New danger for Tesla

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Nio is more confident in the so-called premium segment than any other Chinese car brand and is on a course to face off against other rivals such as the German noble trio Audi, BMW and Mercedes, as well as Tesla or Polestar. You can see this in the new ET5 mid-range sedan – visually it targets Tesla’s Model 3 directly. The four-door has a pleasing appearance and delivers driving performance that should leave little to be desired for the vast majority of customers. But there are hardly any options in the 4.80-metre electric car, as nothing can be changed except nine exterior and four interior colours.

The ET5 is powered by two electric motors that send an impressive 480 hp (360 kW) to all four wheels and a maximum torque of 700 Newton meters. Despite its curb weight of 2140 kilograms, the car can accelerate to 100 km/h in four seconds from standstill. Top speed is limited to 200 km/h. Unsurprisingly, the ET5 pushes strongly.

Fast, yet comfortable

How much steam is felt, however, largely depends on the driving program involved. It’s fast in both sport modes – other than that it’s more timid but no less empathetic. The chassis is relatively comfortable and you have to get used to the steering because the feedback is much more artificial than some competitors: you miss direct contact with the road. On the other hand, low wind noise is pleasant even at high speeds.

The interior looks spacious, stylish and well-made. For a current novelty, the 12.8-inch central display and 10.2-inch gauges behind the steering wheel will likely be larger. The leather upholstered seats, which are a little too high, are comfortable but not as plush as their rivals; The door panels and dashboard appear in a stark, almost Scandinavian mood, while the standard panoramic roof brings plenty of light into the interior. real leather seats? No, just like the head-up display. That’s not really possible in this car league.

Also available on the ET5: the friendly operating assistant Nomi Mate in the instrument cluster. If he supports the driver with artificial intelligence and his annoying smile gets on your nerves, you can upgrade to a more visually and linguistically seasoned version called Nomi Halo for more conservative customers. The loading volume is a manageable 386 liters – not much, but always enough.

Battery capacity shines – charge capacity is quite low

The ET5 comes with two different batteries. The smaller one has a capacity of 75 kilowatt-hours (kWh) and a range of 456 kilometers. The larger one has 100 kWh and provides 590 kilometers to the next charging stop. The only downside: its 140 kilowatts (kW) maximum charging capacity, which leaves a lot to be desired for a new model. For comparison: BMW’s i4 charges up to 195 kW, Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y charge up to 250 kW. After all, Nio is planning a battery replacement system as an alternative to charging. There are already the first stations in Germany.

But Nio is not yet available in Switzerland – it should be ready by 2025. So there is no exact price yet. Blick expects about 65,000 francs for the small battery ET5. However, most customers will probably be interested in the larger battery, which will cost a little over 75,000 francs.

Source: Blick