On Nio Day 2022 on December 24, 2022, Nio unveiled the new ES8 Prime. Larger and more efficient than the original ES8, it’s impressive on paper.
The Nio conference, which took place on Christmas Eve, was an opportunity to make many announcements. You may find the choice of the announcement date strange, however it is common for Chinese brands to organize their annual conferences at the end of the year.
In addition to the 500 kW charging station, which promises a full charge in 12 minutes, but also a new battery exchange system on the motorway, the automaker used the event to unveil a new EC7 coupe and a refresh of the ES8. Here we are looking at the redesign of the ES8 named ES8 Prime.
Second Generation Nio ES8 (ET2)
The ES8 is already one of Nio’s iconic models. It is a large SUV with 6 to 7 seats which was released in 2018, in China and in 2021, in Norway.
Nio therefore took advantage of its event to unveil a refresh of the ES8 SUV. The latter will therefore have three battery capacities, from 75 kWh (465 km in the CLTC cycle), 100 kWh (605 km) and 150 kWh (900 km).
This new ES8 NT2 is a large car at 5.1 meters long (5099mm length x 1989mm width x 1750mm height and the wheelbase of 3070mm).
With these dimensions, we are facing an SUV competing with the Volvo EX90 or the Tesla Model X. With a weight of 2,560 kg, it is indeed a heavyweight. One wonders if lawmakers are going to start putting limits on the weight of cars.
We remain skeptical: electric SUVs are more fuel-efficient than a sedan. It’s not always just a question of weight or the technological choice of the engine. It is also simply the application of physics. With a larger frontal area, an SUV will consume more, which will therefore impact autonomy (especially on the highway). We would prefer a return to family breaks.
In terms of power, it is an all-wheel drive SUV with two motors (180 kW and 300 kW) of 480 kW (631 hp) for a torque of 850 Nm. This SUV is capable of performing the 0 to 100 km/ h in 4.1 seconds. It’s not too much to carry that much weight.
The interior has been redone
The ES8 Prime, the top-of-the-line version, includes a HUD with a 16.8-inch display area and a new user interface, as well as an improved PanoCinema digital cockpit with a 7.1.4 surround sound system, a 2230 watts cumulative power with 23 speakers.
Other new features of the ES8 Prime are a 10.2-inch (1,920 × 532 pixel) digital instrument panel and a touchscreen infotainment system, with an AMOLED panel, 12.8-inch (1,728 × 1 888 pixels).
As you can imagine with all this paraphernalia, the interior has been redone. The dashboard, center console and steering wheel feature a sleeker design in the new model. Nio has invisibly integrated air vents and ambient lighting into its new SUV.
While the first-generation ES8 was available in six-seat and seven-seat versions, the 2023 ES8 is strictly a six-seat. Everything has been done to move the SUV upmarket, with a front passenger seat that incorporates 22 electric adjustments, including a “zero gravity” position (120° tilt) accessible with a single button. The rear center console includes two retractable wireless fast charging pads (40 watts) and a refrigerator.
The Nio ES8 has an improved safety and assistance system, thanks to an ultra-long-range LiDAR sensor and the Nvidia Orin chip, part of its Aquila “super sensory” sensor suite.
In addition to this LiDAR sensor, Aquila includes seven 8-megapixel HD cameras, four 3-megapixel surround-view cameras, an advanced driver monitoring system, five millimeter wave radars, twelve ultrasonic sensors as well as V2X technology (“ vehicle-to-everything”, the communication between several vehicles, the cloud and the road infrastructure).
Let’s finish with the price, which is undoubtedly a strong argument for Nio:
- 75 kWh: 528,000 yuan (approx. 72,000 euros)
- 100 kWh: 586,000 yuan (approx. 80,000 euros)
- 150 kWh (Signature Edition): 638,000 yuan (approx. 89,000 euros)
- Without battery (BaaS): 458,000 yuan (approx. 62,500 euros)
For the moment announced only in China, it is very likely to see this SUV arrive in Europe (announced for the second part of 2023), because the first generation is already marketed there. Nio is also targeting the US market, which would make sense given the dimensions of this SUV.
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