Xiaomi makes a splash with the Ferrari-inspired YU7

Xiaomi makes a splash with its electric SUV YU7, the crossover heavily inspired by the Ferrari Purosangue, and relaunches its challenge to Elon Musk's Tesla and its compatriot BYD. In the first 18 hours since the opening of pre-orders, the Beijing group collected 240,000, according to a report on one of its Sina Weibo social media accounts. On Thursday evening, Xiaomi's number one, Lei Jun, announced on his personal account on the same platform 289,000 initial orders for the YU7 in the first hour of sales.

With a strong start, beyond the most optimistic market expectations of around 100,000 units, Tesla may have to reduce prices to react to the blow. And so could BYD, already in the crosshairs of national authorities for the price war to the downside. The YU7, Xiaomi's second vehicle, has a price that is almost 4% lower than Tesla's Model Y, starting at 253,500 yuan, just over 35,000 dollars, confirming the fierce competition in the thriving Chinese e-car market. The Model Y, meanwhile, is the best-selling electric SUV in China. Xiaomi, in this way, is increasing its pressure on Tesla: just over a year ago it presented its first model SU7 (Speed ​​Ultra 7), immediately under observation because it was 'inspired' by the stylistic cues of the Porsche Panamera, at a price less than 30,000 dollars for the base model, lower than Tesla's Model 3. The launch also surprised with 50,000 pre-orders in just 27 minutes. In the first five months of 2025, sales of new-generation e-cars in China reached 4.35 million units, with a year-on-year increase of 34.1%, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) released on June 9.

China has maintained its leadership in the global electric vehicle sector in 2024, with more than 11 million electric cars sold, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) Global EV Outlook 2025, released on May 14: the Dragon is expected to maintain its leadership in electric car sales until 2030. Xiaomi, with the YU7, offers three versions: Standard, Pro and Max, which take their names from smartphones, the core business of the Beijing group. The Yu7 Standard is a rear-wheel drive model with a long range (830 km according to the Chinese approval scheme); the YU7 Pro has all-wheel drive and a base list price of 280,000 yuan; finally, the YU7 Max is the top of the range all-wheel drive model and costs 330,000 yuan. The announcement of the car in its final form and ready for deliveries from the end of June came together with the launch of new devices, foldable smartphones and new smartwatches, to favor that integration that had also been hypothesized by Apple with the development of the iCar, then shelved. It is not clear when, but the electric crossover branded Xiaomi will probably also be available in Europe.

VIDEO | Xiaomi YU7 presentation