The 2020 Chengdu Auto Show started yesterday (July 24) and a lot of Chinese automakers are using it to unveil new or upgraded electric cars. One of these automakers is ORA.
ORA is the affordable brand of the giant Chinese automaker GWM (Great Wall Motors) that also owns the battery cell maker SVOLT.
ORA R1 (Black Cat)
The ORA R1 that looks like a mixture between a Honda e (front) and a Smart ForFour (back) now gets a 37 kWh battery, enough to surpass the mark of 400 km range in NEDC, which makes it eligible to get the full government subsidy.
Previously, the long range version of the ORA R1 had a 351 km NEDC range from a 33,9 kWh battery.
Battery specs of the 2019 long range version
- Production time: December 2018
- Range (NEDC): 351 km
- Cell type: Prismatic 102 Ah (NCM/C) by SVOLT
- Pack energy: 33,96 kWh
- Connection: 90s1p
- Nominal voltage: 333 V
- Operating voltage range: 252~382,5 V
- Pack weight: 218 kg
- Pack energy density: 162 Wh/kg
- Operating temperature range: -30℃~55℃
- IPXX level: IP67
- Dimensions: 1.448 x 1.069 x 271,5 mm
Anyway, let’s see what changed in the ORA R1.
2019 ORA R1 (Black Cat)
- Length: 3.495 mm
- Width: 1.660 mm
- Height: 1.560 mm
- Wheelbase: 2.475 mm
- Range: 301/351 km (NEDC)
- Battery: 28,5/33 kWh (SVOLT cells)
- Motor: 35 kW and 125 N.m of torque
- Maximum speed: 102 km/h
- On-board charger: 3,3 kW (6,6 kW optional)
- DC fast charging: 5-80 % in 40 minutes
- Price (after subsidies): from 69.800 to 79.800 yuan (8.544 to 9.768 euros)
2021 ORA R1 (Black Cat)
- Length: 3.495 mm
- Width: 1.660 mm
- Height: 1.560 mm
- Wheelbase: 2.475 mm
- Weight: 977/990/1.000 kg
- Range: 301/351/405 km (NEDC)
- Battery: 28,5/33/37 kWh (SVOLT cells)
- Motor: 35/45 kW and 125/130 N.m of torque
- Maximum speed: 102 km/h
- On-board charger: 6,6 kW
- DC fast charging: 30-80 % in 30 minutes
- Price (after subsidies): from 69.800 to 84.800 yuan (8.544 to 10.380 euros)
Now you’re probably thinking that this electric car is only affordable thanks to generous government subsidies, but if so, you’re wrong. Actually the subsidies from the Chinese government to buy electric cars have been dropping and are now quite low.
The standard range versions only get a subsidy of 16.200 yuan (1.983 euros) and the long range version gets a subsidy of 22.500 yuan (2.754 euros). This means that even before subsidies the long range version is very affordable at 107.300 yuan (13.134 euros).
In the table below provided by Moneyball you can see how subsidies to buy electric cars work in China. They depend on range and battery energy density.
What really boosted electric car sales in China is the easy access they have to license plates. For example, cities like Beijing introduced a license plate lottery system in 2011, where buyers can wait more than 7 years to get one, but electric cars are exempt from this scheme. While in Shanghai buyers of a new car have to bid for a license plate through an online auction by the government and it can cost more than 10.000 euros, but license plates are free for electric cars.
ORA R2 (White Cat)
Recently ORA also introduced another affordable electric car, the R2 (White Cat) that looks like a smaller Kia e-Soul…
2021 ORA R2 (White Cat)
- Length: 3.625 mm
- Width: 1.660 mm
- Height: 1.530 mm
- Wheelbase: 2.490 mm
- Weight: 10.010/1.032 kg
- Range: 360/401 km (NEDC)
- Battery: 34/38 kWh (SVOLT cells)
- Motor: 35/45 kW and 125/130 N.m of torque
- Maximum speed: 102 km/h
- On-board charger: 6,6 kW is standard in long range versions and optional in standard range versions for 1.000 yuan (122 euros)
- DC fast charging: 5-80 % in 40-45 minutes
- Price (after subsidies): from 75.800 to 88.800 yuan (9.278 to 10.870 euros)
If we convert the 401 km (249 miles) NEDC range to the more realistic WLTP we get around 301 km (187 miles), not bad for an electric car with a 38 kWh battery that before government subsidies costs 111.300 yuan (13.623 euros).
Curiously BMW and GWM are partners and there are rumors that the ORA R2 might replace the BMW i3, or at least serve as base for a new generation. Moving some production to China (world’s biggest EV market) seems to be part of BMW’s strategy, for example the upcoming BMW iX3 will be made in China and sold both there and in Europe.
Anyway, I thought that in this article it was important to show you what this type of electric cars can cost without government subsidies.
Automakers that say they are losing money with their overpriced electric cars are lying to us again, just like big corporations always do when they don’t want society to tell them how to behave. After the diesel emissions scandal, only complete fools give them the benefit of the doubt.
Automakers don’t want to produce electric cars right now because they already invested high sums of money in production lines for ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) cars, that’s it. They’re milking the cow before it dies… even if it cost us the quality of our air or more wars and coups for oil they don’t care!
The good news is that ORA plans to bring its electric cars to Europe and it might happen sooner than later. Next year SVOLT starts producing its cobalt-free LNMO batteries and I hope that the electric cars exported to Europe from ORA already come with them.
I leave you with a nice video from Fully Charged about the ORA R1.
If you’re now furious with the prices of electric cars in Europe and North America grab your pitchfork and join me!
More info:
https://www.gwm.com.cn/news_detail-18603.html
