Digest of the day: big Hongqi, Porsche with “mechanics” and other industry events
The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Digitalization has published photos of several more future novelties of the Chinese market. Certified executive sedan Hongqi L5 second generation, which was introduced in April this year. Stylized as the Hongqi SA770 model of the sixties, it was designed primarily for the Chinese party nomenclature. Dimensions: 5980 mm in length, 2090 mm in width and 1710 mm in height. The wheelbase is 3730 mm. Under the hood of the L5 is a four-liter V8 turbo engine with a capacity of 387 hp, which debuted on the Hongqi LS7 SUV. According to Chinese media, the sedan will cost from 5 million yuan, which is “only” 67 million rubles at the current exchange rate.
Chery has received permission to manufacture an electric crossover Exeed Sterra ET, which will be known as Exlantix ET in the export version. It is quite large: 4955 mm in length, 1975 mm in width and 1698 mm in height. Its wheelbase is exactly three meters. At the start of sales, the manufacturer will offer four versions at once — two rear-wheel drive (252 and 313 hp) and two all-wheel drive (480 and 561 hp). Later, successive hybrids are expected. It is planned to enter the Chinese market at the beginning of next year. Probably, Exlantix ET will reach Russia as well.
The updated Kia Sonet SUV was certified in China, although this model was not sold there before. It has changed optics, bumpers, radiator grille and some other decorative elements. Sonet is the closest relative of the Hyundai Venue SUV, these cars are sold in India, some countries of Southeast Asia, Africa and South America. Apparently, simultaneously with the premiere of the updated version, China will be added to this list.
Li Auto has published images of its first all-electric model and, concurrently, its first production minivan. Li Auto Mega has an unusual body shape with a sloping roof. There is practically no technical information — it is only known that the platform is based on an 800-volt electrical equipment. According to Chinese media, Mega will cost about 500 thousand yuan (6.7 million rubles at the current exchange rate). The debut is expected in December.
American media reports that General Motors, contrary to initial plans, decided to postpone the start of production of electric pickups Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV at the Orion plant near Detroit until at least the end of 2025. For the next two years, both cars will be produced only at the Factory Zero site in Detroit itself. A GM spokesman said there was a need for “some technical improvements” at the Orion plant to increase the profitability of pickup truck production. But in addition, we are talking about an insufficiently high demand for the production of models at two factories at once.
The company Porsche has stated that it will try to keep the manual transmission on sports cars of the 911 and 718 families for as long as possible. Despite the fact that in recent years the trend of abandoning “mechanics” in the automotive industry has only intensified (not least due to stricter environmental requirements), in Porsche is not going to abandon the three-pedal versions until the cars with internal combustion engines have completely gone down in history.
In Russia, the launch of sales of updated crossovers Geely Coolray has been announced. The restyled model has a new four-cylinder turbo engine (147 hp, 270 Nm), a modified design of the front and rear parts of the body, as well as a different interior design. The gearbox is a seven—speed “robot” with two clutches. The recommended prices were announced in early October: from 2 million 595 thousand rubles for the basic Comfort package to 2 million 935 thousand rubles for the top version Exclusive.
A conference dedicated to environmentally friendly technologies in the automotive industry and plans for the development of these areas is being held in the Chinese city of Wuhu (Anhui Province). During the event, a rechargeable hybrid Exeed RX (Exeed Yaoguang in China), which has a 156 hp gasoline turbo engine and an electric motor, was demonstrated. Plus, they showed an electric sedan Exeed Sterra ES. Both new items will appear here: the debut on the Russian market is expected next year.
An updated crossover Tata Harrier is presented in India. This model is based on a very much cheaper D8 platform, taken from the Land Rover Discovery Sport model. The crossover has acquired a new front end design, as well as a redesigned interior. From a technical point of view, the Harrier remained a “national hodgepodge”: a Land Rover platform, a two-liter Fiat turbodiesel (168 hp) and a six-speed Hyundai automatic (there is also a manual transmission). Later, a one-and-a-half-liter gasoline turbo engine is planned to be added to the range. Prices — from 18 thousand dollars.
The electric hatchback Hyundai Ioniq 5 for the American market has a special version dedicated to the centenary… Disney film companies! This Ioniq 5 Disney 100 Platinum Edition differs from the base model in the golden color of the body, the special design of the wheels, as well as numerous decorative stripes “Disney 100” in the cabin. In addition, the media system has a splash screen with the logo of the media corporation. About 1,000 such Ionics will be produced for the US market.
Also today we talked about the new models Livan, a car tower based on the van Sollers Atlant and the news BMW.