The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Digitalization has published photos of several more future novelties of the Chinese market. The Hongqi L 5 executive sedan of the second generation, which was introduced in April this year, has been certified. 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 the Exeed Sterra ET electric crossover, 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.
In China, the updated Kia Sonet SUV was certified, 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 basis is a platform with 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 at least until 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.
Porsche has stated that it will try to keep the manual transmission on sports cars of the 911 and 718 families 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), Porsche is not going to abandon the three-pedal versions, while cars with internal combustion engines have not completely gone down in history.
In Russia, the start of sales of updated Geely Coolray crossovers 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. 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 of 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). As part of the event, the Exeed RX rechargeable hybrid (Exeed Yaoguang in China), which has a 156 hp gasoline turbo engine and an electric motor, which has not yet been put on sale, 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.
The updated Tata Harrier crossover 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 Hyundai Ioniq 5 electric hatchback 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 Livan models, a car tower based on the Sollers Atlant van and BMW news.