Xiaopeng Motors or Xpeng for short, has recently secured a $350 million worth of funding from Alibaba Group (the e-commerce giant), Foxconn Technology Group, and IDG Capital. Owing to the recent release of its G3 SUV at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which rivals the likes of Tesla X, Xpeng has been able to woo investors in its favor. Xpeng is positive it will release the G3 SUV to showrooms early this year, firstly in China.
The total funding up till now, which also includes Yunfeng Capital, China International Capital Corp and Morning Ventures, has reached $800 million. This amount may not be enough for designing, testing and producing the electric vehicle, therefore to reduce the costs of production Xpeng will delegate production to its counterpart, Haima.
The G3 is the first-generation SUV which accommodates 5 people. Though it rivals the Tesla Model X it is not that costly. It costs a family-worthy $40,000, which is one-third the price of the Model X. Producing the vehicle in China, allows tax reliefs to the automaker and thus the price is competitive.
The electric SUV is expected to produce 190 hp using its electric motors and reach a top speed of 105 mph, all good for about 186 miles before the next recharge. Further details for the G3 will be unveiled later this year when the SUV formally launches.