WionDrive News Desk 
As Xiaomi gears up to take orders for its first electric vehicle this week, the CEO said that the company aims for it to be the “best looking, easiest to drive and smartest car” priced below 500,000 yuan (USD 69,424). The company will announce the official price range of the SU7 vehicle on March 28 and start taking orders as well. CEO Lei Jun’s comments were made on his official Weibo account, marking the first time the company has confirmed the upper end of its price range.
Xiaomi unveiled the car in December last year and the anticipation for the vehicle has been building up since then. The company announced that it aims to become one of the world’s top five automakers and has touted the SU7 to have technology capable of delivering acceleration better than Tesla and Porsche’s EVs.
Meanwhile, several Xiaomi stores have already begun displaying the car, with prospective customers and car bloggers lining up in one central Beijing showroom to get a close view of the “ocean blue” and other versions. To be precise, the car has been currently displayed in seventy-six Xiaomi stores in 29 Chinese cities. The company also uploaded its “Xiaomi Car” app to Chinese app stores for the convenience of potential customers.
A potential buyer, Jim Yan, admired the SU7’s curves and design aimed at decreasing drag. “Whether it’s Xiaomi’s phones or Xiaomi’s cars, their design is very original,” said the 28-year-old professional, who works in the legal industry. Yan and many other consumers of Xiaomi’s cheaper phones and home electronics believe that the brand has gained a reputation of providing good value. “In my mind, Xiaomi’s pricing is at most mid-range. If the price is too high, especially since this is their first car, I think it remains to be tested by the market,” Yan said.
Xiaomi will offer the SU7 in two versions – one with a driving range of up to 668km (415 miles) on a single charge and another with a range of up to 800km. The company has pledged to invest USD 10 billion in autos over a decade and is one of the few new players in China’s EV market to gain approval from authorities.
