Hardly anyone could have imagined that the market flight of one of the most talked-about tech toys of the decade would end with such a painful landing. After months of Xiaomi SU7 Ultra occupying the headlines with its phenomenal records on the Nurburgring and acceleration that makes your stomach turn, the reality in the showrooms turned out to be startlingly different. In December, the Chinese “hypercar killer“ literally crashed commercially, recording only 45 completed transactions – a figure that seems almost unreal against the background of the initial interest.
Since its premiere, this electric beast has been presented as a technological marvel. With a power of 1,548 hp and a price tag of around $75,000, the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra offered the audience a performance that established names like the Porsche Taycan charge three times as much for. Rumor has it that Maranello engineers got their hands on one to work out its magic before the debut of the first electric Ferrari. Alas, the magic began to evaporate just as quickly as the car hit 100 km/h.
Problems began to surface one after another, turning the user experience into a real test of nerves. Initial enthusiasts were shocked to find out that software limiters had “locked” their car to a modest 650 horses until it passed a series of skill tests. Criticisms about non-functioning aerodynamic elements, rumors about defective door locks in accidents and not-so-correct requests for additional payments after reservations were made followed. All this added fuel to the fire of skepticism and cooled the passions of even the most ardent fans.
Analyzing the data from 2025, we see a sad graph of fading features. If in March the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra enjoyed over 3,000 sales, then in September they fell below 500 to reach the December bottom. It is obvious that for the Chinese buyer, who is accustomed to a dizzying pace of innovation, the Ultra version is already perceived as “old news”. Loyalty here is fleeting – as soon as the next shiny thing hits the market, the previous one quickly goes to the trash.
Despite the fiasco of this niche model, Lei Jun and his team have no reason to panic on a global scale. While the flagship Ultra is gathering dust, the standard Xiaomi SU7 is selling like hot cakes. With over 258,000 deliveries over the past year, the tech giant managed to do the unthinkable - to dethrone the Tesla Model 3 in China. This shows that the brand has a solid footing in the mass segment, where practicality beats extreme track ambitions.
Xiaomi Auto's future looks ambitious with a target of 550,000 cars for 2026. However, it is clear that the strategy will focus on mainstream models that bring profit, and not on exotic versions that serve mainly as showcases. As for the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra, at the current rate of less than 50 units per month, it's unlikely we'll see it in configurators for much longer. It seems that even the fastest car in the world can't escape the harsh logic of the market.