NIO ET5, fully electric with a range of over 1,000 km

NIO does not intend to remain operating solely in China, where the company originated, which is why it began its expansion in Europe by selling its vehicles in Norway, a country with a booming electric vehicle market that has proven that leaving China has been a resounding success. By 2022, NIO will be present in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark and, by 2025, it aims to be present in more than 25 countries around the world.

Based on these plans, the company continues to expand its model range to reach even more potential customers and, along these lines, NIO now presents its new electric saloon, the ET5. We don’t know when it will arrive in Spain, but the company has already confirmed that in September 2022 deliveries will begin of this new model, so stay tuned, because the ET5 has every chance of becoming a success for NIO.

On the exterior of the NIO ET5 we can see how the design language the brand has established has been applied, drawing largely on the carefully crafted design of its bigger sibling, the ET7, with both standing out for a low drag coefficient which, in the case of the ET5, is 0.24. But NIO has also drawn inspiration from the EP9, the electric supercar with which it broke the record at the Nürburgring, something especially noticeable in the sides, with a muscular waistline that leads to the sharp rear, complemented by details such as the “duck tail” spoiler.

It does not feature impossible lines; quite the opposite, its design is minimalist, with the visible lines clearly defined to give it a sporty character, all wrapped in a body that is anything but small, as its bodywork measures 4,700 mm in length. This bodywork can be chosen in nine colours, two of which are exclusive to the ET5, including the colour Airspace Blue, a shade of blue with which NIO pays tribute to the colour of our planet.

But if the exterior is not exuberant, the interior follows the same pattern: minimalist yet loaded with technology. In its spare interior, the element that will most catch our attention is the 12.8-inch AMOLED touchscreen on the centre console, which allows us to control all the vehicle’s systems and is also accompanied by a 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster. Among other things, there is also a Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 sound system, driver assistance and autonomous driving systems, and ambient lighting with 256 colours. A technology-driven interior combined with recycled and sustainable materials used to create various interior elements.

Turning now to its fully electric powertrain, this will also be one of its strong points. The NIO ET5 uses a 150 kW asynchronous induction motor on the front axle and a 210 kW permanent magnet motor on the rear axle, resulting in a combined output of 360 kW (490 CV) together with peak torque of 700 Nm, which, thanks to all-wheel drive, allows it to accelerate to 100 km/h in just 4.3 seconds.

The motorisation in the NIO ET5 will always be the same, but we will have three battery options depending on our needs: 75, 100 and 150 kWh. With the smallest battery, the ET5 can already achieve a range exceeding 550 km, a figure that rises above 700 km with the intermediate battery and, finally, up to more than 1,000 km with the 150 kWh battery (it should be noted that these figures are taken from the CLTC test cycle, which is the one used in China, so there may be differences compared with European regulations).