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Pros: spacious interior, decent quality, excellent value
Cons: completely unknown brand
Xpeng G6 Design
While the front of the G6 is a little forgettable and generic, as a whole, it’s an attractive design, with shades of the stylish Jaguar F-Pace in the rear three-quarters and a standard panoramic glass roof adding a touch of class to all versions. The smooth surfacing and low front end are in the name of aerodynamics, as Xpeng sought to create a low-drag shape to extend the car’s range. The retractable door handles help with that, while all models are fitted with the same set of 20-inch alloy wheels.
Xpeng G6 Interior
The G6’s cabin is impressive. It’s spacious in all five seats and of notably high quality throughout. We’d prefer more physical controls as ever, as almost everything is on the 14.96-inch touchscreen, but it is at least responsive and easy to find your way around.
Supplementing that is a decent 10.2-inch screen for the instruments behind a steering wheel shaped like a squashed circle. It feels good to hold nonetheless and, curiously, the stalks behind it for drive selection and indicators are the same as found in some Mercedes cars.
Between the (heated and ventilated) front seats are a large storage box, two cupholders, extra storage underneath and two high-power wireless charging pads with built-in device cooling.
The rear of the cabin is spacious as well, while the boot measures in at a useful 571 litres with all seats in use.
Xpeng G6 Performance & Drive
For now, no version of the G6 offered in Ireland will have all-wheel drive. Instead, there are two distinct models available using rear-mounted electric motors. The entry-level car has a 66kWh battery pack for an official range of up to 435km, with peak power of 258hp. The ‘Long Range’ model has an 87.5kWh battery to bring that up to 570km. This also gets a more powerful electric motor, producing up to 286hp, to cope with the extra weight of the bigger battery, and so it’s only marginally quicker than the ‘Standard Range’ variant.
Our brief drive was at the wheel of the latter and while we didn’t have the opportunity to explore its range and efficiency capabilities, it was enough to show us that the G6 is quite a polished car on the road. Its performance is more than adequate, and the driving controls feel well-judged in their weighting and responsiveness. It’s not a thrilling drive by any means, but it is really smooth, comfortable and refined, at least as good as any other electric SUV at the same price point.
Xpeng G6 Pricing
As if the car wasn’t impressive enough on its own, it comes at a compelling starting price of just €42,000. That’s for the Standard Range model, while the Long Range version is €49,440. There are no trim levels to decide between either as all cars get the same high level of standard equipment, while two distinct colour themes for the cabin are offered. Admittedly, you pay more for any colour other than white.
Carzone Verdict
While Irish buyers may view Xpeng as yet another new Chinese brand they know nothing about, this one is doing things a little differently, focusing on quality, and aiming to be a premium offering rather than one that leads with cut-throat pricing. First impressions suggest it’s a very good car, comparing well to established alternatives in the market, and yet Xpeng has also priced it competitively.