Xpeng L05 spied in Malaysia – midsize SUV larger than G6 with 635 km CLTC range, REEV with 310 km EV range

A post on the paultan.org Automotive/Car Discussion Group on Facebook piqued our interest in our office group chat today. A video shot by user Syafiq Cadillac showed a camouflaged SUV being tested in Bukit Raja, heading towards Klang – and for a while, we scratched our heads trying to figure out what it was.

The car, almost certainly a Chinese EV, was fairly long and low, and while the scalloped tailgate, pull-type door handles and pod-like door mirrors were reminiscent of those on the the Xpeng L03, we thought that the rear windscreen on the prototype was too upright.

Then yours truly remembered that Xpeng had confirmed a midsized SUV to be launched in Malaysia alongside the L03 this year, and that the company had only just introduced the L05 in China last week. The high-mounted rear number plate recess, protruding rear bumper and upswept window line also matched what was seen in the video, and thus, we can determine with reasonable certainty that this was the car shown.

Sold under the value-oriented Mona sub-brand in China, the L05 is even bigger than the G6, measuring 4,870 mm long, 1,930 mm wide and 1,363 mm tall with a 2,940 mm wheelbase. Sporting the same design language as the L03 with its T-shaped headlights, upswept window line and full-width taillight bar, plus distinctive undercut flanks, it’s available in EV and PowerX range extender variants.

Available solely in rear-wheel-drive form, the L05 produces 249 PS (183 kW) and 280 Nm of torque as standard, getting it from zero to 100 km/h in as little as 6.8 seconds. The base electric version comes with a 58.2 kWh LFP battery to deliver a range of up to 535 km, while the larger 71.1 kWh pack bumps this up significantly to 635 km. These figures are on China’s lenient CLTC cycle; expect WLTP numbers closer to 440 km and 520 km respectively.

The REEV uses a smaller 37.2 kWh battery for a CLTC EV range of 310 km (circa 254 km WLTP); in return, it gets a 1.5 litre naturally-aspirated petrol engine and a 42 litre fuel tank. This extends the combined range to 1,310 km, also on the CLTC cycle.

Like the L03, the L05 misses out on the 800-volt electrical architecture used by Xpeng’s mainline models. It instead offers “3C” charging, so expect DC fast charging capacity to be the same as the L03 (193 kW for the 58.2 kWh model, 236 kWh with the 71.1 kWh battery) for a 10 to 80% top up in 19.1 minutes for the EV and 14.7 minutes for the REEV.

On the inside, the L05 features a minimalist design favoured by so many Chinese brands nowadays, here brightened up (literally) by slick wraparound ambient lighting with 256 colours. Other touches include a “floating” dual-layer dashboard with concealed air-con vents and a bridge-style centre console with storage underneath.

Unlike other Xpeng models, there’s no instrument display, just a Tesla-style 17.3-inch infotainment touchscreen that serves both functions. You do at least get a large 26.8-inch head-up display, as well as an optional second 17.3-inch roof monitor for the rear passengers.

Also part of the staggering standard kit list are power-adjustable front seats with heating, ventilation and 14-point massage, plus rear seats with up to 11 degrees of powered recline. Mind you, there are still a few options such as one-touch “zero gravity” front seat recline, Nappa leather, a panoramic sunroof and a 20-speaker sound system.

With five seats, this big SUV offers a massive 702 litres of boot space that is expandable to 1,913 litres with the rear pews folded. There’s also a ten litre storage drawer under the rear seats, and EV versions also come with a 102 litre front boot.

As per other new Xpeng models, the L05 comes with the brand’s Turing AI chip, enabling its second-generation Visual-Language-Action (VLA 2.0) AI model for highly-automated city and highway driving functionality. Notably, this feature is expected to be pushed out to Malaysians within the next two years as part of a global rollout.

The Xpeng L05 will likely be offered in Malaysia in EV version first, with the REEV variants possibly arriving later on. It will be joined by the L03 and a “large SUV” widely tipped to be the G9L.

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