Shanghai-based startup Aiways wants to become the first Chinese automaker to sell electric vehicles in Europe.
The company has already unveiled the U5 electric crossover at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year and has now announced the latest project that aims to advertise its EV.
Aiways will embark on what is believed to be the longest point-to-point drive of a prototype electric vehicle ever attempted. The 14,231-kilometer (8,843-mile) journey will take two U5 prototypes from China to Europe along the Silk Road, with the symbolic road trip heralding the brand’s launch on the Old Continent.
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According to the firm, the route will form part of the U5’s rigorous test program and will also showcase “how simple and easy U5 is to live with.” The drive will begin in mid-July in Xi’an, the capital of China’s Shaanxi Province. The city was chosen because it sits at the start of the Silk Road and has historical significance as a hub for trading, cultural exchange, and communication between China and Europe.
It’s an interesting challenge given that the U5 will need to be driven and recharged in numerous countries with different temperatures, road conditions and charging infrastructures. The trip will conclude in September this year but European buyers will have to wait until April 2020 to be able to buy the battery-electric SUV.
The first vehicle of its kind to be launched by a Chinese brand in Europe is a midsize SUV that promises a 460-km (286-mile) driving range as per NEDC. Aiways says the U5 will offer premium build quality, connectivity and safety thanks to its aluminum-steel More Adaptable Structure (MAS) platform.
The company has invested €1.7 billion ($1.91 billion) in the Shangrao plant in Jiangxi Province where the U5 will be manufactured. Initially, the factory will be able to produce 150,000 cars a year but the second phase of expansion will double its capacity.
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