Volkswagen has joined numerous other automakers by offering a China-only brand dedicated to electric cars. On Tuesday, VW introduced the SOL brand for electric vehicles at the 2018 Beijing auto show.
The first vehicle from SOL is (shocker) an SUV called the E20X. SOL was born from VW's joint venture with China's Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Corp (JAC). In fact, the E20X is almost identical to another JAC product underneath the unique sheet metal.
JAC currently offers the iEV7S, itself an electric SUV model already available in China. VW did not provide any details on the E20X's powertrain, though the electric car will travel 186 miles on a single charg, per the automaker.
The SOL E20X also will include artificial intelligence and "intelligent connectivity," according to VW. In the future, VW, JAC, and Zhejiang Tmall Technology Company will collaborate to create a new retail model as well.
SOL wasn't alone at the 2018 Beijing auto show. Honda and its joint-venture partner, GAC, debuted the Everus and the Everus EV concept. Prior to both brands' reveals, Daimler stepped into the market much earlier in 2014. Along with the German automaker's joint-venture partner, BYD, Denza was born.
VW did not provide specific details on the SOL brand's launch, but Chinese consumers should first see the brand and its E20X later this year.