HiPhi X

FIRST DRIVE We test HiPhi's new electric SUV to see if X marks the luxury spot

- Steve Fowler

OF all the brands we saw for the first A at this year's Shanghai Auto HiPhi was the one that impressed us most. As with so many of its compatriot car firms, the speed of its arrival is shocking by western standards. HiPhi's parent firm, Human Horizons, was founded in 2017 and launched in 2019 with a three-point strategy based around smart cars, smart cities and smart transportation.

This, its first car, was originally seen in October 2020, with the first customer delivery a little over six months later. Now it's on sale in Europe, with right-hand-drive cars just a couple of years away.

But it's HiPhi's different approach to luxury that impressed us, as it has Chinese buyers; already HiPhi is the best-selling luxury electric vehicle brand in China, with a 24-per-cent market share. Chinese buyers, it seems, like HiPhi's invention of the LuxTech segment, blending luxury and technology in a futuristic-looking package.

But the HiPhi X is more than just some fancy doors and trick lights. It's a smart-looking model that hides its SUV bulk well, while we like the depth of thinking behind the car - and its engineering - that lays down a challenge for existing luxury brands.

Behind the engineering is Mark Stanton, a former JLR engineering boss, who's making sure the cars have a luxury feel. And by and large the HiPhi X does - although HiPhi's other current model, the HiPhi Z, feels slightly more fettled to Western standards.

The X, though, is a luxury SUV aimed at everything from the Mercedes EQS SUV and BMW IX to the Tesla Model X. And as with the Tesla, it has an interesting party trick.