"Are you impressed? Is this pricing a game-changer?" At the XPENG GX launch event on the evening of May 20, XPENG Chairman He Xiaopeng exclaimed with enthusiasm after unveiling the prices. The XPENG GX comes in two powertrain options—pure electric and extended-range electric—with four variants each, priced between 279,800 and 359,800 yuan. Additionally, a 10,000 yuan discount is available for orders placed before June 30, bringing the starting price down to an enticing 269,800 yuan.

During the pre-sale phase, XPENG announced a flagship variant pre-sale price of 399,800 yuan. This price point initially sparked controversy, with many deeming it too high. He Xiaopeng admitted that pricing was a daunting task. Amid market backlash over the GX's pre-sale price and fierce competition, numerous internal pricing deliberations took place. Ultimately, the top variant's price was slashed by 50,000 yuan compared to the pre-sale price, while the entry-level variant dipped below 270,000 yuan. Regarding this strategic pricing, He Xiaopeng emphasized that it reflected utmost sincerity while ensuring reasonable profitability.

Of course, XPENG's willingness to heed market feedback stems from past missteps. In October 2022, XPENG attempted to penetrate the 400,000-yuan market with the G9, but its complex product lineup and higher-than-expected pricing led to a lukewarm market response. Although XPENG swiftly adjusted the G9's SKUs and pricing, sales remained lackluster, impacting XPENG's subsequent product development pace.

Fortunately, this time around, the XPENG GX heeded consumer feedback promptly and launched with what He Xiaopeng termed "explosive" pricing. This surge in interest caused the XPENG app to crash temporarily post-launch. According to official data, the XPENG GX garnered 24,863 orders within just 12 hours of its launch, with the Ultra flagship variant accounting for over 80% of orders. This makes it the standout performer among all recently announced large six-seater SUVs.

Corresponding to its "explosive" pricing is the GX's impressive product strength. Since its debut, the GX has been hailed as the "Greater Bay Area Range Rover." With dimensions of 5265mm × 1999mm × 1800mm and a 3115mm wheelbase, it embodies full-size SUV proportions, offering spacious interior space. Paired with a yacht-style streamlined roof and a panoramic light strip, it exudes a luxurious visual appeal.

The GX prioritizes tech experience and safety. The tech experience is primarily showcased in three areas: cabin, intelligent driving, and chassis. Inside the cabin, the GX is fully equipped with a "fridge, TV, and sofa" setup. It comes standard with a 17.3-inch central display, an 88-inch AR-HUD, and a fridge. The Ultra SE variant and above feature a 21.4-inch entertainment screen and dual zero-gravity seats, while the top-tier flagship variant adds AI-dimming privacy glass.

Intelligent driving has always been XPENG's forte. The GX comes standard with Turing AI chips, with the number varying by variant. The MAX variant is equipped with one Turing chip and the second-generation VLA distilled version; the Ultra SE variant upgrades to two Turing chips and the second-generation VLA; the Ultra variant and above are equipped with three Turing chips, delivering a combined computing power of up to 3000TOPS and supporting the second-generation VLA+VLM multimodal large model. With the GX's launch, the second-generation VLA is also upgraded to version 6.2.0, adding navigation-free roaming in park garages and all-scenario in-place starting functionality.

He Xiaopeng also previewed that version 6.3 will be released in August, with some functionalities potentially improving by several hundred percent. Additionally, the GX will be XPENG's first mass-produced Robotaxi model, with batch capability testing set to commence in the second half of this year. He Xiaopeng noted that Robotaxi test results will further enhance the GX's intelligent driving experience.

In terms of chassis, the XPENG GX offers two options: flagship intelligent chassis and native wire-controlled chassis. The flagship intelligent chassis comes standard with rear-wheel steering across all variants, addressing the core challenge of maneuverability in large vehicles. It also features standard wire-controlled hydraulic braking, next-generation dual-chamber air suspension, front double-wishbone and rear H-arm suspension, and adjustable damping shock absorbers, suitable for daily home use and urban commuting. The Ultra flagship variant is equipped with a native wire-controlled chassis, supporting wire-controlled front-wheel steering, achieving a minimum turning ratio of 0.6 at low speeds, requiring only half a steering wheel turn for U-turns, which also enhances intelligent assisted driving performance.

"For a premium car, other features may not need to be top-notch, but it must ensure the safety of the entire family," He Xiaopeng emphasized. Safety was a key focus of his introduction. In passive safety, the XPENG GX adopts a 16,000T front-and-rear integrated mega-casting technology to create a "castle-like" body structure, achieving a class-leading body torsional rigidity of 56,000Nm/deg, complemented by 11 airbags covering all three rows of occupants.

In active safety, the GX debuts the "All-Weather All-Scenario Stability System," comprising seven systems: Ice and Snow AES, Emergency Obstacle Avoidance Stability, Tire Blowout Stability, Heavy Rain Stability, Motion Sickness Mitigation Stability, 700mm Water Wading Stability, and 12th-Level Typhoon Crosswind Stability. The GX also comes standard with a Driver Incapacity Assistance System, which can detect sudden driver incapacitation during highway intelligent driving and automatically complete the entire process of "alert-lane change-parking-emergency call." Furthermore, XPENG has applied aircraft safety standards to the GX, featuring quadruple safety backups for steering, braking, and door unlocking systems, while adopting dual redundancy for drive, power supply, and communication systems.

In terms of powertrains, the GX offers both pure electric and extended-range electric options. The extended-range variant is equipped with a 1.5T range extender + front and rear dual motors, paired with a 63.3kWh battery pack, achieving a maximum CLTC pure electric range of 430km and a combined range of 1585km. The pure electric variant offers both rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive options, with the all-wheel drive variant featuring front and rear dual motors, delivering a combined power of 430kW and peak torque of 750N·m, achieving a 0-100km/h acceleration of 4.5 seconds. It is equipped with a 110kWh battery pack, offering a CLTC pure electric range of 750km.

He Xiaopeng stated that the GX's main configurations are on par with current 9-series flagship SUVs priced around 500,000 yuan. From the configuration comparison chart shown at the launch event, the "9-series" flagship he referred to is the Li Auto L9. He Xiaopeng acknowledged that compared to the Li Auto L9, the GX lacks active suspension as a disadvantage. However, he previewed that after the XPENG robot lands by the end of this year, XPENG will integrate the robot's second-generation Gundam zero-gravity motion control system into its vehicles to create a superior fully active suspension.

Starting from the second half of last year, the full-size six-seater SUV market has become increasingly competitive, with this year marking an unprecedentedly fierce battle. Upmarket, there are best-sellers like the NIO ES8, Zeekr 9X, as well as the newly launched Li Auto L9 and WEY V9X. Downmarket, there are disruptive prices from the Leapmotor D19 and Huaijing S, with the new AITO M9 set to launch soon, followed by models like the Xiaomi YU9 (or renamed). From the 150,000-yuan to 500,000-yuan range, the full-size six-seater SUV market has strong competitors at nearly every price point.

From a pricing perspective, the GX is positioned between the Leapmotor D19 and Li Auto L9, with its direct competitor being the WEY V9X. Through price differentiation, the XPENG GX avoids direct competition with models like the Li Auto L9, AITO M9, and NIO ES8. Relatively speaking, the full-size six-seater SUV market in the 250,000-350,000 yuan range is less fiercely competitive. Compared to the WEY V9X, XPENG boasts a stronger tech label and greater market presence and influence in the new energy vehicle sector. This is where the XPENG GX's opportunity lies.

In such a competitive market environment, mere parameter comparisons are no longer sufficient to sway consumers; price is the most direct weapon for breaking through. Of course, this is just the first step in opening up the market. Whether the GX can continue to sell well depends on user word-of-mouth (reputation) post-delivery, which tests XPENG's overall system capabilities in production, delivery services, and after-sales support.

Although the GX's pricing is highly competitive and its initial order performance is strong, making it a formidable contender in the 300,000-yuan large six-seater SUV market, it poses a challenge to XPENG's first-generation flagship SUV, the G9. The GX offers more space, standard rear-wheel steering, leather seats, an 88-inch panoramic head-up display, and driver incapacity assistance across all variants, with a richer overall configuration, yet its starting price is only 30,000 yuan higher. However, the G9's monthly sales have now slipped to the triple digits, with its sales contribution nearly negligible. Thus, there is little "internal cannibalization" between the two models. Moving forward, it remains to be seen how XPENG will adjust to revitalize the G9 in the mid-to-large five-seater SUV segment, where XPENG still needs a strong contender.