Li Auto has launched the i9, its new six-seat flagship battery-electric SUV, in China at 369,800 yuan (about RM226,000), with customer deliveries due to begin this week.
The i9 is offered in a single Home version and sits at the top of Li Auto’s i-series battery-electric range.
It is also the first flagship model based on the company’s second-generation dedicated BEV platform, marking another step in Li Auto’s expansion beyond the range-extender SUVs on which it built its early growth.
The SUV measures 5,225mm long, 1,970mm wide and 1,752mm tall, with a 3,168mm wheelbase. Li Auto claims a drag coefficient of 0.215 and CLTC energy consumption of 15.1kWh/100km.
Power comes from front and rear motors producing a combined 400kW and 660Nm. Li Auto quotes a 0-100kph time of 4.9 seconds.
A 101kWh ternary-lithium battery supports 5C charging and provides a claimed 705km of CLTC range on 21-inch wheels. The company says a 10-minute charge can add 500km of CLTC range.
Despite its size, the i9 is designed to be easier to manoeuvre in urban areas. Steer-by-wire works with rear-wheel steering to give the SUV a claimed 5.3m turning radius. The chassis also gets Li Auto’s third-generation dual-chamber, dual-valve Magic Carpet air suspension.
Cabin packaging is a major part of the i9’s pitch. Four full-size zero-gravity seats are standard across the first two rows, while the second-row seats can rotate to face the third row. A 29-inch 6K front display and movable 21.4-inch 4K rear entertainment screen are also fitted.
Li Auto has built three cabin layouts around that seating arrangement: a lounge mode with the second and third rows facing each other, a cinema mode centred on the rear entertainment screen, and a suite mode intended to create separate rest and work areas.
An electric front luggage compartment is standard, while the third-row seats can slide fore and aft to vary boot space.
Driver assistance uses Li Auto’s in-house MACH M100 chip and MACH platform. Buyers can add a dual-M100 package rated at 1,280 TOPS, together with additional lidar sensors. Li Auto says the i9 will receive MACH VLA 2.5 software in October.
The i9 enters a crowded Chinese premium electric SUV market, but its single-specification strategy keeps the buying process simple.
More importantly for Li Auto, it gives the company a new flagship BEV as it continues building out its pure-electric line-up alongside its established range-extended models.
