- Xiaomi unveils its first electric vehicle with extended range
- SkyNomad will sit separately from its pure EV company Xiaomi Auto
- The 1.5 liter engine is manufactured by Changan subsidiary Harbin Dongang.
Xiaomi is set to enter the hotly contested luxury SUV sector with a brand new business it has dubbed SkyNomad.
After the success of the SU7 and YU7, the former of which overtook the Tesla Model 3 in the Chinese market, smartphone maker Xiaomi sees a gap in the market for its first extended-range electric vehicle (EREV), which sees a gasoline engine act as a generator to charge batteries on the go.
Although the powertrain is still in its infancy in Europe, with only the Leapmotor C10 REEV and Mazda MX-30 R-EV currently on sale in many markets, it has enjoyed commercial success in much of China.
Li Auto is currently the market leader, with six models offering a combination of combustion engines and batteries, while AITO, Deepal, Avatar and Leapmotor also offer similar solutions.
Unlike traditional plug-in hybrids, which use a gasoline engine to drive the wheels or charge the batteries, EREVs rely solely on a fully electric powertrain for propulsion, with the combustion engine serving as a generator to charge the batteries.
According to Car News China, Xiaomi’s SkyNomad brand will offer the N70 and N90, the latter of which is a three-row full-size SUV with rotating front seats, a premium full leather interior, and an N90 Max Camping Edition that adds a sunroof and integrated side awning for high-end camping trips.
SkyNomad also sells the idea of modularity, specifying in its promotional materials that the cabin can transform into a studio for one, a café for two, a meeting room for three or a play area for the whole family.
Under the skin, a 1.5-liter gasoline engine from Changan subsidiary Harbin Dongang sends power to a ternary 76 kWh NMC battery in the N90, while a pair of electric motors combine to provide 310 kW (416 hp) of power.
Analysis: unnecessarily huge
Xiaomi’s decision to launch an EREV-focused brand, SkyNomad, is a clear blow for market leader Li Auto, which is seeing a 74% year-over-year sales decline in the first four months of 2026, according to Electrek.
Introducing EREVs to Xiaomi’s stable will undoubtedly help it increase its sales in China, but it’s hard to escape the fact that the N90 is absolutely huge. It’s over five meters long and weighs 3,361kg, making the 416hp feel slightly underpowered.
Car News China claims the N90 can go about 230 miles before the batteries are depleted, at which point the 1.5-liter engine is called upon. Overall range exceeds 1,500 km, or approximately 930 miles.
It’s also worth noting that Xiaomi, a company that has had great success with pure electric vehicles, is returning to fossil fuels.
All the PR out of China suggests that its public EV charging network is both faster and more widespread than most other markets, which raises the question of why the market needs big, heavy range extenders like this in the first place.
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