A GAC Trumpchi AION LX electric crossover, seen in central Beijing in 2019. The nicely lined EV was painted white and fitted with gray ‘blade’ wheels. The GAC Trumpchi AION LX is a surprisingly rare car.
And that has to do with the branding situation. Initially, starting in 2018, AION was a line of electric cars under GAC’s Trumpchi brand. But in 2020, GAC decided to turn AION into a standalone brand.
The Trumpchi AION LX we have here launched in October 2019. In November 2020 it became the AION LX. And that makes it a rare car. Under the Trumpchi brand, it was only made for a year and a month!
Badging! Characters are 广汽传祺, Guangqi Chuanqi. Guangqi is short for Guangzhou Qiche, or Guangzhou Auto, and that in turn is an abbreviation of Guangzhou Automobile Corporation, GAC. Chuanqi is the Chinese name of Trumpchi.
After the rebranding, the 广汽传祺 badges were deleted from the cars and replaced with 广汽埃安 badges, for Guangqi Ai’an. Ai’an is the Chinese name for AION. The logo on the steering wheel changed as well, from the GAC ‘G’ to the word AION. The only badge that didn’t change after the rebranding was the GAC ‘G’ on the grille.
The 2020 GAC Trumpchi AION LX was available with a wide array of combinations between motors and batteries. The single motor base model had 184 hp and 350 Nm, the battery was 73.3 kWh, good for 520 kilometers NEDC. The dual motor top model had 408 hp and 700 Nm and, a battery of 93.3 kWh, good for 600 kilometers NEDC. The price started at 229.600 yuan.
The range has since been simplified and a new variant, the AION LX Plus, is on the way, but that one does without a dual-motor variant.
The AION LX is a nice-looking car with a modern, almost concept car-like design. The rear windows are darkened from the factory.
The dashboard has a large twin-screen angled toward the driver. The upholstery is a mix of leather and Alcantara. The faux wool seat covers are a popular accessory in northern China in the cold winters.
Lots of space for the legs. Floor cover is an accessory as well, these are very popular too in winter, as they keep the original floor safe from mussy snowy shoes.
Green license plates are reserved for New-Energy Vehicles, and that includes EVs, PHEVs, and FCEVs. The light bar runs over the entire rear, and it has a racy wing atop the window.
The AION LX, no matter under which brand, has become one of the most popular electric crossovers in China, but it is much less known abroad compared to cars made by “EV startups” such as NIO and XPeng. More AION later on!
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