Confirmed: XPeng P7+ under study for Australia

A brainiac Chinese luxury electric car is being touted for Australia as a cut-price replacement for the iconic but departed Tesla Model S.

It’s called the XPeng P7+ and it has just made its Aussie debut at the Melbourne EV Show.

Already on sale in China and previously shown off in Europe, the P7+ is currently being studied for Australian introduction by the local importer, TrueEV.

And TrueEV CEO Jason Clarke made no bones about how much he would like to bring the five-door rear-wheel-drive hatch in and where he sees it fitting in the market.

“This is a fantastic car; it’s been a very popular car in China but hasn’t been seen before in Australia,” he said.

“I remember seeing the Tesla Model S for the first time and thinking it was amazing. Sadly, that’s not made in right-hand drive for us here in Australia so potentially the P7+ could fill the void.

“Our job at TrueEV is to see if there is a market for the P7+. We have purchased this car, brought it in and have studies being done testing the market.

“If we find there is a strong market for it we will put strong pressure on head office to bring it into Australia.”

The P7+ would bring an enormous amount of high-end tech with it if it did come to Australia, but Clarke promised its pricing would still undercut the luxury car tax threshold of $91,387 for fuel efficient vehicles.

“The [P7+] price range? We are always trying to get with the XPeng brand within the luxury car tax threshold, but this is a luxury executive sedan so it’s going to be pushing it,” Clarke said.

“But the guidance is under it [LCT].”

Just for comparison’s sake, when the Model S disappeared from Tesla’s Australian website in 2021pricing started at $129,990 (plus on-road costs).

The P7+ is priced from about $A40,000 in China.

The P7+ on display in Melbourne is fitted with a 230kW e-motor and a 76.3kWh battery, has a claimed 560km-610km range based on WLTP testing and a slick 0.206 aerodynamic drag coefficient to aid economy.

XPeng claims the P7+ can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 5.9 seconds and recharge from 10 to 80 per cent battery capacity courtesy of its 800-volt electrical architecture in just 12 minutes.

The P7+ is loaded with tech, including what is claimed to be world-first AI-defined smart-driving, cockpit intelligence and high-end automated driving assistants powered by XPeng’s own Turing chip.

“AI-defined basically means the car adapts to you,” explained Clarke. “It’s learning about you and it’s learning about the conditions.

“The AI needs cameras for processing and fast rendering speeds for getting all that information into the cockpit so you are safe, that your conditions are known and the car adapts.

“But also looking at your ride, the quality of your ride and the quality of your decision making. So that might mean constantly reviewing how you drive and battery usage.

“So again, AI is learning about how you are using it, how you are drawing on the battery and giving you tips on how to be a more efficient and safer driver.”

The P7+ is a physically big car, measuring up at 5065mm long, 1937mm wide and 1512mm tall. The boot opens up to offer 725 or 2221 litres of space depending on whether the rear seat is folded or not.

There is also a 20-speaker audio system in the cabin and multiple digital screens for the driver and passengers.

The P7+ is one of a bevy of new XPeng models either confirmed or under consideration for Australia including the G9 SUV, X9 people-mover, Mona M03 compact sedan and G7 SUV.

TrueEV, which only launched retail operations last year, currently sells two versions of the G6 SUV in Australia, with an all-wheel-drive Performance model expected to be added to the line-up soon.

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