Not every EV needs a gimmick, but a good one goes a long way — and the Aito M9 has a very good one.
For this recently announced electric SUV, it’s the headlights, which go from projecting important driver info in front of you to a full-blown movie up to 100 inches. The electric six-seater SUV comes from a joint venture between Huawei, which is more known for designing smartphones, and Seres, a Chinese EV brand.
It’s not the first time we’ve heard of EV makers incorporating projectors into the headlights since Ram had the same idea with its electric pickup truck concept. Still, the Aito M9 has the rest of the competition beat since that’s not the only movie-watching experience included in the EV.
Bigger Isn’t Always Better
Besides the Aito M9’s headlights that double as a movie projector, the inside of the electric SUV has two more options for a cozier movie-watching experience. There’s a projector above the third-row seats that maxes out onto a 32-inch panel and even the 75-inch heads-up display up front can act as a movie theater screen when you’re parked.
Combine those screen options with the Aito M9’s 25-speaker audio system and you have a full-on theater-like experience in your car.
Even though the Aito M9 sounds like a movie theater on wheels, we can’t forget that its specs make it a decent EV. The fully electric model gets a range of 630 km, or around 392 miles, and can hit 0 to 62 mph in 4.3 seconds. Huawei and Seres are also making a hybrid version that adds a gas-powered generator that recharges the batteries. This “extended range EV” maxes out at 1,402 km, or around 871 miles, and goes from 0 to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds.
No Plans for U.S. Deliveries
The Aito M9 is already available to preorder in China in four trims, starting at 469,800 yuan, or around $65,500. The fully electric “Ultra” trim tops out at 569,800 yuan, or around $80,000. Aito says the first deliveries are scheduled for January 2024.
None of Aito’s previous models are available in the U.S., so we shouldn’t expect any differently with this flagship SUV.
