Nio’s 3rd Gen ES8 Keeps Its Title as China’s Best Selling Large NEV SUV for 4th Consecutive Month

Nio Inc announced that the 100,000th unit of the 3rd generation ES8 was delivered on April 23rd. The company achieved this milestone within 215 days, which is a new record in China’s passenger car market for premium models priced above RMB 400,000 (£43,356). The new ES8 has also grown rapidly in terms of sales, reaching 10,000 units within the first 41 days of its launch and 40,000 in 100 days. A recent report shows that the 3rd generation ES8 has been dominating Beijing’s large SUV market in Q1 2026, beating out other makes and models regardless of its energy type or price range.

This achievement reflects the larger structural shift in demand. Traditionally, premium SUVs prominently feature internal combustion models. However, the improvements in charging and battery-swapping infrastructure as well as the developments in smart features have greatly boosted the interest in and popularity of electric-based SUVs.

Data from the total sales report of the Top 10 large SUVs in China placed the ES8 as number 1, with 16,255 units sold in March 2026. This is an increase of approximately 44.3% month-on-month and roughly 30 times year-on-year. It is one the only two car makes and models that surpassed 10,000 units sold. The ES8’s success has been a significant contributor to Nio’s financial turnaround, contributing a massive 54.14% share of Nio Inc's total deliveries in Q1 2026.

The purely electric SUV has performed strongly since its launch in September 2025 and to maintain sales momentum for the high-margin model, Nio will extend its car-buying incentives in April. This program will include retaining a limited-time purchase tax subsidy of RMB 10,000 (£1,084) for buyers. Nio is also planning to launch a five-seater version of the third-generation ES8 in early July to attract more potential buyers as the currently available models only offer six- and seven-seat configurations as it originally focused for both family and business use cases.

Nio has also officially unveiled and launched the new ES8 Black Gold Special Edition (some sources refer to it as the Dark God, Mystic Black, or Dark Gold Special Edition) at the Beijing Auto Show alongside the debut of the ES8M42 Nebula Red variant. In addition to updates to their existing lineup, Nio is also promoting their new flagship SUV model: the ES9, as well as the sub-brand Onvo‘s new SUV model: the L80.