IM (Innovation in Motion) was established in 2020 as a new joint venture between SAIC, Alibaba, and Zhangjiang Hi-Tech. Its goal is to compete with Tesla in China. It only sells BEV cars and has three models on the market, the LS6 and LS7 SUVs and the L7 sedan.
IM went unnoticed outside of China until SAIC revealed that Audi planned to use the iO Origin as the platform for their IM product line. It’s no surprise that IM focuses on performance and energy efficiency as this correlates with Audi’s values.
IM LS6 with the impressive 900V charging delivered 8,158 units in November
The IM LS6 is positioned as a competitor to Tesla’s Model X Plaid in China with a high-performance version delivering 787 horsepower and capable of accelerating from 0-100 km/h in 3.5 seconds. The electric crossover has a starting price of 214,900 Chinese yuan (30,300 USD).
The LS6 delivered 8,158 units in November, a 125% increase compared to October. However, November was the first full sales month for the LS6. IM delivered a total of 8,703 electric vehicles in November, a 116% increase compared to the 4,018 units in October. The IM LS6 accounted for 94% of IM’s sales volume.
The base version has a single motor delivering 314 horsepower and 450 Nm of torque, capable of accelerating from 0-100 km/h in 5.9 seconds. It has a 500V platform and power comes from a 71 kWh NMC ternary battery pack provided by CATL, providing a WLTC range of 560 km. The price is 214,900 Chinese yuan (30,300 USD).
The highest version has a 100 kWh battery pack for a range of 702 km and two electric motors delivering 200 kW and 379 kW respectively, providing a total output of 579 kW (787 horsepower) and 800 Nm of torque. The top speed is limited to 252 km/h, but test drives have shown the car can reach speeds of 305 km/h.
It also has a nearly 900V architecture with a maximum operating voltage of 875V and a maximum charging power of 396 kW, thus enabling fast charging: the LS6 can gain an additional 200 km of range in 5 minutes and 500 km in 15 minutes. The cells allow for charging at 3.75C.