Xiaomi SU7 EV to be Displayed in India, Unlikely to be Launched Here

Xiaomi will show off its first-ever EV, the SU7, in India on July 9 when it celebrates its 10th anniversary in the country. In a teaser posted across social media, Xiaomi India Associate Director - Marketing and PR, Sandeep Sarma, showed a large truck, presumably carrying a display car from where it was imported. The Times of India reports that an SU7 unit has been brought into India and will be exhibited to the company’s partners and stakeholders, as well as the general public. Xiaomi will also be launching its budget-friendly Redmi 13 5G smartphone on July 9. 

It is extremely unlikely that any announcement will be made about launch plans for the vehicle in India. The SU7, Xiaomi’s halo product, went on sale in China earlier this year and racked up 88,898 pre-orders on the day bookings opened. The company said at the time that its entire production capacity for 2024, amounting to 120,000 units, had been reserved. The car was subsequently exhibited at the MWC trade show in Barcelona, indicating that Europe might be Xiaomi’s next target for an international rollout. 

While other Chinese EV manufacturers are doing well in India, the report suggests that Xiaomi still considers it too early to enter the car market here. The company also sells various lifestyle products and appliances in its home country that have not been launched in India, as it evaluates what will work in each market. 

The launch of the SU7, following three years of planning and development, marked the technology company’s expansion into a massive new industry. Xiaomi has stated that it plans to be one of the world’s top five carmakers within 20 years, and has invested over RMB 10 billion (approximately Rs. 11,159 crore) on developing the SU7, with over 3,400 engineers working on it. Xiaomi’s first EV is marketed as a premium, high-performance “eco-technology” sedan, suggesting that additional models at lower prices are planned for the future.

The car is integral to Xiaomi’s ecosystem play, with the company’s Android-based HyperOS software and cloud-based services unifying users’ experiences across their phones, appliances, work devices, and now cars. Xiaomi intends to use AI to anticipate users’ needs based on behaviour. 

The base SU7, priced at RMB 215,900 in China (approximately Rs. 24.90 lakh), has a 73.6kWh battery, a claimed range of up to 700km, and top speed of 210 kmph. It can accelerate from 0-100kmph in 5.28 seconds. The mid-range SU7 Pro has a rated range of 830km with a higher-capacity 94.3kWh battery. The top-end SU7 Max is equipped with dual electric motors and offers all-wheel drive. It has an even larger 101kWh battery, and its top speed is 265kmph, going from 0-100kmph in 2.78 seconds. However, its range is still rated at 800km. It costs RMB 299,900 (approximately Rs. 34.59 lakh).

Xiaomi also offers camera-only and radar-enhanced ADAS, which it calls Xiaomi Pilot, based on an Nvidia Drive Orin SoC. The car has a 16.1-inch central touchscreen. According to the company, its design was inspired by the shape of a water droplet suspended in zero gravity, and it has the lowest drag coefficient of any production vehicle, at 0.195 Cd.