Chinese electric vehicle maker Xpeng made its European ambitions clear on Thursday, as the firm unveiled its Mona L03 compact SUV at an event in the heart of Germany’s car industry, Munich.
The launch, arguably the largest ever staged in Europe by a Chinese carmaker, was not just about introducing a new model, but also about convincing Europe that Xpeng is here to stay.
“We are here not only to bring our products to Europe, but also to build them for Europe,” said He Xiaopeng, Xpeng’s chairman and CEO, as he opened his first keynote delivered entirely in English – after joking that listeners would have to forgive his “Hubei accent”.
He said the company chose Germany because it was “the home of the auto industry”. Less than two years after entering the country, Xpeng is targeting 8,000 sales in Germany this year, rising to 20,000 next year.
The L03’s pricing underscored that ambition. Starting at €35,600 (US$40,700) in Germany, it undercuts Tesla’s Model Y – Europe’s bestselling electric car – by more than €3,000, and Audi’s Q4 e-tron by over €10,000.
At the venue bar, however, guests were talking as much about the company itself as its new model. Volkswagen Group, which owns about 5 per cent of Xpeng, loomed over many conversations.
While the German auto giant is reportedly considering cutting up to 100,000 jobs across the group, including at Porsche and Audi, its partner from China is expanding aggressively into its backyard.