Review: XPeng P7+

Xpeng is seen by some as the Chinese answer to Tesla, not only because of its emphasis on tech, particularly self-driving, but also in terms of positioning. One of three Chinese EV start-ups listed in the US for a long time, it was best seen as an also-ran thanks to disappointing sales against better-known Nio and sales powerhouse Li Auto.

That all changed for Xpeng last year thanks to two new models. Sales of the first, the Xpeng Mona M03, began in August and quickly the car became Xpeng’s best-selling model. Then, in November sales began of XPeng P7+, and it marked a huge reset for the Shenzhen-headquartered start-up.

The unveiling of the P7+ at last year’s Paris Auto Show in Europe speaks volumes about the growing confidence of the company, along with the rapid acceleration of exports. April this year saw the car displayed at Milan Design Week before going on sale on the continent later in 2025. Xpeng already sells cars in the UK, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Iceland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Poland and Italy.

Both the Mona M03 and P7+ are actually liftbacks, a type of hatchback. As such, they differ significantly from XPeng’s previous cars, which were all sedans and SUVs, and a strange choice given the limited appeal of liftbacks in the Chinese market.

Photograph Courtesy of XPeng

However, far more importantly, setting the P7+ apart from all previous Xpeng cars is its democratization of self-driving features. Xpeng has long prided itself on its prowess in this area.  In 2021, the company was the first to launch a mass-produced car equipped with Lidar, the P5. This by 2022 allowed what Xpeng refers to as NGP (navigation guided pilot) for self-driving (officially driving assistance) in a select band of cities (City NGP), a first in China.

Complete Reset

In 2023, Xpeng introduced a more advanced version called XNGP on its G9 and P7i models, we tested it on the latter. Xpeng gradually rolled it out across the country until the system covered most roads in China.

The problem was that as Xpeng rolled the system out through its range, each model took a two-tier approach to the self-driving ADAS features. On the top-of-the-range Max versions they used Lidar, while lower spec versions made do with a camera-based system, which restricted usage to highways.

Xpeng’s P7+ marks a complete reset. Gone are the expensive Lidar units, and yet from launch Xpeng claimed the P7+ was capable of the same level of driving assistance as its Lidar-toting models.

With sensors now consisting of 12 external cameras, 12 ultrasonic sensors, and 3 millimeter wavelength radars, according to the brand it allows both versions (there are only two) of the P7+ to offer the same flagship level of self-driving ability. And unlike Tesla and some others, it comes at no extra cost to purchasers. We'll come back to this.

The size of the battery pack and the power of the motor are the only real differences between the two versions of the P7+. My test car was the Ultra-Long Range Max, which has the larger 76.3-kWh battery pack and a more powerful 230-kW motor. Both models use lithium iron phosphate batteries but the cheaper Long Range Max version uses a smaller 60.7-kWh pack. Currently, the P7+ only comes with a single rear-mounted electric motor, and the base model makes do with a less powerful 180-kW unit. Range for WIRED's test version is claimed to be 450 miles using China’s urban driving-skewed and more forgiving CLTC test cycle.

Despite the car’s name it has very little in common with the Xpeng P7, which initially launched in 2020. We previously tested the midlife update version the P7i which gained Lidar and was one of the two launch cars for Xpeng’s XNGP assisted driving system.

Coupe Looks, SUV Space

First off the P7+ is really a hatchback rather than a sedan and is a much bigger car to boot with a length of 5,056 mm versus 4,888 mm. Furthermore, the car uses Xpeng’s newer SEPA 2.0 platform, which debuted on the G6 SUV and has 800V architecture, meaning faster charging speeds and more efficient energy usage.

Photograph Courtesy of XPeng

According to Xpeng, the P7+ combines the looks of a coupe, the space of an SUV and the comfort of an MPV. There is no denying that there is a lot of space with 725 liters for the trunk, and with the seats down 2,221 liters. That’s enough to hold 33 20-inch suitcases if you’re that way inclined, or the rear space can double as a 2.1-meter-long double bed. One problem with the trunk is the lack of a parcel shelf, something that will need to be rectified before it hits Europe to shield purchasers' worldly goods from shifty eyes. There is, though, an underfloor storage compartment, but no frunk.

From the introduction of the G9, XPeng really upped its game with the quality of materials, and the P7+ carries this on, despite WIRED's test car coming in at the equivalent of $27,250 (£20,500). There are perforated leather seats and door panels, plus no shortage of soft-touch plastics. However, the comfort of an MPV declaration is probably a stretch. Yes, there are features such as a tray table on the back of the front passenger seat, along with rear seats joining the front with heating, ventilation, and massage functions together with even electric reclining, but I found it difficult to get a seat position where my knees didn’t hit the folded down tray table.

Photograph courtesy of XPeng

Xpeng claims the P7+ is “the first car in the world defined by Artificial Intelligence.” Quite what this marketing spin actually means is difficult to say—however, AI of varying kinds seems to make its presence felt in areas such as the intelligent cockpit, assisted driving, along with power management.

Up front, the P7+ comes with a 10.25-inch LCD instrument panel, a floating 15.6-inch infotainment screen, and a 9-inch streaming rearview mirror. There is an additional 8-inch rear entertainment screen mounted on the back of the center console. All the car’s functions can be voice-controlled through Xpeng’s AI assistant Little P (Xiao P). Although the Chinese market test car’s system could be put into English, the voice command system only recognized Mandarin.

Cameras Kill Lidar?

AI is also behind the move away from Lidar. “We have the vehicle side end-end model, which is trained by human driver data to generate the trajectory plans based on real-world scenarios. It can enable AI to generalize across city roads and other conditions,” claims Candice Yuan, Xpeng’s head of autonomous driving products.

Xpeng says that because traffic signage and roads are set up for human vision, cameras better replicate this perception. “Lidar is just like human ears,” says Yuan, who goes on to argue that the smart brain provided by AI is apparently more important.

WIRED's test was in Guangzhou, a city which previously proved challenging for a G6 using the Lidar-based XNGP system. One very noticeable improvement with the P7+ when using the Turing AI-based version of XNGP was that it could deal with a stationary or slow-moving vehicle obstructing a lane. This, however, may well have been down to general incremental improvements in the system rather than the AI system per se.

The system is now also noticeably smoother and more human-like at driving. Where the system still falters is with anticipating issues such as needlessly switching into a lane occupied by a slow-moving vehicle. Furthermore, at one point, it crossed two lanes without signaling.

Unfortunately my test was on roads with a much lower traffic density and less mixed traffic than my previous test with the Lidar-equipped G6. Without a back-to-back test in similar conditions, it is difficult to assess whether the Turing AI-based vision approach really works as well as Xpeng’s older Lidar-based system.

Xpeng certainly believes it does (which is hardly surprising) and is busy rolling out its Turing AI-based system, replacing Lidar versions of its older models. The company has even gone one stage further and started a crowdfunding campaign to replace the ADAS chips of certain versions of older models to two Nvidia Orin X chips as used in the P7+ so those owners can also switch to the latest AI-based XNGP system.

Taking On Tesla

Whether or not it is better than Lidar, Xpeng’s new pure vision-based system is now very similar to Tesla’s FSD, both use end-end models trained on real-world data. One key difference is that Xpeng’s system does not cost extra, and furthermore, the company claims it has better localization for Chinese road conditions, giving it improved performance dealing with issues such as mixed traffic and other cars frequently cutting in.

When piloting the car myself, I immediately noticed that the steering was on the light side, even with the Sport setting selected for steering. Furthermore, the mapping of the drive modes—Comfort, Standard, Sport—at least at launch, seems strange. Sport sees the power steering set for Comfort, whereas the Comfort drive mode has the steering set for Sport. Luckily you can customize your own drive mode, and equally these niggles could easily be rectified via an OTA.

With the P7+ very much aimed at families, it's no surprise that the suspension is largely geared for comfort, too, soaking up bumps with aplomb. What’s more surprising is that when you drop the car into Sport mode it can get to 62 mph in just 5.9 seconds. Braking regeneration on High is certainly noticeable, but as with most Chinese EVs doesn’t bring the car to a complete standstill.

Photograph Courtesy of XPeng

Annoyingly, despite adding such bells and whistles as rear-passenger screens and massage chairs, Xpeng steadfastly refuses to fit head-up displays to its cars, and this remains a gripe as it would particularly help situational awareness when monitoring the car while it is undertaking self-driving.

Xpeng’s P7+ is a striking package that seems to keep getting better, which should broaden its appeal in the run-up to exports in Europe (but not the US, of course.) When WIRED tested the car it only had a 3C battery—C is the charging rate. At the 2025 Shanghai Auto Show, Xpeng launched a new version with a 5C battery, meaning it should be able to charge from 10 to 80 percent state in just 12 minutes. Xpeng last year launched its S5 charger which can charge at 800-kW (800A current and 1000V voltage).

For overseas markets, prices will be notably higher than in China, especially in the EU which sees Xpeng attract a near 21 percent EV tariff on top of the standard 10 percent for Chinese cars. Xpeng, however, is actively looking at building a factory in Europe, and meanwhile it is claimed that Austrian contract producer Magna will build the G6 from June. If Xpeng is ever to make it stateside, it will likely have to take a similar approach under the current tariff regime.

Although XNGP is currently not available in overseas markets, XPeng has previously promised it in Europe sometime in 2025, and footage shared by CEO He Xiaopeng shows it being tested in Germany. We'll just have to wait and see if it does indeed materialize this year.

Xpeng is now one of the best-selling Chinese EV brands in Europe. On paper, the P7+ seems a good fit for the market in terms of looks, specifications, price and performance—but the car’s bulk, which is probably more suitable for the US, might hold it back in Europe.

As for whether Xpeng's AI take on a Tesla-like, Lidar-less autonomous driving tech really is better than the alternative? Many will still be reeling from the recent viral video showing a Model Y plowing through a painted polystyrene wall, seemingly—and shockingly—laying bare the deficiencies of camera self-driving systems. The jury is still most definitely out.