By Jasper Cheng, Founder of Roadbook Media (Shanghai)

A HARSH REALITY CHECK

This was no April Fools’ prank.

On March 29, a Xiaomi SU7 – the brand’s first EV, hyped as a “Porsche Taycan at 1/4 the price” – violently crashed into a highway guardrail in Anhui Province, China. Seconds later, the car erupted into flames, its front end obliterated.

The most horrifying detail? The doors electronically locked post-impact, trapping three occupants inside as toxic fumes from the rapid battery combustion filled the cabin. All three perished.

This isn’t the first time an EV’s “smart” systems turned deadly after a collision, but the SU7’s disastrous safety flaws — just weeks after its launch — have reignited a furious debate: Can we trust “disruptor” brands with lives?

THE THREE UNFORGIVABLE FAILURES

1. “INSPIRED” DESIGN, UNAPOLOGETIC SAFETY SHORTCUTS

Let’s address the elephant in the room: Xiaomi’s SU7 borrowed liberally from Porsche and Tesla (its CEO Lei Jun even joked about “paying tuition to Porsche”). While copycat aesthetics may fuel social media buzz, safety isn’t a press-release punchline.

• Traditional automakers like Volvo and Mercedes mandate mechanical door unlock triggers post-crash — a non-negotiable redundancy if electronics fail.
• The SU7, however, prioritized minimalist “smart” door handles over proven, life-saving mechanics.

Question: When a £30,000 Dacia Sandero offers mechanical door releases, why does Xiaomi’s £40,000 “dream car” gamble with electrons?

2. OVER-ENGINEERED TECH, UNDER-DESIGNED SAFETY

Eyewitness footage suggests the SU7’s 12V battery (critical for post-crash power) detached during impact, severing all electronic controls. No power = no door unlocks, no window rolls, no SOS calls.

Irony alert: Xiaomi touted the SU7’s “16 safety airbags and 360° protection”, yet ignored the one scenario every crash engineer fears: total electrical failure.

3. LFP BATTERY: A “SAFE” CHEMISTRY TURNED DEADLY

Xiaomi’s Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery was marketed as “non-flammable”. However, the SU7’s pack exploded within 45 seconds, outpacing even notorious NMC (Tesla’s preferred chemistry) fires.

Why?

• Structural flaws: Poor cell compartmentalization allowed thermal runaway cascades.
• No emergency vents: Trapped fumes became a toxic gas chamber.

INDUSTRY WAKE-UP CALL: SAFETY ISN’T AN OPTION

This tragedy isn’t just Xiaomi’s shame — it’s the dirty secret of China’s EV gold rush:

1. “Smart” ≠ Safe
   • Giants like BYD and NIO also push touchscreen door releases (looking at you, Tesla Cybertruck).
   • Solution: Dual mechanical/electronic systems must be legally required.
2. Crash Tests ≠ Real-World Survival
   • China’s C-NCAP tests don’t evaluate post-crash egress or beyond-lab scenarios (e.g., rollovers, secondary impacts).
   • Solution: Adopt Euro NCAP’s Rescue Sheets and US IIHS’s “survival space” metrics.
3. Regulatory Gaps = Bloody Loopholes
   • No Chinese law mandates battery fire suppression or 30-minute occupant escape time (a UNECE standard since 2021).
   • Solution: Stop letting startups “move fast and break things” when lives are at stake.

PETERFIN’S TAKE

This was a preventable tragedy.

The SU7’s victims didn’t die from a “regrettable accident”. They were failed by:

• A startup that treated safety as an afterthought,
• A system that rewards hype over integrity,
• A culture where “disruption” excuses corner-cutting.

China’s EV sector races toward “world dominance”, yet some still treat safety as an optional cost – not a moral baseline. Lei Jun vows to make Xiaomi a “Top 5 automaker.” But if a car can’t protect lives, even the smartest tech is just a deathtrap in disguise.