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In Just 100 Seconds, You Can Have A Fully Charged EV

  • CATL wants to have 1,000 stations in 31 cities across China by the end of this year.
  • In just 100 seconds, EV drivers can swap batteries, beating traditional charging times.
  • Each of the new ‘Choco-SEB’ battery stations can handle up to 822 swaps per day.

Tesla might have been the first automaker to flirt with the concept of battery swapping stations for its EVs, but it’s China’s top car manufacturers that have fully embraced it, running miles ahead of the competition. Nio is currently leading the charge in battery swap tech, with thousands of stations scattered across China and even a few popping up in Europe. Soon, battery-swapping will become even more commonplace in China.

Just this week, Changan Automobile rolled out the first 1,000 units of its Oshan 520 sedan. Built with local taxi services in mind, these cars are significant for one reason: they’re the first to use CATL’s new Choco-SEB swappable battery packs.

What really steals the show here is the speed—these batteries can be swapped out in just 100 seconds at specialized stations that are about to become a common sight across China. Chongqing already boasts 34 Choco-SEB swap stations, and by 2025, CATL plans to have 1,000 of these stations spread across 31 cities.

Read: EV Battery Breakthrough Could Double Your Car’s Lifespan

CATL, which just so happens to be the world’s largest EV battery supplier, has inked deals with GAC, Chery, Nio, SAIC, FAW, BAIC, and others to build EVs with these new battery packs. This means vehicles from all those brands will be able to use CATL’s swap stations, which can handle 822 swaps each day each.

 In Just 100 Seconds, You Can Have A Fully Charged EV

As for the Oshan 520, it’s got a modest 56 kWh battery, offering a respectable range of up to 515 km (320 miles). At a starting price of 166,890 yuan (around $23,100 at current exchange rates), it’s relatively affordable for the average Chinese driver.

The real benefit, though, lies in the battery swap tech. Taxi drivers, for example, can skip the agonizing wait at a high-speed charger and swap batteries in just 100 second. That’s faster than it would take to fuel up a traditional gas-powered car. In a world where time equals money, this is a huge win.

A slew of other Chinese EVs have already been confirmed to support the Choco-SEB battery system. These include the new GAC Aion S, Hongqi E-QM5, SAIC Roewe D7, BAIC C66, Wuling Bingo, Wuling Starlight, SAIC Rising R7, SAIC Maxus Mifa 9, and the SAIC Maxus Dana. So, it looks like swapping batteries is going to be the norm, at least for China’s EVs, in the very near future.

 In Just 100 Seconds, You Can Have A Fully Charged EV

This Retro SUV From China Costs Less Than A Used Versa

  • The kit includes a military-inspired matte green wrap and black steel wheels.
  • iCar sells single and dual-motor versions of the V23 with up to 211 hp.
  • A special front grille, black bumpers, and a hood-mounted spotlight are featured.

A small but growing number of automakers are figuring out how to make EVs weird in all the right ways. Among them is Chery’s iCar brand, which has a few unconventional offerings, but none more intriguing than the V23. This chunky SUV looks like someone merged a Land Rover Defender with a Suzuki Jimny in a design studio that really loves straight lines. And now, it’s gotten even more eccentric with a retro-styled body kit.

The standard V23 already plays the retro card well, thanks to its squared-off profile, upright front and rear ends, and pronounced fender flares that give it a solid presence. But the new ‘Retro Emotion Package’ takes it further with a matte green wrap that feels perfectly suited to its aesthetic. It might look slightly out of place in a downtown traffic jam, but out in the wild, it fits right in.

Read: Chery’s iCar Expands Its Lineup With Rugged Minivans And Tougher SUVs

Complementing the special wrap is a unique front grille and a blacked-out front bumper. iCar has then added a large spotlight on the hood. Admittedly, it looks a little cheap, and the brand perhaps would have been better to add a set of more traditional circular spotlights to the front end.

Adding to the visual makeover are black rocker panels, side steps, and a set of 19-inch wheels wrapped in all-terrain tires. So yes, it’s dressed to look like it could leave the pavement behind, whether or not it ever will.

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Apparently, iCar was quite serious about developing an upgrade kit that doesn’t just look the part but serves some purpose. According to a report from China’s Ithome, that the matte green wrap has a special anti-glare treatment to meet military vehicle concealment standards. Additionally, the front grille can be quickly and easily removed and replaced by owners.

Considering how affordable most EVs are in China, it’s no shock that this upgrade kit follows suit. Depending on the configuration, it’s priced between 4,000 and 10,500 yuan, or roughly $550 to $1,450 at current exchange rates. As for the V23 itself, pricing starts at 109,800 yuan (about $15,000) and tops out at 149,800 yuan (around $20,500), which keeps the whole setup firmly planted in the budget EV bracket.

To put that in perspective, the base version costs about the same as a used 2021 Nissan Versa with 65,000 miles on the clock – and considerably less personality, if we’re being honest.

Performance-wise, entry-level models come with a 136-horsepower motor driving the rear axle. Higher trims get a dual-motor setup with a total output of 211 horsepower, both modest numbers, but likely enough to keep this small SUV feeling sprightly on back roads and city streets alike.

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China’s iCar Is Making A SUV With Defender Looks And Dacia Pricing

  • Chery’s iCar SUV might look like a Land Rover, but it’s expected to be priced like a Dacia.
  • The expected price range of $28K-$34K make it a budget-friendly option in the 4×4 market.
  • It will likely feature a range-extender powertrain, combining gasoline and electric power.

It’s no secret that Chinese automakers have been stepping up their design game, but sometimes, their inspiration tends to come from, let’s just say, more familiar places than they’d probably admit. Chery’s fairly new iCar brand already offers a few intriguing models, and now it’s working on a 4×4 that looks suspiciously like a Land Rover Defender.

However, unlike the British icon, this one comes without the history or prestige, meaning it’ll be far more affordable. It’s also expected to launch as a range-extender EV, which, if you haven’t noticed, is the current industry fallback for “We wanted to go fully electric but weren’t quite ready.”

Read: Chery’s iCar Expands Its Lineup With Rugged Minivans And Tougher SUVs

While the name iCar might bring to mind Apple’s long-abandoned EV project, it has no connection whatsoever to the tech giant. That said, the Chery-owned brand hasn’t just borrowed Apple’s naming vibe, as it also seems eager to echo the design of another Western staple, the current Land Rover Defender, all while keeping some visual ties to its own lineup, like the X23.

Spy photos from China’s Autohome reveal a front fascia that closely mirrors the Land Rover Defender, featuring headlights and a grille design that look nearly identical. The prototype also sports a blacked-out bumper, black fender flares, and matching rocker panels, all contributing to its deliberately rugged appearance.

The similarities keep piling up along the sides. There are small black vents on the quarter panel and chunky door handles. One notable difference is the fact that the iCar’s side windows appear much larger than those of the Defender and they seem to sit slightly below the line of the windshield. So there’s that.

 China’s iCar Is Making A SUV With Defender Looks And Dacia Pricing
Autohome

At the rear, the prototype sports four square LED taillights. The third brake light has been positioned where you’d usually expect to find a spare wheel carrier, although for the iCar, it will likely serve as a small storage box.

Limited technical specifications are known about the model. However, Chery already has an impressive range-extender powertrain in its line-up that drives the Exlantix ET crossover and consists of a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder and two electric motors.

Familiar Face for a Fraction of the Cost

As for price, Chinese media outlets suggest a starting range between 200,000 yuan (around $27,600 at current exchange rates) and 250,000 yuan (roughly $34,500), making it significantly cheaper than anything coming out of Solihull. For comparison, the current Defender, the real one, starts from 688,000 yuan ($95,000), or more than three times the rumored price of the still-unnamed iCar SUV.

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Autohome

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