Chinese brand HiPhi is bringing its wacky-doored EVs to Europe

The Chinese ‘luxury electric technology’ brand HiPhi is all set to start selling its cars in Europe, with two new showrooms - one in Munich and the other in Oslo - now announced. 

Those locations make sense since Germany is the biggest EV market in Europe and 80 per cent of cars sold in Norway in 2022 were electric. 

HiPhi is calling these showrooms ‘hubs’, and we're told that potential customers will be able to test drive forthcoming models. Inventively named the X, Y and Z, the striking three-car lineup includes some pretty fancy features, although we can't help thinking that they've rather limited themselves by starting so close to the end of the alphabet.

Anyway, the HiPhi X is a ‘super SUV’. It’s apparently China’s best-selling luxury EV and has a pretty unusual door opening mechanism. Without handles, or the need to touch, a sensor in the B-pillar unlocks and begins opening the front door for you. The rear door opens in reverse as a suicide door, but the roof also hinges up so that passengers don’t have to stoop to get into the car.

The Z - a five-door shooting brake style thing with a face that makes it look like the R35 Nissan GT-R's long lost sibling - has some equally nifty tech, including a moving robotic arm that holds the central infotainment display. Right.

Still, both vehicles are expected to have a claimed range of over 372 miles (600km) and we're told that the first European customers will take delivery in 2024.

The Y was only unveiled at the recent Shanghai Auto Show, so expect that to appear a little further down the line, but the elevator pitch is a smaller and more affordable SUV that still gets funky doors and can manage 500 miles on a single charge.

David Ding, HiPhi founder, says: "HiPhi has been committed to building a global high-end brand from China since its inception, so while we delve deeply into the Chinese market, we also look globally.

“In 2023, we will launch a global brand strategy and expand into overseas markets, with the European and Middle Eastern markets the focus of our first wave of expansion."