Xpeng is expected to launch facelifted versions of three existing models, the P7, G3 and P5, as well as two new models, including a coupe SUV and an MPV.
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Xpeng (NYSE: XPEV) will launch more models this year than previously thought, as it tries to regain relevance in the increasingly competitive Chinese electric vehicle market.
Xpeng will launch five models in 2023, including all-new models as well as facelifts, He Xiaopeng, the company's chairman and CEO, said in a letter to employees today, according to local auto media outlet Yiche.
Today is the first working day after the Chinese New Year holiday from January 21 to January 27, even though it is the weekend on the calendar. The helmsmen of several automakers kicked off a new year for their companies with internal staff letters.
The latest numbers revealed by Mr. He are higher than the three models previously mentioned by Xpeng during its earnings call, Yiche's report noted, adding that Xpeng is expected to launch facelifted versions of three of existing models -- the P7, G3 and P5, while the all-new models will be a coupe SUV and an MPV.
In a conference call with analysts following the release of its third-quarter earnings on November 30, 2022, Xpeng management said the company has three model platforms, including the completed E platform, and the third-generation F and H platforms scheduled for completion in 2023.
Xpeng will launch a facelift of the P7 sedan and a B-class SUV priced at RMB 200,000-300,000 in the first half of 2023, the company said at the time, adding that the facelifted P7 will be more competitive across the board and take on the technological advantages of the G9.
Last December 14, local media Jiemian reported that Xpeng plans to launch three new models in 2023: a facelift of the hot-selling sedan P7, an SUV internally codenamed F30 and an MPV internally codenamed H93.
The three models will come from Xpeng's E, F and H platforms after the organizational restructuring in November, of which the facelifted P7 has already appeared on the regulatory filing list, the report noted.
Internally codenamed F30, the model is a coupe SUV from the F platform, which is related to the company's flagship SUV G9 like Porsche's Macan and Cayenne, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The F30 is now widely seen as a new SUV that could be called the Xpeng G7.
Last month, a spy video showed that Xpeng may be testing an MPV codenamed H93, which is expected to be launched in the second half of 2023.
A list of models that will soon be allowed to be sold in China, published by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on November 17, 2022, had showed what the new Xpeng P7 will look like.
The new P7 does not differ much from the current model in terms of appearance, with the most significant change being the availability of a LiDAR option, which is expected to give the model enhanced assisted driving capabilities.
On January 18, local media Auto Time reported that Xpeng will launch two models for overseas markets in 2023 and a third model for overseas markets in 2024.
Xpeng aims to turn an operating profit in 2025, the report quoted Mr. He as saying at an annual staff meeting at the time.
Xpeng's performance in 2022 was weak, especially in the second half when deliveries plummeted until December when it was back above 10,000 units.
According to Auto Time's report last week, Mr. He believes the Xpeng G9 and P7 are highly successful products and the sales decline is only temporary.
In 2023 and 2024, Xpeng G9 and the revamped P7 can bring Xpeng back to track and become one of the top two in the segments where the products are in, He believes.
