Yet another new one
Not a fan of the extent to which Chinese carmakers are expanding their sphere of influence into Europe? Then just look the other way. The Chinese GAC may bring Aion to Europe and with this electric SUV, called Hyper HT, it can attack cars such as the Tesla Model Y and the Volkswagen ID5.
The GAC Group is a Chinese state-owned company that is the joint venture partner of brands such as Honda and Toyota in China. It sells cars under the brand name Trumpchi and has set up a brand in the form of Aion with which it focuses entirely on EVs. Anyone who regularly visits AutoWeek.nl is probably somewhat familiar with Aion. For example, we previously wrote about the Aion Y, Aion S and Aion V and about the most recent acquisitions of the Chinese brand: the Aion Hyper GT and the Aion Hyper SSR. Those two ‘Hyper’ models currently seem to be demanding attention within Aion. The brand has another model from the Hyper line in the pipeline: this Aion Hyper HT.
Aion Hyper HT
The Aion Hyper HT hasn’t been unveiled yet, but we have already unearthed the first photos and information of the actual car from the depths of the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology database. The Aion Hyper HT is an electric SUV with a roofline that slopes sharply from the B-pillar. The SUV, weighing at least 2,120 kilos, will in any case be available as a 340 hp rear-wheel drive. It measures 4.94 meters in length, is 1.8 meters high and has a wheelbase of 2.94 meters. With those dimensions, it is about 34 centimeters longer than a Volkswagen ID5 and 20 centimeters longer than a Tesla Model Y. Given that cars from Chinese entrants in Europe are often marketed at a much more favorable price point than models from, among others, European car makers, the Aion Hyper HT could easily compete with those cars here. Wait a minute, in Europe?
Expansionism
Certainly. Although GAC has taken Aion to countries such as Thailand and Jordan in a short time, it remained tight-lipped about its arrival in Europe for a long time. Now GAC is really setting its Aion sights on Europe. In November last year, it opened an R&D center in Milan and GAC has now indicated that it will set up a branch in Western Europe for the sale of fully electric cars. This undoubtedly means that Aion models will also come to our corner of the world. We immediately got an extra hint of this. In Europe, Aion has now registered the design of the Hyper HT, as shown by a search by AutoWeek in the European patent office (photos 3 to 7).
The Hyper HT is not the only new electric SUV that Aion has registered in Europe. We also have patent drawings of an electric SUV that, given its size, is positioned above the Hyper HT. What will it be called? We don’t know yet, but don’t be surprised if Aion also adds that car to the Hyper line (photos 8 to 10).
Aion: the mysterious model above the Hyper HT.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl