EV Maker XPeng Delays Delivery Due to Components Shortage

China's electric vehicle (EV) pioneer XPeng claimed in a recent company statement that the pandemic-induced accessory shortage had placed great uncertainty on the production of its P5 460 model.

The statement said many car buyers couldn't receive the cars in time. They ordered in October last year and were told they could take delivery of their cars by the end of November, only to be kept waiting until the Chinese Spring Festival. 

Furthermore, some consumers accused XPeng of  “fraudulent practices” in the sales process. They said XPeng promised delivery in a month. In comparison, other NEV enterprises normally set longer waiting time for customer pickup. 

Some buyers even have formed rights protection groups. 

To tackle the problem, the Guangzhou-based EV maker has sought out customers who face overdue risks, contacted them one on one through salespeople to know their needs, and assisted customers with requirements to modify or cancel orders.

If customers choose to change the configuration of their cars, the auto maker has promised to retain the original price discount for them. Should the customers decide  to cancel their orders, the company will cover the fees incurred by taking back the charging piles. 

With the tight supply of core parts like batteries and chips, domestic NEV companies have raised prices while grappling with overdue deliveries. 

In January 2022, XPeng increased the prices across all models by about CNY 5,000 (USD 787). BYD, GAC Aion, ORA have a delivery time of more than three months, while Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3 take 12-16 weeks.