Aiways U5 Ion Electric SUV Unveiled In China

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Aiways U5 Ion

This is the new Aiways U5 Ion, a concept car previewing an electric SUV that will hit the Chinese car market in 2019. The company says the design of the production car won’t change a bit, bar for the addition of real-life necessities like mirrors.

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‘Aiways’ stands for ‘Ai on the way’, where AI stands for Artificial Intelligence. The company was founded in 2017. They are based in China with a subsidiary in Germany.

They have partnered with Roland Gumpert for the spectacular limited-edition Aiways RG electric supercar which will debut on the 2018 Beijing Auto Show, alongside the U5 Ion.

Naturally, the company has big plans; they want to launch two new electric cars every year from 2020.

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Aiways says the U5 Ion has a range of 460 kilometers. The main battery pack is located in the center under the floor.

But drivers can extend range by leasing an additional six battery packs. Those packs can be installed in the floor of the luggage compartment. Changing one pack is a click-and go operation and takes only one minute, according to Aiways.

Six battery packs together deliver an extra 20 kWh, good for an additional 100 kilometer range, bringing the total to 560 kilometer.

An interesting idea, but it is a bit hard to see the point. Why not add these batteries to the main pack and sell it with 560 kilometer as standard? Why all the trouble with extra packs for 100 kilometer more?

It could be worthwhile of Aiways found a way to vent these battery packs in gas stations or supermarkets. When you run out of juice driving our Aiways, you could go to a gas station and lease some extra packs.

More on this as we get more clarity on Aiways’ plans.

The motor is located over the front axle.

From the other side, showing the area where the six battery packs are located on. So yes, these are above the rear axle.

The U5 Ion will come with biometric technology, owners can open the doors and start the car by face or hand palm recognition. The interior looks very high tech with a central touch screen and a screen in front of the driver that is actually a…

… triple screen. Fighter jet style!

The rear seats.

Handpalm reader on the B-pillar. Can it read the future too..?

Design is great; very clean and modern, without too many useless lines. But the front almost seems a bit too empty, with nothing in sight from the badge down to the bumper. It needs… dare I say… a grille.

The new Aiways U5 Ion, all in all a good looking car with interesting tech and a promising new idea about those battery packs. We will check it out next week on the Beijing Auto Show.

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2 COMMENTS

  1. Fun concept. Perhaps AIWAY have a serious partner in Gumpert and will be able to launch. But how many electric car producers is there room for in China? So many new, unknown companies – hardly knowing the auto industry at all.

    The U5 extra battery pack, for quick exchange is a cool idea.
    Regarding EV design, do we need a grille? The grille originally were a result of the need for cooling the radiator, but it is not necessary anymore is it? Tesla and many more new EV cars will not have a grille, perhaps it is about time we get used to it?

    PS! So happy to see your new design/lay out and functionality on CNC. Excellent. Thank you. 🙂

  2. PS! Tell the Chinese that a name/brand should be written as “one”, not multiple with an ‘s’ at the end. AIWAY is okay, Aiways is confusing, silly and grammatically incorrect. 🙂

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