Bermaz Auto secures Xpeng distributorship, to bring Chinese brand’s EVs to Malaysia – G6 SUV first in?

First hinted at last year, it’s now official, with Bermaz Auto revealing that it is set to bring in Xpeng electric vehicles to Malaysia, having secured local distributorship rights for the brand from Shenzhen Xiaopeng Motors Supply Chain Management (Shenzhen XPeng) and Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Trading (Guangzhou XPeng), affiliates of Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Technology (XPeng Motors).

The Bermaz announcement comes following reports that Chinese automaker had plans to expand its business into right-hand drive markets such as Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Doing so would provide the brand with a cushion against a potential sales decline in China, where an EV price war is damaging the profitability of almost all players.

Bermaz Auto group CEO Datuk Francis Lee expressed his excitement about the deal and of the promise the brand’s products would deliver. “They are equipped with the latest state of the art features such as autonomous driving technology, digital cockpits and high performance batteries,” he said.

Bermaz Auto secures Xpeng distributorship, to bring Chinese brand’s EVs to Malaysia – G6 SUV first in?

He added that the new distributorship will complement the company’s existing EV business and bring positive synergistic benefits to all parties. “It is also in line with our group’s sustainability initiatives to manage and minimise our environmental footprint by introducing more green vehicles and technologies,” he said.

Meanwhile, Xpeng co-founder and CEO He Xiaopeng stated that the XPeng group intends to expand its business operations over the next three years, fronted by the company’s current product line-up of smart EVs, including the P7i, P5, G9 and the newly-launched flagship MPV, the X9.

“Our mission is to drive smart EV transformation with technology, shaping the mobility experience of the future and to optimise our customers’ mobility experience,” he said.

It has previously been indicated that Xpeng’s first right-hand drive car will be an updated edition of its G6 SUV, with the model expected to reach Hong Kong sometime in late-2024. While no time frame for Malaysia – and other ASEAN RHD markets – has been indicated, an introduction here sometime in early 2025 looks a possibility.

In China, the G6 is priced from 209,900 to 276,900 yuan (RM136,933 to RM180,642). Built on an 800V architecture, the rear-wheel drive variant of the G6 has a 296 PS/440 Nm motor while the all-wheel drive variant gets two motors with a total system output of 487 PS and 660 Nm.

Two battery packs are available – a 66-kWh LFP unit for RWD models (CLTC range 580 km) and a 87.5-kWh NMC that’s good for 755 km (single-motor) or 700 km (dual-motor) of CLTC range. The max rate for DC fast charging is 480 kW.

GALLERY: 2023 Xpeng G6

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