Nio to Launch and Deliver ES9 SUV on May 27
Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Nio Inc is set to officially launch and begin deliveries of its new flagship sport utility vehicle (SUV), the ES9, on May 27, 2026. The announcement was made on the company’s official Weibo account, revealing a slight advancement from the previously mentioned delivery date of June 1.
The ES9 will open for user test drives starting May 11, giving potential buyers the opportunity to experience the vehicle ahead of its official launch. In addition, to generate excitement and showcase the capability of the ES9, Nio has initiated a 10,000-kilometer shortest-time driving challenge beginning on May 6. This challenge leverages Nio’s extensive battery swap network across various Chinese provinces and municipalities, concluding at a soon-to-be-operational battery swap station in Dunhuang, Gansu province.
Introduced officially on April 9, the ES9 began pre-sales with a starting price of 528,000 yuan (approximately $77,457), which includes the battery pack. For customers opting for a battery rental scheme, the price starts at 420,000 yuan. It is customary in the Chinese auto market for the official launch price to be somewhat lower than the pre-sale price.
The ES9 is aimed at replicating the success of Nio’s ES8 SUV in the higher-end market segment but is priced significantly more competitively than the company’s ET9 sedan, with which it shares many technological features. This pricing strategy is intended to position the ES9 as a value-for-money offering in the luxury electric SUV category.
Technologically, the ES9 is equipped with Nio’s latest developments including the in-house 5-nanometer Shenji NX9031 driving assistance chip, the SkyRide chassis system, and a 15.6-inch AMOLED floating center console that operates Nio’s proprietary SkyOS vehicle system. However, the entry-level ES9 model does not include the active SkyRide suspension system. The top-tier ‘signature edition’ equipped with this system is priced at 588,000 yuan, which is still approximately 23.4% lower than the ET9 sedan.
William Li, Nio’s founder, chairman, and CEO, emphasized in a recent internal meeting that the ES9 and the upcoming Onvo L80 will be key in navigating industry headwinds in the second quarter of 2026. He expects steady growth in Nio’s May and June deliveries driven by these models.
The 10,000-kilometer driving challenge for the ES9 echoes a similar feat achieved by the L60 SUV under Nio’s sub-brand Onvo in July 2025, when it set a record driving 10,000 kilometers continuously in just over 98 hours. The current challenge represents a first for a full-size pure electric SUV in China.
With the ES9, Nio is targeting a niche of high-end electric SUVs offering advanced technology at a more accessible price than some luxury EV sedan counterparts, while reinforcing its brand’s competitive position in the evolving Chinese electric vehicle market.
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