XPeng G9L Launches Tonight as Tesla Opens China Cybercab Tour; Sept-16 Debuts Confirm Prices

China's "Golden September" sales blitz rolled into Wednesday, September 17, 2026, with XPeng's G9L set to debut at 19:00 Beijing time and Tesla kicking off a mainland China Cybercab showcase. The day also closed the book on Tuesday's six-model launch wave as four debutants — Li Auto i9, Arcfox αT7, Fangchengbao S/S GT and Hongqi H7 — locked their final prices. Overseas, Tesla registered a Vietnam subsidiary and CATL unveiled a second-generation commercial-vehicle battery in Germany, underscoring how Chinese EV supply chains are pushing into global markets.

XPeng G9L — dual-powertrain flagship SUV debuts tonight (BEV + EREV)

XPeng stages the China launch of the G9L at 19:00 on Sept 17 in Beijing, with presales already open at ¥259,800 (approx. $36,300 USD, indicative). The "golden five-seat" flagship spans 5,120 mm with a 3,100 mm wheelbase and offers two powertrains: a battery-electric version with up to 755 km CLTC range (0–100 km/h in 4.45 s) and a "Kunpeng" range-extended version with 435 km pure-electric CLTC and 1,602 km combined range. Both ride on an 800V platform with 5C charging (9 minutes adds ~450 km CLTC), dual-chamber air suspension and rear-wheel steering (5.4 m turning radius), and debut XPeng's second-generation VLA driving model. Final on-sale pricing is to be confirmed at tonight's event. (Powertrain: BEV + EREV.)

XPeng G9L China launch Sept 17 2026

Li Auto i9 — final price locked at ¥369,800 (BEV)

Li Auto's first pure-electric flagship SUV, the i9 "Home," was confirmed at a unified retail price of ¥369,800 (approx. $51,700 USD, indicative) after Tuesday's unveiling. The 5,225 mm SUV packs a 101 kWh 5C ternary battery, 705 km CLTC range, 800V architecture (10 minutes adds ~400 km), 400 kW dual-motor AWD (0–100 km/h in 4.9 s), and Li Auto's in-house Mach M100 chip (2,560 TOPS) with an optional four-LiDAR package. (Powertrain: BEV.)

Arcfox αT7 — officially launched from ¥132,800 (BEV + EREV)

BAIC's Arcfox moved the αT7 from presale to official launch at a subsidized starting price of ¥132,800 (approx. $18,600 USD, indicative). It is offered in battery-electric form with up to 715 km CLTC range and a range-extended form with 1,315 km combined range, every variant carrying Huawei Qiankun ADS 5 Pro with a hidden LiDAR, a 1.1 m panoramic PHUD and dual on-board AI agents. (Powertrain: BEV + EREV.)

Fangchengbao S & S GT — BYD performance pair launched from ¥189,900 (BEV)

BYD's Fangchengbao brand launched the S sedan from ¥189,900 and the S GT shooting brake at ¥219,900–239,900 (approx. $26,600–$33,600 USD, indicative). Both share a platform with 245/300 kW RWD or 490 kW AWD, up to 900 km CLTC range, 800V flash-charging and DiSus-M magnetic suspension — extending BYD's "one platform, multiple forms" strategy into the performance segment. (Powertrain: BEV.)

Hongqi H7 PHEV — premium plug-in sedan launched ¥191,800–231,800

FAW Hongqi launched the H7 PHEV at official prices of ¥191,800–231,800 (limited-time trade-in from ¥168,800; approx. $26,800–$32,400 USD, indicative) across three trims. The 1.5T plug-in hybrid delivers 240 km CLTC electric range (rear-wheel drive) and up to 1,954 km combined range (AWD: 210 km electric / 1,574 km combined), with 4.4 L/100 km drained-battery consumption; it is the first Hongqi to carry the in-house "Sinan" city NOA system. (Powertrain: PHEV.)

Geely Xingrui L PLUS — presale opens at ¥115,700 (hybrid + ICE)

Geely opened presales for the Xingrui L PLUS on Sept 16 at a limited-time ¥115,700–145,700 (approx. $16,200–$20,400 USD, indicative) across four trims. Positioned as Geely's first B-class hybrid sedan after it ended standalone combustion-engine R&D, it offers 1.5T and 2.0T fuel engines plus a 1.5T i-HEV self-charging hybrid (per Baidu/JustChinaCars, non-plug-in; some outlets label the hybrid a "插混"/PHEV) with 3.98 L/100 km WLTC and a 48.41%-thermal-efficiency engine. The top trim adds lidar and Flyme Auto. (Powertrain: HEV + ICE — noted as a fuel-saving hybrid rather than a plug-in.)

Tesla Cybercab tour opens in mainland China

Tesla began a mainland China showcase of the Cybercab on Sept 17 at Beijing China Central Place and Shanghai Taikoo Li, with further cities to follow. The company clarified the vehicles are for displaying product design and technology only — no China sales arrangement and no plan for a driverless ride-hailing service on the mainland yet.

Tesla registers Vietnam subsidiary

A newly published corporate filing shows Tesla has registered "Tesla Motors Vietnam Limited Liability Company" in Ho Chi Minh City with registered capital of about 776.67 billion VND (roughly $3 million), marking a formal entry into one of Southeast Asia's fastest-growing EV markets.

CATL launches second-gen commercial battery in Germany

At an event in Germany, CATL unveiled Tectrans II, its second-generation commercial-vehicle battery: a heavy-truck version with up to 1,000 km range, megawatt-class charging (25 minutes to 80%), and a memorandum of understanding with DHL to build a European green-freight corridor.

Policy: Hong Kong five-year plan backs cross-border autonomous driving

Hong Kong's first five-year plan (2026–2030) proposes facilitating cross-boundary vehicle movement and advancing cross-border autonomous driving — optimizing "Northbound for Hong Kong vehicles" and "Southbound for Guangdong vehicles," interconnecting charging infrastructure, and piloting strategic cross-border AV demonstration projects.

Policy: 15th Five-Year Plan targets 70% NEV passenger share by 2030

An official interpretation of the smart-connected NEV 15th Five-Year Plan (2026–2030) sets a 2030 goal of 70% NEV share in passenger-car sales and 40% in commercial vehicles, with scaled deployment of autonomous-capable vehicles. Notably, the plan writes in a "capacity warning and adjustment" mechanism and encourages mergers and acquisitions — signaling a shift from growth to consolidation.

Image credits: Cover uses the EV & Auto Club brand placeholder; no manufacturer-official photography was self-hosted for this roundup to avoid misattribution. All product facts are drawn from the Chinese-language sources listed below.

Sources:

163.com — Sept 16 multi-model final-price rundown (www.163.com/dy/article/L71SPPP00514CFC7.html); "six cars grab Golden September" (www.163.com/dy/article/L725K53M05568V7Z.html)
Sina Auto — XPeng G9L tonight launch preview (auto.sina.cn/2026-09-17/detail-inisckrz4121588.d.html; auto.sina.cn/2026-09-17/detail-inisayan9390233.d.html)
QQ News / Yiche — Geely Xingrui L PLUS presale (new.qq.com/rain/a/20260916A0CZFU00); XPeng G9L specs (car.m.yiche.com/xiaopengg9l)
Baidu Baike — Geely Xingrui L PLUS (baike.baidu.com/item/吉利星瑞L PLUS)
JustChinaCars — Xingrui L PLUS hybrid breakdown (justchinacars.com/2026-geely-xingrui-l-plus-hybrid-sedan)
QQ News — Tesla Vietnam subsidiary / Forthing 星海V6 (gu.qq.com/resources/shy/news/detail-v2/index.html?id=SN20260915083754a446b442)
Industry daily digest (车坛纵横, 2026-09-16) — CATL Tectrans II, HK five-year plan, 15th FYP, L2 GB 47955-2026, Leapmotor MM-i hybrid + 定增

Tags: electricvehicles, EV, china

中文简报： 9月17日，小鹏G9L今晚19:00中国上市（预售25.98万起，纯电最高755km+超级增程综合1602km，800V 5C，双腔空悬+后轮转向）；特斯拉Cybercab内地巡展首日（北京华贸/上海太古汇，仅展示不售）；昨日"疯狂星期三"六车最终价落定——理想i9统一零售36.98万（纯电旗舰，101kWh/705km）、极狐αT7上市补贴后13.28万起（BEV 715km/EREV 1315km，华为乾崑ADS 5 Pro）、方程豹S上市18.99万起/S GT 21.99-23.99万（BEV 900km/云辇-M）、红旗H7 PHEV上市19.18-23.18万（240km纯电/1954km综合）；吉利星瑞L PLUS预售11.57万起（i-HEV自充混动+1.5T/2.0T燃油，停研纯燃油后首款B级混动轿车）。海外：特斯拉越南子公司注册（胡志明市，约300万美元）；宁德时代德国发布二代商用车电池Tectrans II（重卡1000km/兆瓦充/25分钟至80%，与DHL签绿色货运走廊MOU）。政策：香港首个五年规划推跨境自动驾驶；智能网联新能源"十五五"规划2030年乘用车新能源占比70%、商用车40%，首写产能预警与兼并重组。