Nio Says ET5, Launched Saturday, Is Already Its Model With Highest Pre-Orders

U.S. listed Chinese electric vehicle maker Nio Inc’s recently-launched electric sedan ET5, which would compete with Tesla Inc’s Model 3, has become its most pre-ordered model, cnEVpost reported, citing the company CEO William Li.

What Happened: The Shanghai, China-based Nio revealed the ET5 on Saturday at the company’s annual day and said its fifth production model was immediately available for pre-order.

Customers rushed to pre-order the ET5 and some complained that the Nio app was experiencing network delays and had crashed, making it tougher for them to go ahead with the booking.

In comparison, the rate of booking was much faster than the full-size ET7 sedan, which was launched in January, the report noted.

Deliveries for the ET5 are scheduled to begin in September 2022 while for the ET7 it is not due until the end of the first quarter next year.

Why It Matters:The ET5 was revealed at the Nio Day event in Suzhou over the weekend. The all-electric sedan comes at a starting price of $51,500 (328,000 yuan) before government subsidies. Tesla’s best-selling Model 3 is priced at $40,905 onwards, after subsidies.

Nio also announced plans to enter Germany, Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden in 2022, and reach 25 countries by 2025. The company stopped short of confirming an expansion into the U.S. market at the event.

Price Action:Nio shares closed 0.23% lower at $30 a share on Friday.