Date: Mar 29, 2019
The biggest advantage of Aion S could be affordability
The GAC New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. (GAC NE), the newest arm of GAC, recently announced specifications for the upcoming Aion S all-electric sedan, scheduled for market launch in China in May 2019.
The car, which was by GAC compared to the Tesla Model 3, is equipped with the latest NCM 811 battery cells supplied by CATL. The total capacity is 58.8 kWh, which should be enough for 510 km (317 miles) under NEDC. In the real world, we would expect more than 350 km (218 miles) of range.
Such a result could be compared only to the base Model 3 Standard, but watching videos with Aion S we feel it’s nowhere close to being on par with the Model 3 in terms of overall design. However, the Aion S opens the possibility to drive a long-range and affordable EV, which is very important.
GAC NE will produce the Aion S at its new Smart Eco-Plant, completed in December 2018, and envisioned for 200,000 cars per year in the future. The investment amounted to RMB 2.13 billion (US$ 310 million).
