Gigantic Chinese Nio ET9 electric car guns for German limos with advanced battery tech that adds 255km in less than five minutes
China’s Nio has pulled the drapes off the Nio ET9 it hopes will steal sales from luxurious European brands Mercedes-Maybach, Bentley and, even, Rolls-Royce when it lands in China in 2025 priced from 800,000 yuan ($165,000).
Unveiled by company CEO William Li (pictured above) at the car-maker’s Nio Day 2023 it holds for investors and the media, the flagship Nio ET9 blends a limousine, SUV and coupe all in one very large vehicle.
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It’s so big in fact the car-maker refers to it as a ‘Landjet’, comparing it to a billionaire’s private jet.
Riding on huge 23-inch alloy wheels and offering up to 200mm of ground clearance, the ET9 measures in at 5325mm long, 2016mm wide and stands 1620mm tall and has a stretched 3250mm wheelbase.
The latest model is 109mm longer, 90mm wider and 108mm taller than the Mercedes-Benz EQS, with a 40mm longer wheelbase.
As well as its biggest new offering, the ET9 is also Nio’s most advanced car as it is based on the car-maker’s latest platform that introduces the firm’s all-new 900-volt electrical architecture that, along with a 1200-volt silicon carbide power module, allows the battery to be charged at up to 600kW.
At that rate as much as 255km of range can be added in just five minutes.
Other new tech introduced includes small more power dense motors and a new wiring harness that is claimed to save weight and improve interior packaging.
Speaking of those motors, the ET9 features a 180kW front motor and a larger 340kW drive unit on the rear axle that produce a combined total of 520kW. Feeding both current is a large 120kWh battery of unknown chemistry. The new motors are said to be capable of spinning up to 20,000rpm.
Nio is expected to detail the range later but we expect it to cover at least 800km.
Like other Nio models, the new ET9 is fully compatible with the car-maker’s fourth-gen Power Charger and Power Swap Station, with the latter exchanging the battery for a new fully charged power pack in less than three minutes.
Other technical advances introduced by Nio’s all-new ET9 include a fly-by-why throttle, gear shift, steering and brakes, with no mechanical connection between any major components and the driver controls.
Nio has also introduced a fully active SkyRide suspension system that eliminates body roll, pitch and dive under braking and acceleration and allows wheel travel of up to 220mm. There’s also four-wheel steering as standard.
Within, the SUV-coupe’s large dimensions translate into a luxurious cabin with plenty of space for four due to its generous two-plus-two layout.
The rear seats are the interior’s highlight, featuring 11-way adjustment and can fully recline by 45-degrees.
Ahead of the two loungers are a pair of 14.5-inch OLED screens attached to the front seats.
Above, the cabin is bathed in light with a full-length panoramic roof that along with the high-riding cabin is said to provide all onboard with a “reassuring and calm experience”.
When all that light gets too much, those in the rear have the choice of up to seven sun electric sunblinds to unwind with just one click.
Other highlights within include the ‘executive bridge’ that separates the two rear passengers and includes fold-out tables and a 10-litre fridge.
Powering all the advanced tech’s software is Nio’s latest SkyOS operating system that runs its NX9031 chip that is claimed to be capable of an astonishing 6 trillion commands per second – 75 per cent faster than current cars.
Expected to roll out in early 2025, when the Chinese car-maker’s latest EV will challenge everything from the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV, BMW i7 to traditional combustion-powered luxury vehicles from the likes of Mercedes-Maybach.
