Shanghai (ZXZC)- On December 23, 2023, Chinese prominent electric vehicle manufacturer NIO officially launched the ET9, its fire new flagship all-electric sedan model, at the NIO Day 2023, its most important event of the year.

NIO ET9; photo credit: NIO

NIO said the ET9 is an intelligent electric executive flagship sedan designed to meet the ultimate needs of the distinguished business users. The cutting-edge technologies in the ET9 reflects NIO's full-stack technological prowess, encompassing in-house developments of such components as electric drive, cells, battery pack, electrical/electronic architecture, chips, and the entire vehicle operating system.

NIO ET9; photo credit: NIO

NIO ET9; photo credit: NIO

The model measures 5,324mm long, 2,016mm wide, and 1,620mm wide, with a wheelbase of 3,250mm. It is slated for official delivery from the first quarter of 2025. However, pre-order of the model has kicked off upon its debut with a reference pre-sale price of 800,000 yuan.

NIO ET9; photo credit: NIO

NIO ET9; photo credit: NIO

NIO said the ET9, has revolutionized the concept of a mobile executive space, introducing an efficient mobile office and an exclusive business meeting lounge. The ET9, with its native executive four-seat layout, boasts a vertical length of 2,049 millimeters and a horizontal width of 1,563 millimeters. Innovations like the "Sky Island" and "Executive Bridge" designs have resulted in four exclusive first-class seat experiences. Inside the "Executive Bridge," a meticulously designed 360° infinitely adjustable executive desk awaits second-row passengers, providing versatility at any angle. The rear seats of the ET9 feature 24 self-developed patented technologies, a maximum recline angle of 45°, a seat cushion width of 582mm, and 11-linkage adjustments for one-touch reclining relaxation. Additionally, the vehicle is equipped with seven electric sunshades, all operable with a single touch.

SkyRide Intelligent Chassis System; photo credit: NIO

The NIO ET9 features the "SkyRide Intelligent Chassis System," which integrates three core hardware systems: steer-by-wire, rear-wheel steering, and fully active suspension. It is currently the world's only fully wire-controlled intelligent chassis system. The pioneering intelligent and highly integrated active suspension system incorporates a dedicated electric-hydraulic pump in each damper, enabling rapid response with a brushless DC motor capable of processing, computing, and responding to information within 1 millisecond. Additionally, the suspension supports significant height adjustment and can make 1,000 torque adjustments per second, with independent control of all four wheels, meeting the diverse driving demands across various scenarios, including complex road conditions such as uneven terrain.

The ET9 introduces the aerospace-grade "steer-by-wire" technology for the first time, said NIO. It utilizes electronic signal transmission between the steering wheel and the steering motors, resulting in a lightweight structure and a 40% improvement in transmission efficiency. The system also supports over-the-air (OTA) upgrades. In low-speed parking and U-turn scenarios, the steer-by-wire technology provides sensitive and convenient steering, eliminating the need for hand-over-hand steering. In combination with the rear-wheel steering system, which provides a maximum rear wheel angle of 8.3 degrees, it achieves a minimum turning diameter of 10.9 meters.

NIO's  all-Domain 900V high-voltage architecture; photo credit: NIO

The NIO ET9 is equipped with China's first "All-Domain 900V High-Voltage Architecture," which includes core electronic components such as batteries, electric motors, wiring harnesses, air conditioning, DC-DC converters, and onboard chargers. According to NIO, it boasts three global firsts: the highest voltage of 925V, a peak charging power of 600kW, and a peak charging current of 765A. The 900V energy replenishment system features three core advantages: lightning-fast charging, wide-area charging, and rapid battery swap, leading the industry with the ability to increase the driving range by 255km in just 5 minutes.

NX9031 intelligent driving chip; photo credit: NIO

The NIO ET9 is equipped with NIO's self-developed intelligent driving chip and vehicle all-domain operating system. Of those, the intelligent driving chip, dubbed NX9031, was introduced at the event. NIO claimed it as the industry's first intelligent driving chip manufactured using a 5nm automotive-grade process, boasting over 50 billion transistors. With its powerful CPU cluster for parallel processing and abundant memory bandwidth, it achieves fast and stable processing with minimal latency. Enhanced full-chain perception is achieved through the self-developed Image Signal Processor (ISP), while various AI algorithms can be flexibly and efficiently executed using NIO's self-developed Neural Processing Unit.

In addition, NIO's all-domain vehicle operating system, SkyOS, will be comprehensively applied in the ET9, assisting the NX9031 chip in enhancing the driving intelligence. The SkyOS will establish a “1+4+N” technology cluster, covering multiple domains such as vehicle control, intelligent driving, cockpit, and mobile connectivity, providing users with a richer and more intelligent driving experience.

NIO ET9; photo credit: NIO

In terms of vehicle safety, the ET9 adopts an aerospace-inspired body design, utilizing spatial mechanics structures and high-strength steel-aluminum-magnesium alloys as well as composite materials. It achieves a vehicle torsional stiffness of up to 52,600 Nm/deg.

The NIO ET9 comes standard with nine safety airbags, with an oversized side curtain airbag that provides 100% coverage of the protection area for front and rear passengers. Specifically, second-row side airbags are equipped to meet all side collision conditions in China, Europe, and the United States, providing thoughtful protection for rear passengers.

Besides, the super sensing system, Aquila 2.0, introduces dual side wide-angle LiDAR units, creating a 350° laser ring perception system for enhanced side and rear perception. The super-long-range LiDAR, powered by NIO's self-developed "Yang Jian" master control chip, delivers improved imaging clarity. Additionally, the ET9 adopts a 4D millimeter-wave imaging radar, which is unaffected by extreme weather conditions, significantly enhancing perception capabilities, and reducing misjudgments and false braking.

Moreover, the all-new intelligent high-definition projection headlights incorporate MicroLED units with the high pixel density and cinematic-grade high-precision imaging lenses. Deep integration with Aquila 2.0 enables enhanced brightness for low and high beams, wide-angle coverage, a large adaptive steering angle, and greater illuminating distance.