Accompanied by a video showing rows of Aito M9 cars waiting to be loaded on transporters Aito has announced that large-scale delivery of the model is now commencing.
Aito is a collaboration between Seres and Huawei where Seres makes the cars and Chinese electronics giant Huawai provides full-stack intelligent vehicle solutions through the Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA). Seres with the Aito brand was the first manufacture to join HIMA and the Huawei system provides both the cockpit ecosystem through Harmony OS and the autonomous driving system. Huawei sells the Aito range in its Huawei showrooms.
Delivery will initially prioritize customers who booked the car before the December 26 press conference last year when the car was launched, with other customers receiving cars from May.
The video of reportedly the Seres Auto Industry Park shows rows of Aito M9 SUVs lined up in front of car transporters. Curiously all seem to be in exactly the same color scheme of blue lower body with a gray roof.
An EREV the car is seen as a major threat to the Li Auto L8 and L9 models. Size is 5230/1999/1800 mm, with a wheelbase of 3110 mm, making it a large SUV. Official prices of the Aito M9 range from 469,800 yuan to 569,800 yuan.
Customers can choose from a 42 kWh or 52 kWh battery version with both packs using NMC chemistry and produced by CATL. These have pure electric ranges of 225 km and 275 km using CLTC measurement. With a full tank of fuel this range extends out to 1362 km and 1402 km respectively. An all-electric version will also be available with a 97 kWh battery, also from CATL, and good for 630 km.
EREV versions use a 1.5T engine to generate electricity while actual momentum comes from a 165 kW motor at the front and a 200 kW motor at the rear. Fully electric versions switch out these motors for 160 kW at the from and a 230 kW motor behind giving the EV a faster acceleration time of 4.3 seconds compared to 4.9 for the EREV. The M9 uses a 800V high-voltage silicon carbide electric drive platform.
Map Free NCA (Navigation Control Assistant) will allow the Aito M9 to have a level of autonomous driving in 338 cities across China with the need of high precision mapping.
Inside the car is six seater using a 2+2+2 layout. In front the driver gets both a 75-inch augmented reality HUD and 12.3-inch instrument display. There is also a main 15.6-inch infotainment screen while the front passenger has their own dedicated 16-inch screen. Harmony OS powers the who system.
