Smart Electric MPV Grabs the Spring Festival Travel Market

Author | Wang Xiaojuan

During the Spring Festival travel, many people have higher requirements for transportation tools.

At the time of family reunions, family members often travel together, which requires a larger interior space. Additionally, when visiting relatives and friends or dining out, carrying New Year gifts and luggage is essential, thus there is a greater need for trunk storage space.

Sedans and SUVs do not offer as much space as MPVs, while traditional MPVs are too business-oriented and do not compare to today's intelligent electric MPV models in terms of driving experience, energy efficiency, and intelligent features. Therefore, this Spring Festival, many people have chosen intelligent electric MPVs as their travel companions, with the XPeng X9 being a representative model.

As a new car launched last year, the XPeng X9 had relatively few owners during the 2024 Lunar New Year. However, this year, many owners have expressed, "We have also enjoyed the changes that technology brings to life."

One owner drove the XPeng X9 with six family members from Ningbo back to Chaozhou for the New Year, experiencing a new feeling of going home. In this car, the second-row passengers can lie flat, and the third-row passengers can also lie down horizontally; sitting up in the third row with feet flat is not cramped. Additionally, the XNGP highway intelligent driving experience is very smooth; even the most concerning aspect of range did not present any issues, achieving over 500 km of range while fully loaded and with the air conditioning running.

Another owner traveled with two adults, two seniors, and a child for ten days, driving over 5000 km in the XPeng X9. Throughout the journey, family members who were initially biased against new energy vehicles were also impressed.

Specifically, the trunk can accommodate multiple suitcases for the whole family, and on the return trip, it can hold a lot of local specialties; the child can sit or lie down in the third row, making family outings almost about getting in the car to sleep and getting out to take photos, with the XPeng X9 transforming into a luxurious minibus for the travel group. Moreover, the vehicle's intelligent driving system has been updated to the XOS Tianji 5.5 version, and this owner used NGP to drive for even 10 hours straight.

Many owners have shared the comfort that the XPeng X9 has brought to their families during Spring Festival travel.

For the driver, MPVs generally offer a mediocre driving experience due to their larger size, but the XPeng X9, in addition to having intelligent driving assistance, is equipped with rear-wheel steering technology, allowing this 5.2-meter-long vehicle to have a turning radius of only 5.4 meters. Many users have found that this car is not as cumbersome as traditional MPVs and is quite agile, making drivers more willing to take this car on long trips.

There are also users from three-person households who shared that the rear seats can be folded down to create a large bed, allowing the child to enjoy watching shows and playing, significantly enhancing the willingness to travel.

The emergence of such a family-oriented intelligent MPV is rooted in He Xiaopeng's real pain points and observations of future trends. He Xiaopeng once stated that over a decade ago, every weekend he had to pick up four elderly people for dinner, along with his wife and child, "A five-seater car requires two trips; if there was a seven-seater car, I could pick them all up at once."

Since then, he has regularly used large seven-seater vehicles and determined that this would be a demand for many families.

In 2021, China's three-child policy was officially opened, and He Xiaopeng believes that with the opening of the three-child policy and the trend of consumption upgrading, the demand for high-quality, intelligent MPVs among family users will continue to grow The traditional MPV market has long been monopolized by joint venture brands, with relatively outdated product capabilities that fail to meet the needs of users in the new era. XPeng keenly identified this market opportunity and decided to enter the MPV market, creating a truly intelligent luxury MPV that meets the needs of Chinese family users.

Thus, the XPeng X9 was born. It has been proven that He Xiaopeng's judgment was correct, as this vehicle has achieved considerable market recognition.

Due to its pursuit of intelligence and driving comfort, the XPeng X9 has further expanded the MPV customer base. Many young people and women have also become users of the XPeng X9, with many families adopting it as their main vehicle.

In 2024, the XPeng X9 was the monthly sales champion in the pure electric MPV market for most months, and in the Chinese market, for every two high-end pure electric MPVs sold, one was an XPeng X9. The total sales of the XPeng X9 for the entire year of 2024 reached 21,608 units. This achievement is already remarkable for a pure electric MPV model.

Currently, XPeng is leading the charge in a price war with the XPeng X9. On February 8, XPeng offered unprecedented discounts for the X9: 0 down payment + 5 years of interest-free financing, with the subsidy amount reaching up to 57,000 yuan. This is also the only discount in the industry at present, which is expected to stimulate further sales of this model.

The new XPeng X9 has completed its declaration, with four versions available, and its appearance and dimensions are consistent with the current model. It comes standard with 19-inch wheels, with an option for 20-inch wheels. The new wheel design is the same as the right-hand drive version, and the high-end version has replaced the laser radar with black decorative panels. Considering its adoption of a pure visual intelligent driving solution, costs will be reduced, and a price decrease is not ruled out, which will further enhance the competitiveness of the XPeng X9.

XPeng has always emphasized using technology to change the travel methods of more people. During the Spring Festival, the most important holiday for Chinese people, many chose the XPeng X9 as their means of transportation, reflecting the realization of this change