We have tested Xpeng P5. Not so heavenly stupid though.

Two models are relevant for Europe, P7 and P5. P7 is nicer, faster and more expensive, but it is P5 that we get to see in Sweden to begin with. In terms of image, it would have been much better to start with P7. In addition to China, they are investing in Europe and the countries they are currently in are Norway (of course), Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands. P5 will be available for order at the beginning of May and deliveries will start at the end of the year.

It is a fairly ordinary car which unfortunately is a sedan and not a hatchback. The look is a bit odd because it feels a bit strangely tall and narrow, the shapes of the P7 are much better. This is not a beautiful car in my eyes but it is perfectly ok, an everyday car quite simply. The focus on the P5 seems to have been to get a car that feels luxurious, but to end up in the right price range, you have had to skip certain things, so it is quite a sad charge on this one, only 70 kW.

The battery is 66 kWh and from it you get a range of 465 kilometers, which is really good. Electricity is starting to get expensive and it’s nice to get such a long range out of a small battery, but I’ve only run this for a few hours so have no idea if the numbers are correct. There are two charging slots, but only one is used. The other is used in China and they have simply not been able to remove it. Instead, you have a little funny text on the inside …

Under the hood there is unfortunately no frunk, where you will instead find technology. A little frunk could have been brought here with a little will. An odd thing is that the car is expected to cost 550,000 kronor and on it you can put on an equipment package that gives 18-inch rims, a slightly better sound system and a protective cover for it under the hood. It’s really odd actually that a protective cover is extra equipment. Well.

At the back we of course find space for luggage and it is quite spacious, 450 liters plus 70 liters under the floor. It is a pity that the tailgate is of the sedan type and not a hatchback, partly because it is more comfortable to live with luggage that it is easy to throw things in and partly because we Swedes love to hate sedans.

At the back, one might have hoped that there would be a towbar, but we should not have that much fun. It will not be available as either equipment or aftermarket options. Sin!

If you jump into the back seat, it’s ok space in one direction and really good space in another. There is plenty of legroom, the Chinese really like this and it is noticeable in this car. Even when I sit with less than 180 cm far back in the driver’s seat, there is very good space, just over 15 centimeters. But upwards it is worse, if I stretch I actually hit the roof so it is noticeable that this car is designed for a country where the average length is 170 cm. If you are over 180 cm, you feel best in the front seat. Which is a shame, this could be a good car for those with tall teenagers given the legroom. However, it will be easy to throw in a high chair because there is plenty of space, the pram on the other hand …

If we jump to the front seat, it is a good mix of analog and digital. Two digital screens and a very analog steering wheel and we like that. The buttons are logical and control the screen in front of the eyes, check out in the video below how it works.

The screen in front of the nose has three areas. In the middle you see yourself and the cars around you. If you’ve driven a Tesla, you recognize yourself, it’s really the exact same style of this. Except that Xpeng does not really recognize the cars and objects around you in the same way as Teslan.

To the right and left you can choose what you want to see, here you can see maps, music, consumption and more. Simple and good.

The large screen also draws a lot of inspiration from Tesla. To say that it is a copy is to take in maybe, but it is noticeable that you have looked at the competitor. However, they have done well and things are logically placed and the system is really fast. You might think it’s a copy, but it’s better than very, very many other manufacturers.

At the top you will find some small icons that take you to profiles, add bluetooth devices and a bit like that. Below there are app icons and here you will find map, Spotify and a little more. Right now there are not that many services in Europe but in China there are all the more. The built-in assistant understands what I’re saying but can do not much more than change the temperature and open the windscreens. More will promise Xpeng, in China it can order movie tickets and have them, but it will probably take a while here. Find here

At the bottom you will find some fixed things icons. At the far left we go to the vehicle settings (settings around the screen and such are among the app icons at the top), the parking function where you find cameras, temperature, AC and some heat for windows. The vehicle settings are fast, logically placed, easy to adjust and very similar to Tesla’s.

If we roll away, it is not an exciting but not a bad experience either. There is a sports mode that makes the car a little more alert, or less tired, but it is not a magical sports experience. P5 has 211 horsepower, which is enough but does not make anyone particularly excited, the biggest reason to put in the sport mode is actually to get those 211 horses to wake up to life. Zero to one hundred runs in 7.5 seconds.

The steering wheel can not be set, which is a shame and there is no steering wheel heat. Tail heat, on the other hand, is available on all outer seats, ie not in the middle of the rear, but ventilation is not available in Sweden for any reason.

The Xpeng P5 is a perfectly ok car, but why should I choose this one? If you compare with a Polestar 2, I get a bigger car, but which is uglier and more expensive (comparable Polestar 2 costs from SEK 509,000). A Volvo XC40 is larger, more glorious, type Swedish and costs SEK 520,900. Although a Tesla Model 3 costs a penny extra, it is a better car with a better charging network.

Xpeng can certainly sell cars if they have cars to deliver and if they get a good offer. But it is far from an obvious homerun.