On a cloudy day in the summer, I went to an Xpeng experience store in a large shopping mall in central Beijing. The store had 5 cars on display: the new Xpeng Mona M03, the Xpeng G9, the Xpeng G6, the Xpeng P7, and the gigantic Xpeng X9 MPV.
It was located at the corner of a larger automotive area, surrounded by shops and restaurants. The space only fit two cars, so the others were parked outside. Inside, green chairs with small tables surrounded a small front desk, and a wall-mounted screen sat completely ignored by everyone. They had about 7 staff, and the store was busy. I had to go back a couple of times to get proper pictures without folks in the way.
The Xpeng Mona M03
The main reason for my visit was the brand-new Xpeng Mona M03. Xpeng had just launched it on the Chinese EV market, and I hadn’t seen any on the road yet. On the left side are people waiting in front of a restaurant.
Mona has an interesting history. Originally, it was a joint project with ride-hailing giant DiDi under the Mona brand name. The plan was that Xpeng would develop the cars and DiDi would develop the software. But things didn’t work out, and Xpeng took over the entire project. Mona then became a new series of budget EVs under the Xpeng brand. The M03 is Mona’s first car. The full name is Xpeng Mona M03.
Interestingly, the Mona name appears nowhere on the vehicle, and it hasn’t been translated into Chinese. However, Xpeng uses the MONA name — in all caps — in advertising.
The Mona M03 is a mid-sized liftback sedan. Size: 4780/1896/1445, 2815. The manufacturer made it very well, and it looked nearly perfect from every side. The doors were heavy and closed with a reassuring sound. This design is really nice, with an aerodynamic body and wild light units. Its drag coefficient is just 0.194 Cd. It has a sporty dick tail spoiler integrated in the liftback. There are frameless doors, pop-out door handles, and 18-inch aero wheels.
Xpeng Mona M03 – the interior
The interior is maximal minimalist, with a large-diameter two-spoke steering wheel and a 15.6-inch touch screen. It doesn’t have a driver’s display or a HUD. The L2 ADAS is called XNGP, developed in-house by Xpeng. The system offers a lot of sensors for the segment, with two millimeter-wave radars + twelve ultrasonic radars + seven cameras.
The steering wheel has two Tesla-style scroll wheels. Xpeng integrated the air vents neatly into the dashboard’s design. The center tunnel is notably narrow, with just one wireless charger. The infotainment system runs on XOS 5.1.0, Xpeng’s self-developed operating system, powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 chip.
A long wheelbase and a flat floor make for a lot of space inside. The car on display was painted in Star Que Gray with a Morning Fog Gray interior.
The Mona M03 is a single-motor front-wheel drive car. Buyers can choose between 140 kW/225 Nm or 160 kW/250 Nm. The LFP battery pack is sourced from BYD FinDreams. The 140 kW model is mated to a 51.8 kWh battery for a 515 km range. The 160 kW model has a 62.2 kWh unit for a max range of 620 kilometers. The price range of the M03 is 119.900 – 155.800 yuan ($16.8K – 21.9K).
The liftback opens high and wide. The luggage space is 621 liters, much more than in a Tesla Model 3. Xpeng claims that there is enough space for “one 28-inch + four 20-inch suitcases”. With the rear seats down, the space goes up to 1603 liters. It doesn’t have a frunk. Well, I was positively impressed by the Mona M03. A lot of car for the cash, and it didn’t feel like a budget car at all.
The Xpeng X9 MPV
BIG! Whenever I see one of these, I am always surprised by the vehicle’s vastness. The Xpeng X9 seven-seat MPV was launched in late 2023; it is the first MPV of the Xpeng brand. Size: 5293/1988/1785, with a 3160 wheelbase. The design is rather aggressive, with a mean-looking snout with black light units. The drag coefficient is a relatively low 0.227 Cd.
Xpeng X9 – the interior
The interior is so spacious that kids may get lost! Design is minimalist again, but very luxurious. It has a super-sized two-spoke steering wheel, a 10.25-inch driver’s display, a 17.3-inch (!) touch screen, and a 21.4-inch fold-down screen for the passengers in the rear.
The Xpeng X9 has a 2/2/3 seat setup. The seats on the second row are majestic, with two armrests, leg rests, footrests, a massage function, heating and cooling, tray tables, and of course…
… the screen.
The Xpeng G6 is available with various powertrains and batteries. The car on display was a Long Range Pro model. It is a single-motor front-wheel drive vehicle. Output of the electric motor is 235 kW and 450 Nm, which is enough for a 200 km/h top speed and 0-100 in 7.7 seconds. Electricity is stored in a 101.5 kWh ternary lithium battery for a range of 702 kilometers. It has an 800V architecture and a max charging power of 33 kW; a 30-80% charge takes 20 minutes.
Folks can stand under the rear door. It is gigantic! The display car comes in Crescent Silver with a Moon Shadow Café interior. It costs 379.800 yuan or $53K. It has sliding doors on each side. It is a great-looking machine with cool tech, but it just seems too large to be practical.
The older stuff
Xpeng launched the G6 in early 2023 to compete with the Tesla Model Y. It is also Xpeng’s main export weapon. The color is Crescent Silver again. Nice, but I prefer Melting Cloud Orange.
The G9 is Xpeng’s full-size SUV, with a length of 4.9 meters. It launched in 2021 with an update in 2023. The most powerful version has 405 kW!
How is Xpeng doing these days? Quite alright. The brand took the 28th spot on the September sales chart with a record 18.532 cars delivered.
The Xpeng P7i is the facelifted variant of the P7 liftback-sedan, which was Xpeng’s second car, launched in 2019. It is still a cool car, low and sporty, but one can see it is getting a bit old. Five years is a long time in China. Xpeng recently unveiled the P7+, which will eventually succeed the P7i.
Time to go! It was a nice visit. The cars looked great and the staff were friendly. Sadly, the store didn’t have any fuzzy stuff like weird posters or stuffed animals and the like. That just doesn’t seem like the Xpeng style. The shop was as clean as the cars!
More experience store visits soon.