Translation: Ideal i8 Comes, Still Headstrong
The Ideal i8, launched on July 29th, is of great significance to Ideal Automobile.
Although it's not a life-or-death battle, various signs indicate that Ideal may struggle to accept the challenges in the pure electric vehicle market. This not only concerns their morale but also implies that they won't be given much space and time for experimentation by the market.
Can Ideal prove itself again in the pure electric vehicle market? The brand's reputation as "the most innovative product manager" of founder Li Xiaoyu will be put to the test. But things seem to be going awry, with the stock price plummeting 12.84% since the launch.
The decline in stock price does not necessarily mean that the product or its release were failures. Rather, it reflects the market's revaluation of risks and emotional release at a specific node. To judge the success of Ideal i8, we need to consider both the short-term perspective of the capital market and long-term validation.
Will Ideal i8 become increasingly "attractive"?
Still "Radical" Product Design
The Ideal i8 is another pre-release "Internet celebrity car" with its design and features revealed in advance. The price has become the focal point, with three versions launched to reduce users' migration threshold to pure electric vehicles.
However, compared with future potential competitors such as Model Y L and M8 electric versions, the price advantage is not particularly striking.
The supporting factors for the pricing strategy may be Ideal's proud product design philosophy.
From the release information, Ideal i8's core selling points can be summarized as "the experience of riding in a sedan, the space of an MPV, and the passing ability of an SUV." Li Xiaoyu also stated on Weibo that this is a product aimed at "defining pure electric SUVs again."
Whether or not it can redefine SUVs remains to be seen, but this is indeed a unique vehicle.
In terms of design, it continues the MEGA's design style, retaining its controversial shape and adopting a more inclined windshield and front grille to create a design that is closer to a water droplet. It continues to "challenge mainstream aesthetics."
This design mainly serves the goals of space and comfort. Official data shows that even with six people on board, the rear trunk has a depth of 565mm, capable of accommodating two 28-inch suitcases and four backpacks, meeting the needs of family users for one week's travel.
To alleviate user concerns about range anxiety, Ideal i8 is equipped with three lithium-ion 5C superchargers, providing 90.1kWh and 97.8kWh battery versions, corresponding to CLTC driving ranges of 670km and 720km. More importantly, Ideal has set up the "Nine Vertical and Nine Horizontal High-Speed Supercharger Network" for i8, with an average distance of 152km between each charging station, covering all provinces and cities in China. Combining with the 5C supercharging technology, the company claims that it can achieve a performance of "increasing range by 500km after charging for 10 minutes." Li Xiaoyu stated at the launch that "the charging station is i8's most competitive configuration."
In general, in the pure electric vehicle market, Ideal has continued to emphasize space advantages and reduced range anxiety. However, from current market feedback, things don't look too optimistic.
Relative "Passive" Market Space
But the time left for Ideal i8 is not particularly long.
On July 31st, Li Xiang's brand, L90, will officially launch a positionally similar product with a starting price of 27.99 million yuan and an electric battery rental package priced at 19.39 million yuan, forming strong pricing competition.
The M8 pure electric version is also open for pre-orders and plans to launch in August, targeting the smart car market with a starting price of 37.8 million yuan and Huawei's ADS 4.0 intelligent driving system.