Xpeng has been at most of the EV shows in recent months, showcasing its flying car and car models, particularly the G6 SUV, which it formally launched in December. Since then, hundreds of owners have taken deliveries of the new G6. So, what’s all the rage about with this mid-sized electric SUV?
We got to spend a bit of time behind the wheel of the Long Range variant, which provides excellent premium interior quality, Xpeng’s latest tech and a reasonably smooth drive at a lower price than the industry leader and an overall package that could be on your next electric SUVs shortlist.
Let’s start with the pricing, which for the G6 officially starts at $54,800 drive-away for the Standard Range, while the variant we tested is the Long Range, which comes at $59,800 plus on-roads.
For the price bump, the Long Range has a bigger 87.5 kWh Nickel-Cobalt-Manganese (NCM) battery pack, delivering up to 570 km of WLTP range. That’s up from the 66 kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery with a range of up to 435 km on a single charge.
What’s unique about fast-charging the Long Range G6 is its high DC charging speeds thanks to an 800 V architecture. During tests, we got charging speeds of 271 kW at a 350 kW charger, while the car can charge at peak speeds of over 280 kW.
On the AC charger, 11 kW three-phase charging is also available on the Long Range model, making charging at home, workplace or in public much faster than many other EVs.
On top of that, the G6 can offer a vehicle-to-load (V2L) feature, which many are looking for in an EV these days, helping get more out of their battery when the car is stationary. V2L speeds of 3.3 kW are on offer, although you’d need an approved adapter to bring that functionality to life.
The G6 looks very sleek, even turning heads and people were taking photos of it when parked at my local shops. It is a very well-designed car and has a distinctive sloping roofline, front and rear LED light bar as well as flush door handles. All these make it quite an attractive car on the road.
Speaking of side angles, the G6 looks more compact than the 4.75-metre length it is. With its flush door handles, it looks nice in any of the five colours it comes in. We had it in black, but its star colour is Orange, which truly turns heads, given how unique it is in the electric SUV market.
Getting in and out is fairly easy, with the Long Range having a ground clearance of 170 mm. Once you are inside, it’s a practical cabin with plenty of space for passengers and any cargo on road trips.
The interior also looks and feels more premium than other similar offerings, thanks to the use of soft-touch materials in areas where it matters and the high level of comfort from the seats themselves that provide great support.
Given the trend in minimal interiors, the Xpeng does a good job of providing a good cabin experience with its screen behind the steering wheel and a heads-up display to help keep the driver’s eyes on the road. That, of course, is on top of the G6’s large infotainment screen.
The infotainment screen is not as big as those seen in Tesla, but with the heads-up display and the smaller screen behind the steering, it does a good job. Combined with the intuitive layout of the software, it provides a seamless experience.
For some, Apple Carplay and Android Auto are quite significant, and you’d be glad to know that it is available on the infotainment system as either a wired or wireless option and are standard across both variants.
The G6 offers a comfortable ride on city streets as well as on major highways, thanks to a single rear-mounted motor that delivers up to 210 kW of power.
The G6 is quite zippy with its 440 Nm of torque, as well as getting from 0-100 km/h in around 6.2 seconds. The same torque helps it overtake other cars on the road.
One thing I do test for is the one-pedal capability of any EV I get behind the wheel of, and with the G6, it was nearly there, but the car doesn’t come to a complete stop on its own when letting go of the accelerator pedal, needing the brake to reach a complete stop.
Given you can get there with the auto-hold function, it’s better than a few other EVs on the market in offering a near-one pedal driving experience which is valued by many EV drivers.
The G6 autonomous driving function is one of the best I’ve come across when driving on highways. Its automatic cruise control with steer assist comes with just double tapping down the right stalk. Engaging it is very easy and with it working, it makes longer journeys so much more comfortable, also thanks to the premium ride this car packs.
The claimed efficiency of the car is around 17.5 kWh/100 km, and we managed to get 16.8 kWh on average on the various highways and road driving we did.
The ease of use of the G6 automated driving system on highways also helped with efficiency gains, and it appears to work well in most conditions. It’s certainly worth testing on highways for anyone considering an electric SUV, as it’s one of the highlights of this car.
Is it as confident as Tesla’s Autopilot system with years of Australian road driving experience? Not exactly, but it’s almost there.
Ride comfort is very important to many, and this car does that very well by providing a high level of comfort to those in the front or in the rear, with its well-supported plushy seats. On top of that, there is plenty of leg room, much more than many similarly sized SUVs.
Overall, the Xpeng G6 offers lots of comfort and solid technology that would please buyers who are looking for an electric SUV. It has plenty of tech and assisted-driving features that are up there with the best.
This, combined with offering plenty of screen real estate and a heads-up display, keeps things more in control for the driver while still offering a minimalist design, both inside and out.
Combine that with Xpeng’s current 10-year warranty offer, and it’s a bit of a no-brainer to see what all the rage is about.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.
