Li hit the headlines in May for more than just a driverless accident

Li Auto hit the headlines during the May holidays, which lasted from May 1 to May 5 this year. Highlights include the incident of driving without a driver on the highway, the sales of the L6 and the results of Li usage during the holidays.

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The use that Li Auto would perhaps most like to forget is the video that surfaced online of a Li Auto driving along the highway at speeds of up to 120 km/h with no one in the driver’s seat and a child without a seatbelt sitting in the passenger seat. What isn’t so clear is how this is possible. While one published image shows a soda bottle wedged into the steering wheel to trick sensors into thinking a driver has a hand on the steering wheel, the video clearly shows that there is no bottle present. The incident drew strong criticism from Chinese internet users. Li Auto has also publicly reprimanded the behavior, saying that at this stage the system is more of a driving assistance rather than automatic driving and the actions are very dangerous.

During the holiday season, Li Auto’s cars covered 35.7 million kilometers with the high-end intelligent driving assistance system, of which the NOA (Navigation on Autopilot) proportion was 24.6 million. 309,000 people, including presumably the phantom driver in the video, used the system over the holidays on models equipped with lidar. The mileage increased by 126.8% compared to normal time and the longest daily distance was over 1,800 km.

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The total mileage for the holiday was 295 million kilometers. Of these, 153 million kilometers were traveled using battery power, an increase of 11.6% compared to normal. However, fuel mileage was 149.5% above normal and accounted for the remainder of the 141 million kilometers. This seems to indicate that users have given up trying to charge on longer journeys. Li Auto’s 391 super charging stations have been used over 96,000 times (including use by other brands) and the average charging time for the Li Mega was 12.8 minutes.

During the holidays, not only Li cars were busy, but also the company’s showrooms. As of May 5, over 10,000 Li L6 models were sold, bringing the cumulative total from April 18 to May 5 to over 41,000 of the model.

Li Auto aims to sell 800,000 cars this year and aims to reach 100,000 deliveries per month. Such a figure would be quite an achievement considering Li Auto sold 376,030 units last year. The L6 is crucial for Li Auto if the company wants to have a chance of achieving that goal, and it needs to sell at least 20,000 units per month by the end of the year.

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Priced between 249,800 and 279,800 yuan ($34,600-38,750), it is the cheapest Li Auto model to date. With 4925, 1960, 1735 mm (L/W/H) and a wheelbase of 2920 mm, it is also the baby of the family. With a 36.8 kWh LFP battery pack, the all-electric range is 212 km (CLTC).

Sources: Fast Technology, Autohome