these are all the key dates

On December 28, 2023, Xiaomi introduced the Xiaomi SU7, the company’s first electric car. A product that seeks to change the company and take it to the next level. In less than a year, his sales skyrocketed and he set a new record at the Nürburgring. This is a meteoric rise chart.

March 2021. There are more than two years left until we find out all the details about Xiaomi SU7, when Reuters comes out with the news. Xiaomi will produce the electric car at Great Wall Motors facilities. So, the rumors have been gaining momentum for some time now, as one of the Chinese media outlets already repeated this information in February.

The information had an immediate effect. The company issued a statement denying the possibility of producing an electric car, although it indicated that it was considering entering the automobile business one way or another. Support for both companies followed immediately, thanks to the growth of the stock market of Xiaomi and Great Wall Motors.

October 2021. Lei Jun is responsible for confirming what is already becoming an open secret: Xiaomi will produce its own electric car. Since then, the weight of the allegations has fallen on the company’s CEO and founder. The car is slated to be ready by 2024, the year the company wants to begin mass production sometime between January and June.

Investments are very powerful. Over the next 10 years, 10 billion euros will be allocated for the project. Thus, it was not yet known whether the car would be a sedan, an SUV and how much the car would be rebranded, since in 2013 the company already tried to take this last step under its Redmi sub-brand.

November 2021. Xiaomi not only confirms that it will produce an electric car, but also reveals its sales targets. Again, this Reuters who has access to the information and the agency that begins to disclose data from the company’s roadmap.

Contrary to expectations, it will not be Great Wall Motors that will assemble the cars. The plant, they said, will be built in Beijing’s E-Town area, a business and technological development zone promoted by the Chinese administration. They claim that the goal is to produce 300,000 cars in 2024.

December 28, 2023. Announced two days earlier, the Xiaomi SU7 can be seen (officially) at a four-hour event where the company takes shots at the kings of the market: Tesla and Porsche. “By working hard over the next 15 to 20 years, we will become one of the top five largest automobile manufacturers in the world,” Lei Jun said during the presentation.

The car comes in relatively affordable versions, starting from 27,000 euros for a direct replacement. It comes in versions with 295 hp and a more powerful 664 hp, with a battery from associations of Western companies with great tradition in this sector, very advanced autonomous driving and batteries with capacities of 73.1 kWh and 101 kWh, providing a range of up to 800 kilometers. The approval cycle in China.

According to Lei Jun, only 1,003 days have passed since the brand approved its plan to introduce an electric vehicle to the market.

April 2024. Xiaomi SU7 reaches its first owners. The frenzy over getting the company’s first car was unleashed. During an event at the factory where the car is made, the Chinese company delivers it to a group of lucky winners. Those who buy a car now will have to wait seven months to receive it.

Images are the result of enormous recognition from potential customers. The brand claims that it received 10,000 orders for the car in the first four minutes. In seven minutes, 20,000 reservations were made, and the 50,000 reservation limit was exceeded in 27 minutes.

In just 24 hours, 88,898 orders. To give us a better idea, in March of this year alone there were 94,840 vehicles registered in Spain… of all types of energy, from diesel to pure electric. According to Xiaomi, its stores were logging requests for 90 to 120 dynamic tests per day, with wait times ranging from two to five days.

July 2024. The first results of these massive sales are already visible. In June alone, the company has already managed to list over 10,000 units on the market after April and May when they crossed 7,000 and 8,000 units respectively. By the end of the year, they aim to become one of the 10 largest manufacturers in China.

There are already talks of Xiaomi breaking the 100,000 unit production figure in the first year and they are starting to aim for the 120,000 unit target. Shifts at the plant are already doubling, and rumors are starting to spread that they want to expand it to handle more cars.

August 2024. If sales skyrocketed, you would expect earnings to skyrocket. Converted to launch which sells the most electric vehicles, its sales revenue rose to $12.5 billion in the second quarter of the year, 32% above forecasts, and its shares continued to rise another 16%.

Despite this, Xiaomi faces a real challenge: making its electric vehicle viable. Because income is one thing, and profit is another. IN Reuters They claim the company loses about $8,000 on every unit produced. As with any economy of scale, there is a risk before sufficient production to make a profit is achieved.

Engine. Also in August, Xiaomi presents its V8s engine, the first electric vehicle engine produced by the company. So far, the units released on the market have electric motors from third-party suppliers; this is the first one specially developed by the company.

It is this engine that will be used in the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra, which promises to be the company’s most powerful electric car and the prototype of which was presented in July 2024. The numbers, as usual, are once again staggering. It reaches 27,200 rpm (the highest on the market) and can produce up to 578 hp. combined with the latest CATL batteries, which guarantee very high performance even at capacities below 20%.

October 28, 2024. After several attempts interrupted by rain, Xiaomi manages to launch the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra prototype on the asphalt of the Nürburgring. It manages to become the fastest electric car and “four-door” (among the prototypes) on the circuit.

His time at 6’46” 874 is stratospheric. It beats the Tesla Model S Plaid by 40 seconds, but at the same time we must remember that this is a car designed to achieve the best time on the legendary car. Overall, this is a serious warning for traditional manufacturers.

October 29, 2024. The company presents Xiaomi SU7 Ultra at the same event where it presents the latest Xiaomi 15 and Xiaomi 15 Pro, Xiaomi Watch S4 or HyperOS 2.0. An unconventional presentation of a very unconventional car.

Xiaomi SU7 Ultra is recognized as one of the most advanced electric vehicles in the world. Its three electric motors deliver 1,548 hp and it covers 0 to 100 km/h in 1.98 seconds and 0 to 200 km/h in 5.86 seconds. Its maximum speed is 350 km/h.

Forecasts. And with less than two months left until 2024, the good news for Xiaomi may not be over yet. While announcing the latest version of its electric vehicle, Xiaomi also confirmed that they have already crossed the 20,000 unit shipping mark per month.

These figures put it among the top 10 Chinese companies that sell the most cars, ahead of NIO and very close to XPeng. If everything goes as expected, the goal of 100,000 units sold will be a thing of the past. With more than 75,000 units between April and October and a production rate of more than 20,000 units per month, the figure at the end of 2024 will be very close to 120,000 vehicles produced.

Photo | Xiaomi

In Hatak | I saw the Xiaomi electric car up close: SU7 is a clear proof of the future of the brand