The company received 289,000 orders for the YU7 - only its second vehicle and one that undercuts Tesla's Model Y in price by nearly 4% - in its first hour on sale, according to CEO Lei Jun. That was more than three times the level for its SU7 electric sedan launched in March last year and easily exceeded market expectations of around 100,

Analysts had been keenly watching the launch, which comes as Chinese EV makers lock into another price war as they seek to win over cautious consumers.

For those looking for all-wheel drive, the Pro version is available at RMB 279,900 ($37,900). Featuring the same 96.3 kWh LPF battery as the Standard model, it has dual motors producing a combined 489 hp (365 kW) and offers a claimed range of 770 km (478 miles), again, based on the optimistic CLTC cycle.