What's all this about?

It's another mega-power electric vehicle (EV) from a very young Chinese automotive manufacturer. This time, it's HiPhi - a subsidiary company of Human Horizons - which is announcing its fourth model, and first collaborative effort, going under the name of the HiPhi A.

A? So how is it the company's fourth model - what did it call the first three?

Following a rapid development curve, as is the way with many of these Chinese EVs, HiPhi launched the X first. This was a luxury SUV with up to 440kW (598hp), designed to take on the ilk of the Tesla Model X; handy, given the HiPhi's model name. Then, confusingly, came the HiPhi Z, a kind of shooting-brake GT thing with 494kW (672hp) and possibly an alternative to a Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo, before the company filled in the obvious gap with the HiPhi Y (cough Model Y cough), a more compact SUV with 371kW (504hp). So going around and starting again with the alphabet, the HiPhi A makes sense.

You said it was a collaborative effort, how so?

Unveiling the car at a global livestream event from its Shanghai HQ, HiPhi said the A was developed by itself, with help from WESAIL New Energy Automotive. Apparently, WESAIL did the hypercar exterior styling, while HiPhi did the battery and motor technology. And, by crikey, what powertrain spec it is.

Go on, then - how much power are we talking?

Well, for starters the HiPhi A has three motors, not just two. There's one on the front axle and then two hooked up to the rear wheels. Between them, this little lot serve up 960kW. And that, as you've probably guessed, equates to a phenomenal power output of 1,305hp. The company is hoping the thing will run 0-62mph in little more than two seconds, while going on to a top speed approaching 186mph. Power comes from a battery capable of outputting 1.5 megawatts at its peak - with capacity likely to be provided by one of the 115- or 120kWh units from the Y and Z (respectively) - and the A runs advanced 800-volt architecture too. Somewhat worryingly for competitor manufacturers, HiPhi says the A's lightweight, compact and ultra-quiet motors are 'upgradable', because obviously 1,305 horsepower is just not enough.

Lordy, that is pretty potent! And what else do we know about the HiPhi A?

The A's styling takes inspiration from the rest of the HiPhi model range, with its aesthetic formed mainly by a combination of carbon-fibre and matte-painted body panels. The wide front bumper and that twin-section rear wing team up with wide tyres to give the A plenty of presence, while inside the four-door, four-seater body is the 'LuxTech' cabin design based around the HiPhi Bot, which is a robotised arm behind the 15-inch touchscreen that can move it automatically towards either the driver or the front-seat passenger if it detects a human looking at it. Skynet all over, this. Anyway, another technical highlight is that some of the interior trims are made from top aircraft-grade TC4 titanium alloy.

In terms of handling its power, the HiPhi A has active rear-wheel steering, continuously variable damping (initialised as 'CDC') and what the company claims is a close-to-50:50 weight distribution. It will also come with HiPhi's torque-vectoring control, which is said to give a 15 per cent improvement in cornering and 10 per cent in braking, as opposed to the car stripped of the technology.

This sounds mighty impressive. When will we next see it?

The HiPhi A will make its physical debut at the Guangzhou Auto Show from November 17 and David Ding, the company's CEO and chairman, said: "Current trends will always continue to evolve and change with the advancement of technology and the passage of time, while classic and refined luxury has an enduring appeal.

"From the internal combustion engine era to the new era of intelligent electric mobility, the top hypercars should represent the pinnacle of innovative technology while still paying tribute to the classics, showcasing the transformative nature as a way to look toward the future.

The combination of HiPhi's luxury product concept, first-class development and industrial capabilities with WESAIL New Energy Automotive's Apollo supercar elements, combined with the technical expertise and innovation from ShanghaiTech University, makes HiPhi A what it is - a true work of art for this new era."

Matt Robinson - 15 Nov 2023