2025 XPeng G6 facelift review: The speed of fright
With more than 80 updates in only 23 months, the electric SUV shows that its maker can iterate faster than rivals can blink
SPEED is everything at XPeng, it seems. In 2023, I watched the Guangzhou startup cause a sensation at the Shanghai motor show with the first G6, and just 23 months after that it rolled out a facelift with more than 80 updates. That’s tech company speed rather than car company sluggishness; for reference, BMW took four years to tweak the iX, a car it considers its electric flagship.
That facelifted G6 is now here, and you don’t have to squint to spot what’s new. A full-width light bar now stretches across the XPeng’s nose, which smoothens the car’s face in line with its impossibly streamlined body. At the other end, a ducktail spoiler sharpens the profile, adding a touch of sportiness.
Inside the G6 you’ll find minor but deliberate changes, enough to make the 2023 car almost feel like a first draft. The seats are now covered in soft Nappa leather (the front ones will both cool and massage your back). Double-pane front windows keep out noise. The 256-colour ambient lighting helps set the mood for night drives.
To my eyes, the dashboard looks more downmarket, trading textile surfaces for plastic ones, but it’s still clean and uncluttered overall. More importantly, XPeng ditched the needlessly fiddly electronic air-con vents I complained so bitterly about in my review of the 2023 model, and replaced them with ordinary ones that you simply use your fingers to aim. I guess one man can make a difference, after all.
A new 10.25-inch driver display stands behind the steering wheel, where it’s easier to see than the previous inset screen, while the main 15.6-inch touchscreen is now powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8295 chip – that sort of horsepower counts for a lot these days, especially since XPeng has a habit of adding new features to its cars via over-the-air updates, much like Apple does with iPhones.
The “Hey XPeng” voice assistant is now a four-zone affair so your kids can play havoc with the air-con settings from the back seats, but even more ghastly than that is the prospect that they’ll discover the new karaoke app.
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XPeng says the G6 now keeps itself centred within a lane more smoothly, but its best self-driving trick is still the way it can spy empty parking spots better than any car out there by far, and slot itself into them more smoothly.
As a matter of fact, the G6 is still a treat to drive. The single-motor RWD Long Range version, which most people by far will choose, packs enough punch to hit 100 kmh in 6.7 seconds, with firm suspension to keep the 2.1-tonne car composed around bends. Fully loaded with people, it probably rides better, but even driving it solo I was happy with the set-up.
The biggest hardware leap hides under the floor. A new 800-volt, 80.8 kilowatt-hour battery pack bumps the claimed range up to 525 kilometres, 90 more than before. It supports a slightly scary 451 kilowatts of charging, and if you find somewhere suitable to plug it in you can get the battery to leap from 10 to 80 per cent in 12 minutes, and add roughly 350 km of range.
Or you can have the other kind of speed, with the new dual-motor AWD Performance version. It costs S$30,000 more than the single-motor G6 but goes like a Porsche, hitting 100 in just 4.1 seconds. The trade-off is a smidgen less range (510 km) and having to pay more than S$400 a month in road tax alone, but at least you can now have a G6 that flies.
That said, the Performance version is tough to justify unless you really want the Porsche-baiting acceleration, but either way, the G6 reveals that XPeng can iterate its way to excellence at breakneck speed. Over 80 updates in under two years is the kind of pace that could leave rivals scrambling to keep up.
XPeng G6 Long Range RWD Motor power/torque 296 hp/440 Nm Battery type/net capacity Lithium-ion/80.8 kWh Charging time/type 8 hours (11 kW AC, estimated), 12 minutes 10 to 80 per cent (451 kW DC) Range 525 km (WLTP) 0 to 100 kmh 6.7 seconds Top speed 202 kmh Efficiency 17.9 kWh/100 km Agent Premium Automobiles BEV Price S$235,999 with COE Available Now
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