Beijing Auto launched mini electric city car ArcFox-1 and ArcFox-7 concept car in the brand new ArcFox Space in Beijing.
The space is a typical hipster showroom/juice bar and opened for the launch of the ArcFox brand, which plans to build an electric city car and a 600 horsepower electric supercar. ArcFox is a new EV brand under BJEV, the electric-vehicle division of the Beijing Auto Industry Corporation (BAIC), commonly know as Beijing Auto. BAIC is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in China, owned in a large part by the Beijing City municipal government.
BAIC sells cars under various brands, including Beijing Auto, Senova, Foton and Changhe. It also has large car making joint ventures with Hyundai and Mercedes-Benz. BAIC owns 60% of BJEV. The other 40% is divided among other shareholders, including LeEco, the company behind the LeSee Tesla killer and Faraday Future.
Currently, BJEV sells the EU260 sedan , the EX200 crossover and the successful EV200 hatchback. They are developing the EH400, China’s largest electric sedan so far. These cars are sold under the Beijing Auto brand but distributed via a separate dealer network.
ArcFox is aimed at the young and hip, living in high rises in the big cities, with a few yuan to spare and as yet unfettered by a family. ArcFox stands for arctic fox, a small fox-like animal that lives far up in the ice cold regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
The ArcFox logo depicts an arctic fox head seen from the front. The slogan of the brand is “Fun any way.” The brand will launch its first car after Chinese New Year, which falls on January 28 2017.
The first-born fox will be the ArcFox-1mini EV. BJEV showed an open top concept on the Beijing Auto Show. The ArcFox-1 will be just over 3 meters long, it will have a 40hp motor, a range of about 200 kilometers, and a 120 km/h top speed. It will cost 100,000 yuan or $15,800 including subsidies. There will be a two-seat version and a four-seat version.
The mini EV segment is fast becoming increasingly popular, especially in the big cities. They can charge in a few hours at the office or at one of the increasingly common public chargers on the road. The most popular cars in the segment are the Zhidou D2 and the Zotye Yun100, which sold 2,300 and 1,812 units in June respectively.
The second Fox cannot be much different than the first. The stunning ArcFox-7 is a full-blown electric supercar. It too debuted in concept form on the Beijing Auto Show and production has now been confirmed for next year. The 7 will cost a hefty four million yuan or $600,000, by far the most expensive Chinese car ever and a perfect halo model for the ArcFox brand.
The ArcFox 7 will be powered by two electric motors, good for a combined output of some 600hp and 1000nm. It will do zero to a hundred in 2.8 seconds and top out at 260 km/h. Range will be at least 300 kilometers. Amazingly, the ArcFox-7 won’t be the only Chinese electric supercar for very long; the Qiantu Motors K50 and the Windbooster Titan will soon join the high-power party.
