take place in 2024.
At the moment the technical details are scarce, and we know that it will be a sedan that will be placed by size above the Tesla Model 3, but below the Model S.
According to Chinese media, the Xiaomi MS11 will be positioned in a mid-range to high-end price range and will be offered in two different versions: a base model with a BYD lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteryand a more expensive model that will take a battery of CATL sodium ions.
It really is very possible that in the end it is just the other way around, since as we remember, CATL’s work seeks to offer a sodium battery for models with medium autonomy, with the aim of reaching 500 kilometers with each charge. Something below the premium models that already exceed those approved figures.
It is also rumored that the new Xiaomi model will receive an autonomous driving system with Lidar sensors from Hesai Technology. One of the companies with the greatest experience and greatest development in its design and manufacture.
A family of electric cars that has been indicated will continue to grow after the MS11, and that by 2025 another four proposals will be presented that will make up a true family, including, of course, an SUV.
Vehicles that will leave a plant that the technology company has been building in Beijing since 2022, which they hope to have completed by the second part of this year.
