Transitioning from a high-end taxi manufacturer into a luxury vehicle company is far from easy, but that doesn’t seem to have been a problem for LEVC. The company’s new L380 luxury MPV, based on an innovative new Space-Oriented Architecture, has had its official global launch today, and one of the vehicle’s major selling points is its ability to travel 500+ miles between charges, something that will cause a considerable amount of eyebrow-raising in the automotive industry.
Today marks a turning point in the history of LEVC, with the official global launch of its L380 Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV) and sales starting in China. Its newly launched luxury MPV, which is priced from 379,900 RMB, rising to 479,900 RMB for the highest spec model, is the first in what will become a new range of ground-breaking electric vehicles for the company.
Underpinning the L380 is a state-of-the-art EV platform known as Space Oriented Architecture (SOA), which has been developed in conjunction with the Geely Holding Group. The platform will enable LEVC to broaden its vehicle line-up with new products that offer advances in range, efficiency, safety, charging time, durability, and connectivity.
Inside LEVC’s L380
The world of luxury airline travel was clearly an inspiration for the interior of the L380, which is cavernous enough to seat up to eight passengers in its first-class-style chairs, which are clad in soft, delicate semi-aniline leather.
To increase the vehicle’s appeal, LEVC has incorporated a design feature that allows the chairs to be converted for sleeping. Other standout design features include the organic, floating dashboard and 2.18m-sq panoramic glass roof.
The exterior of the vehicle, which has been inspired by aircraft aerodynamics, is simple and elegant. The attractiveness of the exterior is further enhanced by a palette of four strong, dynamic body colours: Pearl White, Ink Jade Black, Sapphire Blue and Emerald Green.
Although its exterior and interior design will garner considerable attention, in this day and age, what it can do is equally important. Recently, there has been an enormous amount of negative global publicity concerning electric vehicles, with much of the negativity focused on some manufacturers’ overly optimistic vehicle ranges.
If LEVC’s range figures for the L380 are accurate, this MPV will be a game-changer in the electric vehicle market. According to the manufacturer, the L380 can travel up to 512 miles (CLTC) between charges, thanks to its world-first CATL 3.0 Kirin battery with a capacity of up to 140kWh and an industry-leading cell energy density of 200Wh/kg.
The L380 has front and rear motors, which produce a total of 536bhp and peak torque of 686Nm. This combination allows the vehicle to go from 0 to 62mph in a scant 5.5 seconds.
Safety was also one of the main considerations in the vehicle’s unique design architecture. It is the only model in its class equipped with airbags for all three rows of passengers, with eleven in total throughout the interior. Also, it has the largest side curtain airbag in its class at 112L per side.
Earlier this year (April), the L380 became the first four-row MPV to successfully clear 20 points in the tail collision test. It followed this up by becoming the world’s first pure electric MPV to pass the double-column side collision test. LEVC expects the L380 to achieve a full five-star rating in Euro NCAP tests thanks to its strong focus on occupant protection, pedestrian protection, child protection, and driver assistance systems.
As you would expect from such a new and innovative electric vehicle, the L380 comes equipped with the very latest in standard-setting digital platform technology: L-OS. This is a new chip-to-cloud electronic architecture that has been exclusively built for the future mobility space.
Thanks to a considerable amount of computing power, the L-OS platform offers users everything from driver-assistance systems to intelligent cockpits, forming a complete digital operating system. Over-the-air (OTA) software updates allow the L380 to always stay up to date, enhancing the user experience and constantly improving useability and efficiency.
It will be a couple of years before the LEVC L380 will be available to purchase in the UK, and exact vehicle specifications for all markets outside China are yet to be revealed.