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The awkward follow-up album: Aion UT supermini preps for UK launch in autumn
► Aion’s competitor for the Mini Cooper Electric is coming
► It’ll hit the UK this October, costing around £25,000
► Loads of standard kit, claimed range of 268 miles
Meet the Aion UT. It’s a pure-electric B-segment hatchback designed to rival the Cupra Raval, Mini Cooper Electric, Renault 5 and Volkswagen ID.Polo – and it’s destined to hit the UK market this autumn with an expected starting price of £25,000.
Like the larger V SUV, Aion’s selling point for the UT is that it’ll offer an upmarket experience at a knockdown price. The brand is making some pretty bold claims about the quality of its cabin and its refinement levels – apparently it’ll ‘reset what UK motorists can expect from a B-segment supermini’ – while the standard kit list wouldn’t look out of place on a top-spec version of one of its European competitors.
The UT will only be available in one specification, which comes as standard with a 14.6-inch infotainment screen, heated front seats and a 360-degree parking camera.
However, if you spend a bit more money on Aion’s Premium Pack, you’ll unlock items such as a power-operated tailgate, ventilated driver’s seat and panoramic sunroof. Even the Mini can’t offer those extras – and that’s probably the poshest electric supermini money can buy right now.
That single-specification strategy extends to the UT’s powertrain, too. The only option available will be a 204hp electric motor and 60kWh battery pack. Aion claims this setup offers a 0–62mph time of 7.3 seconds and a maximum driving range of 268 miles.
The UT is already on sale in Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines, but Aion says it’s made some changes to the car’s chassis to make it better suited to UK roads. We’ll get tweaked springs, dampers and bump stops, along with a revised rear anti-roll bar.
Every UT will also benefit from Aion’s ‘Great 8 Promise,’ which provides an eight-year warranty, eight years’ servicing, eight years’ roadside assistance and enough MOTs to see the car through until its eighth birthday. That aftersales package stays with the car, too, which will become a good selling point when you need to move the car on.
We’re quietly hopeful about the Aion UT. The V, while flawed in some areas, showed an awful lot of promise. It’s surprisingly polished to drive and it set itself apart from its Chinese competitors by offering some genuinely premium touches at the same affordable price point. So, Aion’s comments about the quality of UT’s cabin might be more than just marketing bluster.
If Aion can repeat (and improve) the V’s formula, the European B-segment might have something to worry about. We’ll update you once we’ve driven it…
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