Nio unveiled the first EV under the new Firefly brand. The compact electric hatchback is named Firefly, as is the brand itself. Preorders for the Firefly have started in China at 148,800 yuan (20,800 USD).
The Firefly EV, like all Nio vehicles, features swappable batteries. However, it wasnβt disclosed whether the preorder price included the battery or not. CarNewsChina expects that the price likely corresponds to the version with one.
Nioβs CEO, William Li, said during the Nio Day conference in Guangzhou that the Firefly EV will officially launch in April 2025.
Firefly is a compact hatchback initially intended for European launch. However, after disappointing Nio brand sales on the Old Continent and incurring additional tariffs, the company decided to launch it first in China.
EVβs main exterior design feature is a trio of circle lights with a black hatched grille. It has a short hood and a wide C pillar that seamlessly transitions into a roof. The EVβs turning radius is 4.7 meters, which is suitable for narrow European streets, according to Nio. It also supports all-scenario parking.
Firefly was created by Kris Tomasson, Nioβs Design Vice President. Tomasson is an industrial designer with experience from BMW and Ford. In 2015, he joined the Munich office of NextEV, which later changed its name to Nio.
Despite being a small EV, it has a trunk that holds 92 liters. The maximum trunk capacity is over 1,250 liters.
The Firefly EV boasts a five-star safety (C-NCAP 2024 standard) rating. Its body structure is 83.4% high-strength steel. As a result, its torsional rigidity reaches 35,700 Nm/degree, a class highest according to Nio. It also offers nine airbags and an ADAS system. However, Li didnβt provide more details on it.
The new brand will be sold through Nio sales networks, unlike Onvo, which has its own channels. The positioning of Firefly is similar to what Mini is to BMW. The Firefly EV will launch in April next year, most likely at the Shanghai Auto Show.
The pre-sales price of Firefly EV is the same as the current dealerβs price of Mini Cooper in China β 148,800 yuan. The 2024 Mini Cooper launched in July in China for 209,800 yuan (28,800 USD), and after massive discounts in October ended at the current price.
2024 Smart #1 was launched in April in China for a more reasonable 154,900 yuan and is keeping this price until today. In November, 2,463 units were sold, down 4.1% from the previous month, according to China EV DataTracker.
Xpengβs Mona M03 fastback sedan/hatchback starts at 119,800 yuan (16,400 USD) in China; however, with a nearly 4.8-meter length, that is a much larger car.
Firefly will compete with BMWβs Mini, Mercedes-Benz & Geelyβs joint venture Smart, and Volkswagen ID.3. The European launch is officially unknown, but Li highlighted during the presentation that Firefly is a global EV. Firefly CEO Daniel Jin previously hinted that the brand would be unveiled in Europe in Q2 2025, with Latin America and Southeast Asia following.
