Image Credit: Captain Electro.
I've seen some strange bedfellows before. I even once saw a cat sleeping on a dog. I'm pretty sure that back in '98 I saw a politician tell the truth, but the automotive world has officially gone stark raving mad. Volkswagen and XPeng are currently in a relationship that can only be described as "complicated." In China, they're holding hands, sharing tech, and skipping through fields of battery cells together. VW even tossed $700 million into XPeng's hat and bought five percent of the company. It's all very cozy.
But in Europe? Oh, it's a different story. It's a knife fight in a phone booth. XPeng has just unleashed the P7+, a sleek fastback sedan that is actively trying to steal VW ID. 7's lunch money, give it a wedgie, and shove it into a locker. And the best bit? This supposedly "Chinese" car is being built in Graz, Austria, by the fine folks at Magna Steyr. That's right, the P7+ is about as Chinese as schnitzel.
Image Credit: Captain Electro.
The P7+ is a handsome thing, I'll give it that. It's got that low-slung, aerodynamic "I'm faster than I look" vibe. It stretches out to about 199 inches long and sits 76 inches wide, giving it the "I mean business" footprint. But let's not beat around the bush - the headline here is the price tag.
In Germany, where they take their cars as seriously as their beer, the base P7+ starts at €43,600. For my American friends, that's roughly $51,200. Compare that to the VW ID.7, which lumbers onto the scene with a starting sticker of €54,105 (about $64,900), and we instantly can see a chasm - you could buy the XPeng and still have enough leftover for a very decent electric motorcycle.
Image Credit: Captain Electro.
And if you want the Long Range version of the P7+, you're looking at €49,600 ($59,500). It's aggressive pricing for sure. It's the sort of pricing that makes VW executives wake up in a cold sweat, screaming "Mein Gott!" and I'm pretty sure it makes potential EV owners think twice before they commit their money.
But in case you were planning to rush off to deposit your hard-earned cash, hold your horses. There is a catch, and it's roughly the size of a battery pack. VW, to their credit, stuffs a 77 kWh battery into the base ID.7, giving you a WLTP range of 385 miles. The P7+, being the thrifty rebel it is, only gives you a 62 kWh pack in the base model. That means you're looking at 283 miles of range. If you spring for the Long Range model with its 75 kWh pack, you get 329 miles.
Image Credit: Captain Electro.
Whatever way you slice it, the VW goes further. The flagship ID.7 Pro S, with its massive 86 kWh belly, will do 440 miles. If your bladder can last that long, the VW wins. But Sven De Smet, the head honcho at XPeng Europe, reckons we're all looking at it wrong.
"We believe charging is one of the pain points. A big battery is heavier, which means it consumes more electricity, which means you charge it more." He's got a point, the crafty chap. It's like carrying a keg of beer around when you only want a pint - it just slows you down. That's where the XPeng pulls an ace from its sleeve. It uses 800-volt technology - the electrical equivalent of drinking espresso instead of decaf.
Image Credit: Captain Electro.
The VW ID.7 tops out at a respectable 200 kW charging speed. That's fine. It's adequate. It's vanilla. The base P7+ simply laughs in the face of adequacy with a peak charging speed of 350 kW. And the Long Range? 446 kW. You could plug it in, blink, and have enough juice to get to the next town. The VW driver will still be waiting for the percentage to tick up, and the XPeng driver has already had a coffee, a bathroom break, and is halfway down the autobahn.
Because the P7+ isn't lugging around a battery the weight of a small moon, XPeng claims it handles better. It's lighter on its feet. The base model pushes out 180 kW (241 hp) and will scoot from 0-60 mph in roughly 6.9 seconds. The Long Range bumps that up to 230 kW (308 hp) and drops the sprint time to 6.2 seconds. It's not going to rearrange your internal organs, but it's plenty quick enough to merge onto the highway without saying a prayer.
Image Credit: Captain Electro.
I've driven the thing, and I have to say - and this might sting a bit, VW - the XPeng feels better. The interior quality is genuinely impressive. It doesn't feel like it was built by accountants; it feels premium. The tech works. The seats are comfortable. It's got gadgets and gizmos aplenty, and unlike some German interfaces that require a PhD to operate the air conditioning, everything in the P7+ makes sense.
It's a bizarre world we live in. VW is investing millions in XPeng to save its skin in China, while XPeng uses that momentum to build cars in Austria that undercut VW in Europe. It's like paying for your own assassin's Uber ride.
Image Credit: Captain Electro.
The ID.7 is a good car, no doubt, it sold over 76,000 units last year, sitting comfortably in the top ten. But the P7+ is a warning shot. It's cheaper, it charges faster, and it's built right in VW's backyard. If I were a betting man - and I'm not - I'd say the P7+ is going to cause quite a stir. It might not have the range, but since time is money, that 446 kW charging speed is a currency all on its own.
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