Car review: Xpeng’s G6 has ‘slight edge’ over Tesla’s Model Y with ‘fool’s errand’ lidar
The G6 sports-utility vehicle, launched in June 2023, is the vanguard of Xpeng’s push into Hong Kong’s right-hand drive market with its larger sibling the X9 people-mover
The SCMP is embarking on a six-part series of motoring reviews to focus on Chinese electric vehicles that are made for the export market, either in the right-hand drive versions or their original left-hand drive editions. In the first of this six-part series, Mark Andrews puts Xpeng’s G6 sports-utility vehicle through the paces, concluding that it is not so much a car that you drive than the car that drives you.
Where Xpeng does better is in the global market. The G6 sports-utility vehicle, launched in June 2023, is the vanguard of Xpeng’s push into Hong Kong’s right-hand drive market with its larger sibling the X9 people-mover.
The G6 and Model Y both outperformed the iX3 on the track, which was unsurprising since both were designed-from-scratch EVs, each with dual-motors. The iX3 was converted from the petrol-guzzling X3, with only an electric motor on the rear axle.
I felt that Xpeng had a slight edge over Tesla in the driving experience. But with neither car aiming to be the all-out performance model, their handling and drive on the track was moot. What is more important is how the G6 handles on the public road. In this matter, the G6 is not so much a car that you drive, than a car that drives you.
