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China EV war: Xpeng’s autopilot aces 3,675-km Guangzhou-to-Beijing journey in country’s longest autonomous driving test

  • A fleet of mid-sized P7 cars test company’s Navigation Guided Pilot function, a newly released feature
  • Carmaker is first to install lidar technology in a production model

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An Xpeng P7 drives on the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway under the control of the company’s autonomous driving assistance function. A South China Morning Post reporter joined the drive for a distance of 90km. Photo: Daniel Ren
Daniel Ren
Chinese electric vehicle (EV) start-up Xpeng Motor completed the country’s longest autonomous driving test by a mass-produced vehicle on Friday.
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A fleet of the company’s P7 mid-sized cars left Guangzhou on March 19 for the weeklong, 3,675-km (2,283-mile) journey to Beijing, driving on the busiest and most complex highways along the country’s eastern coastal corridor.

Xpeng said the P7s, guided by their Navigation Guided Pilot (NGP) function, a newly released autonomous assistance feature, had “set some of the most successful records to date over long distances in real road conditions in China”. According to Chinese road regulations, drivers should have their hands on the steering wheel at all times, in case they have to take over.

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Vehicle number 10,000 rolls off the assembly line for Chinese electric carmaker XPeng

Vehicle number 10,000 rolls off the assembly line for Chinese electric carmaker XPeng
Guangzhou-based Xpeng is among three Chinese EV makers widely viewed as rivals to US carmaker and runaway leader in China, Tesla. American bank Morgan Stanley forecast in January this year that Xpeng’s sales could jump 75 per cent annually over the next five years, hitting US$8.7 billion in 2025.

The P7s passed through the cities of Shantou, Quanzhou, Wenzhou, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Nanjing, Qingdao and Jinan on their journey to Beijing. This reporter joined the drive from Shanghai to Yangcheng Lake, a distance of 90km.

The route. SCMP Graphics
The route. SCMP Graphics

Xpeng’s NGP function provides navigation-assisted autonomous driving from point A to B, based on the route set by the driver. It is available on highways covered by high-precision maps in China.

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