BAIC EU5 R500 Front
The “face” sure does look good

Beijing Automotive Industry Corp’s (BAIC) EU5 R500 electric sedan has been spotted undisguised in India. Seen strapped to a truck bed, the car was noticed by MotorBeamer Subhayu at a fuel outlet in West Bengal.

Revealed 3 years ago, the EV does have a pleasing exterior design. It has a bold shoulder line and the C-shaped elements at the front and rear are nice, so is the subtle chrome garnishing.

Look carefully and the “Blue” badging on the front bumper can be seen. In China, it denotes that it is a “green” or “new energy” vehicle. Both the headlight and tail light clusters are LED units, while there are LED DRLs at the front as well.

Inside, the electric sedan comes with a 9-inch central touchscreen, 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, sunroof, leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel, leather seats with heating function, electric parking brake, among several other features like adaptive cruise control.

Measuring 4650 mm long, 1820 mm wide, 1510 mm tall and with a 2670 mm wheelbase, the BAIC EU5 R500 has a 53.5 kWh battery pack that powers an electric motor which can produce 214.5 HP and 300 Nm

The motor comes with a single speed transmission and enables the EV which weighs between 1600 kg and 1680 kg to do the 0-100 km sprint in 7.8 seconds and hit a top speed of 155 km/hr.

Available in 4 trim levels – Basic, Fashion, Comfort and Luxury – the EV comes with a claimed range of 416 km (top 2 variants have about 450 km range). It also has brake energy regeneration. DC charging time is a claimed 30 minutes to add 30-80 percent juice, while normal charging time (0-100 percent) is 9 hours.

In terms of safety, the EU5 R500 comes with dual front, side and curtain airbags, ABS with EBD, Brake Assist, ESP, TCS, Hill-Start Assist, Hill Descent Control, Auto Hold, TPMS and advanced driver assistance systems.

Now, although the BAIC EU5 R500 spotted undisguised here in India leads us to think about the possibility of it getting launched here, only time will tell if that will indeed happen.

Interior
The car comes with a long features list
Rear Profile
Should be a practical daily runabout
Badge
The claimed maximum range is 416 km for the base variant
BAIC EU5 R500 Badging
The blue touches on the badging denote that it is an EV
BAIC EU5 R500 Spotted
Rides on 17-inch aluminium alloy wheels