Onvo’s second model, a fully electric large SUV, is a lot of car for very little money, particularly when the battery is rented.
Onvo has officially opened pre-sales for its second model, the fully electric three-row L90 SUV, with prices kicking off from as little as RMB 193,900 (£20,000 / $27,000).
That eye-opening price comes in less than the brand’s smaller L60 model (when purchased together with the battery) and hits a key psychological barrier in the brutal competition that is China’s large SUV market.
The model, which defies the current trend for extended range SUVs in the three-row category, is seen as a key model for Onvo whose sales have struggled to take off in the opening nine months.
It will compete against the likes of the Deepal S09, Lynk & Co 900, and Denza N9 when it goes on official sale later this year, and could even take sales away from its stablemate the NIO ES8 which, on paper at least, doesn’t appear to offer a huge amount more for significantly more money.
Measuring 5,145mm long, 1,998mm wide, 1,766mm tall, and with a long wheelbase of 3,110mm, the L90 seems designed entirely around the concept of space, with NIO CEO Li Bin using the word ‘big’ more than 300 times during the presentation of the car.
Onvo claims it is the lightest full-size three-row SUV currently available with the rear-wheel drive variant coming in at a surprisingly nimble 2,250kg, more than 400kg lighter than a Lynk & Co 900, and over 300kg lighter than the NIO ES8.
Practicality seems to be another key focus of the L90 with Onvo making a big deal about the 240-litre powered frunk, which can seat two and features spaces for drinks and other items, while there’s also 430-litres of space behind the third-row seats.
Available in rear- or all-wheel-drive, the L90 packs a 340kW (456hp) motor on the rear axle in all instances, and gains an additional 100kW (134hp) motor on the front axle for the dual-motor variant, giving a total power of 440kw (590hp).
In the single motor variant, it’ll complete the 0-100kph sprint in a very reasonably 5.9 seconds, while the dual-motor variant brings that figure down to 4.7 seconds, slightly faster than the 1.5T dual-motor Lynk & Co 900, but slower than the 2.0T dual and 2.0T triple-motor versions of its hybrid rival.
The battery, whether you opt to rent or buy, comes in just the one flavour, an 85kWh pack with an energy density of 193.2 Wh/kg, a figure Onvo claims is 26% greater than the industry average.
It comes with a CLTC range of 605km for the single motor variant, and 570km for the dual-motor, and uses the same 900-volt high-voltage system used in the NIO ET9, as well as the battery swap capability of all NIO Group models.
Inside, the L90 comes as either a six- or seven-seater, with six-seat variants getting a full-house of heating, ventilation, and massage functions on every seat, something no other rival can boast.
There’s a 17.2-inch 3k screen in the centre of the dash, a 35-inch head-up display, and another 17.2-inch 3k screen that folds down from the ceiling for rear passengers, as well as a smaller screen to control things like rear climate control, and the 8.8-litre integrated cooling/heating drawer.
In addition, the L90 boasts adaptive air suspension with real-time adjustment, and hydraulic bushing on each corner for added comfort, while powered side steps, soft-close doors, and noise reducing tyres also feature to lighten the load.
You can read more about the L90’s interior features in our dedicated article about it here.
Unlike NIO models, the L90 goes without lidar, instead making do with a 4D millimetre-wave radar system with 48 detection channels capable sensing objects up to 370 metres away.
As far as we’re aware, the L90 does still come with the ability to do supervised autonomous driving on both the highway and on urban streets.
There are also nine airbags provided as standard to ensure strong safety credentials in keeping with a EuroNCAP 5-star standard.
Pre-sales prices simply state the the L90 starts at RMB 193,900 (£20,000 / $27,000) when bought with the Battery as a Service model, where the battery is rented for RMB 899 (£93 / $125) per month, or from RMB 279,900 (£28,800 / $39,000) when the battery is purchased.
As such, the L90 looks to quite heavily undercut its nearest rivals utilising the BaaS model, and could undercut them even further with official prices as pre-sale prices tend to be a little higher than the launch pricing.
Pre-orders are now open for the model, but there’s no official word on an actual release date, which we’re expecting will happen in August after media drives are completed later this month.
