China is already having an outsize impact on Australia’s electric vehicle market – nearly all the most popular EVs are made in China, including the best selling Tesla Model Y and Model 3, and China brands such as BYD and MG are among the best performing.
Indeed, according to The Driven’s month by month sales data, the top six EVs sold in Australia so far in 2024 are all made in China. Now, a new wave of Chinese owned or Chinese based brands are about to enter the Australian market, offering a dramatic increase in the number, size and price of electric options.
Today we take a look at some of these cars that are going to be making it onto our roads.
Xpeng G6
Xpeng, one of the best-known EV brands in China has now opened pre-orders for the first electric car model that it will bring to Australia, the sleek G6 electric SUV.
The G6 SUV is similar in size to Australia’s best-selling EV the Tesla Model Y and is expected to be priced to compete with the Tesla which starts $55,900 before on-roads.
This SUV will be offered in two variants which include the G6 Standard and Long Range.
Locally, both are initially offered with a rear-wheel-drive powertrain that is based on an 800V architecture which allows for faster charging.
The official charging specs are currently not known for the local configuration but it’s expected to deliver DC fast-charging speeds of up to 215 kW.
Speaking of charging, there will be two batteries on offer depending on the variant. The Standard model offering includes a 66 kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery with a range of up to 435 km on a single charge.
This base variant can accelerate from 0-100 km/h in just 6.9 seconds with its 190 kW motor that delivers up to 440 Nm of torque.
Above the Standard variant, there is also a long-range model called Long that comes equipped with a larger 87.5 kWh battery. This pack offers a range of up to 570 km which is quite respectable.
The online configurator shows that the Xpeng G6 will come in multiple colours including silver, white, grey, black and the model’s iconic orange.
The announcement of the arrival came in May this year as the company partnered with a local distributor TrueEV, to help the brand launch in our market.
Those interested can place a pre-order by visiting the company’s local website. Pricing and specs are likely to be announced by September with first deliveries in Q4 of 2024.
Zeekr X and Zeekr 009
Zeekr is Geely Holding Group’s premium EV brand and shares it’s parent company with Volvo cars, Polestar and various other brands.
The Zeekr X is one of its small SUV offerings which is expected to be launched in the coming months.
This sleek electric SUV was originally unveiled to the world last year with the brand dubbing it one of the fastest small premium SUVs on the market.
The Zeekr X has already entered European market with vehicles being sold in markets like Germany with a starting price of €44,990.
That is competitive on the pricing front with the Tesla Model Y in that market and provides a hint of what it might be priced at here in Australia.
In other markets, a 66 kWh ternary lithium battery pack is on offer which delivers a peak power of 315 kW, peak torque of 543 Nm, and acceleration of 0-100 km/h in only 3.7 seconds.
This model has received EuroNCAP’s 5-star safety rating which is likely to be carried over to Australian-delivered vehicles.
Local specifications and pricing details are expected to be announced in the coming months before the model’s official local launch. Deliveries of the first customer cars are expected by Q4 in 2024.
On the back of this, Zeekr’s next model the luxurious 009 people mover is also penciled for arrival in late 2024.
smart #1 and the smart #3
Smart Automobile, a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and China’s Geely Holdings is planning on bringing multiple electric vehicles to the Australian market in 2024.
Smart joint venture partner Geely already has major stakes in brands that are currently available in Australia including Volvo Cars, Polestar, Zeekr, Lotus and more.
Smart has announced that it will bring two electric SUV models to the Australian market, the smart #1 and the smart #3, which will be distributed through LSH Auto.
Both the smart EV will be offered with a high-performance Brabus version and will include up to 440 km of range with the brand suggesting that the pricing of these premium vehicles will be highly competitive with non-premium EV offerings of a similar size.
Over in the UK, the smart #1 is priced from £35,950 which is similarly priced to the BYD Atto 3 which starts at £37,695.
A pricing comparison shows that both of these cars are priced under the Tesla Model Y which starts at £44,990. Similarly, the smart #3 starts at £32,950.
The smart #1 and smart #3 come with a 62 kWh battery pack in other markets. Variants of the smart #1 can deliver a total power output of 200 kW along with a peak torque of 343 Nm.
Orders of the new smart vehicles are expected to open this month for customer deliveries as early as September this year.
Local pricing and specifications of both smart models will likely be available closer to the launch in the coming weeks.
Leapmotor
Another Chinese brand that has announced its launch is Leapmotor which has forged an alliance with global car major Stellantis.
This alliance plans to introduce a suite of low-cost electric hatchbacks and SUVs into multiple markets, including Australia.
The Stellantis group is a large automotive player in the global market and already owns popular global brands like Jeep, Peugeot, Fiat, Citroen and more. This partnership with the Stellantis Group came after the automotive giant invested €1.5 billion to acquire approximately 21% equity in Leapmotor back in October 2023.
Plans for the new venture aim to launch in the Australian market with the first low-cost EVs to be brought to Australia before the end of 2024. This will come after the official European launch in the coming months.
In Europe, Leapmotor International will start with two electric models in its lineup. This will include the Yaris-sized and extremely low cost T03, and the C10, a bigger SUV.
Starting with the T03 is a small electric hatchback that is offered in China at prices starting at the equivalent of $A12,780. It offers up to 265 km of WLTP range. In the Chinese market, it comes equipped with a 36.5 kWh battery pack.
It also comes with a motor that powers the front wheels delivers 55 kW of power and offers up to 155 Nm of peak torque. This is plenty for inner-city driving and short-distance trips.
Size-wise, it’s slightly smaller in length than a Toyota Yaris but is longer than a Kia Picanto.
The next model in the lineup is the C10 which is heading to Europe under this partnership. It is a larger family SUV and has received a 5-star Euro NCAP safety rating.
When it comes to range, the C10 can deliver up to 420 km of WLTP range on a single charge. In China, the pricing of this model starts at under $A27,000 which is aimed at the more affordable end of the market.
Past the first two models, the company also plans to release at least one new model every year, starting with another SUV in 2025.
The local launch is expected to be in Q4 this year. More information on the Australian lineup, pricing, specs and launch dates will be released in the coming months.
Others
On top of the brands and models mentioned here, there have been whispers of a few other brands that might be heading our way.
More on these as announcements are made for our local market but in the meantime, one thing is for sure, the Australian EV landscape is about to get a whole lot more competitive for legacy automakers.
With these launches and EV sales continuing to grow, drivers across the country will have a lot more choice than just ICE and polluting hybrid vehicles.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.