The Xiaomi YU7 Goes On Sale At $35,000, Undercuts Tesla Model Y

• The Xiaomi YU7 is a Tesla Model Y-sized EV crossover in China.
• Base price is $35,300 (253,500 RMB), undercutting the Chinese market Tesla Model Y by about $1,200.
• Xiaomi recieved 200,000 reservations within three minutes of the order books opening.

It’s Launch Day for Chinese consumer electronics giant Xiaomi. The company is showing off a raft of products, including smart air conditioners and hair dryers, but the real action is in the car space—where Xiaomi is about to plant its flag in a big way.

Initially famous for the Porsche-esque, but Model 3-priced sedan called the SU7, the brand has officially expanded into Model Y territory with its YU7 crossover. Luckily, we don’t have to hear about it thirdhand this time, because I’m here in Beijing to see (and drive) the YU7 on the ground.

A base YU7 starts at only $35,300 (253,500 RMB). Even in the context of the Chinese Market’s pricing, this undercuts the Tesla Model Y (263,000 RMB) by about $1,200.

The YU7 will come in three trims, standard ($35,300), Pro ($38,900), and Max ($46,000)—all well below the Chinese market Model Y’s single motor, dual motor and dual motor performance trims, respectively.

This comes on the heels of Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun’s cheeky comments at at Xiaomi’s press release. In China, Tesla’s aggressive has been somewhat forward of late, challenging (if not taunting) Chinese competitors to dethrone its top sales billing.

Jun seems to accept the challenge. In the conference, he said, “Even if we can’t beat them, we can compete, right?”

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Source: Xiaomi

Well, it looks like Xiaomi is doing more than competing; it’s about to put the smackdown on Tesla. Within three minutes, Xiaomi claims that more than 200,000 people had paid the somewhat hefty $700 deposit to reserve a YU7. Reservation holders have seven days to change their minds before it’s locked in as a confirmed order. Those lucky enough to get access to an already-made car will need to fork over nearly $2,800 to reserve a YU7.

It’s no vaporware, either. I’ve been to the factory, they’re already churning out YU7s in anticipation of the huge rush.

To sweeten the pot, Xiaomi is throwing a bunch of freebies into the pot to make the YU7 that much more attractive. If you opt for the top trim version, you’ll get an electric power frunk ($278), driver and passenger zero gravity seats ($1,250), Nappa leather ($1,115), HEPA air filter ($140), Xiaomi’s level 2 assisted driving software ($3,600), and carbon fiber door sills and mirror caps ($1,300). It’s all for a limited time, although Xiaomi didn’t say how long the promotion would last.

Photo by: Xiaomi

The waiting list will no doubt be long, and likely will be longer, since Xiaomi’s CEO said that SU7 waitlist holders could turn their reservations into YU7 reservations in the next three days, free of charge. 

This car has put every single brand—both Chinese domestic and foreign—on notice. I’ve now driven the YU7, and we’ve got a review coming soon here, but for now I can say it’s frankly fantastic.

I expected the YU7 to be priced slightly above the Model Y, since it’s a nicer car with more features. The fact that it undercuts the Model Y is a big deal. Xiaomi wants to start exports by 2027, but it has not said which models are planned for overseas sales.

If it somehow manages to match or undercut Tesla in global markets outside of China, then well, things could get really interesting for established car brands. 

Contact the author: Kevin.Williams@InsideEVs.com

Clarification: This article has been updated to say that Xiaomi has not announced which models could be considered for export around 2027.