XPeng’s regulatory filings share plans for facelifts to its G6 and G9 EVs, each abandoning LiDAR

According to regulatory filings in China, EV automaker XPeng Motors is planning upgrades to at least two current models. The filings detail facelifts to the XPeng G6 and G9 SUVs and hint at the automaker’s strategy of moving on from LiDAR sensors in favor of pure vision cameras, similar to Tesla.

XPeng Motors continues to hold rank as one of the leading EV automakers in China, consistently expanding its lineup of available models overseas while growing its presence in new markets like Europe. From time to time, like all OEMs, XPeng delivers facelifts to its existing portfolio.

We already saw it with the automaker’s flagship P7 sedan in early 2023, when it began taking orders for its G9 SUV, which initially debuted in the fall of 2022. After that, XPeng launched a new couple SUV called the G6, starting in China at an MSRP below $30,000.

Today, regulatory filings submitted by XPeng Motors detail plans for a facelift for both the G6 and SUVs, and it appears they will arrive without LiDAR sensors, which were present in the ADAS of previous versions.

XPeng to revamp G6 and G9, but without LiDAR sensors

Chinese media outlet CnEVPost reported on XPeng’s latest regulatory filing. It pointed out that the automaker’s plans hint at continuing to remove LiDAR sensors from its EVs in favor of pure vision cameras.

This past July, we reported that XPeng was seen testing a new camouflaged model in China that appeared to lack any visible LiDAR, hinting that the automaker was exploring alternative ADAS technologies like pure vision.

That BEV would become publicly known as the P7+, which was officially unveiled in October and confirmed that XPeng had begun implementing pure vision cameras in place of LiDAR. In terms of pure vision, XPeng shared more details of its new approach to ADAS and self-driving, calling its technology “Eagle Eye.”

At the time, the automaker relayed that its camera sensors collect visual information more accurately and clearly than traditional cameras and can scope out an area as large as 1.8 football fields. XPeng also stated that its Eagle Eye advanced cameras are limited by city or road conditions and have “door-to-door” and “parking space-to-parking space” intelligent driving capabilities.

According to the previously mentioned regulatory filings with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the G6 and G9 SUVs could also adopt XPeng’s Eagle Eye technology. Each XPeng model had three pages of filings in MIIT’s latest catalog, detailing three trims of each, but with no mention of LiDAR sensors.

The new G6 is 5mm longer than the current version on sale and appears to be abandoning the dual-motor option in favor of three single-motor variants. The G9’s dimensions remain unchanged, and it will continue to be sold with single—and dual-motor powertrain options.

The top-tier Max trims of both SUVs currently available utilize LiDAR sensors but appear to be the last we will see of that configuration for now, as all six trims of the facelifted XPeng EVs do not seem to feature those sensors.

Alongside Tesla, XPeng remains one of the few EV automakers embracing pure vision cameras in favor of LiDAR. XPeng has yet to confirm the removal of LiDAR on these revamped models, so we will need to wait until their official launch to learn more.