Nio delivered its 80,000th third-generation ES8 on Friday, the company’s flagship SUV reaching the milestone roughly six months after customer deliveries began — and just three weeks after passing the 70,000 mark.
An executive had flagged the milestone on Monday in a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo, that “based on recent delivery progress, we will welcome the delivery of the 80,000th new ES8 this week.”
The three-week gap between the 70,000th and 80,000th units — Nio officially announced the 70,000th delivery on February 27 in Wenzhou — implies a sustained run rate of approximately 15,000 units per month.
Delivery Trajectory
The third-generation ES8 has been the fastest-selling vehicle above 400,000 yuan ($55,000) in the Chinese market since deliveries began on September 21, 2025.
The model’s pace accelerated sharply through the fourth quarter before stabilising at high volumes in early 2026.
It reached 10,000 units in 41 days, 20,000 in 70 days, 30,000 in 89 days, 40,000 in 100 days, and 50,000 in 120 days.
The 60,000th was delivered on February 2 — 134 days after launch — and the 70,000th on February 27.
Friday’s 80,000th delivery came at approximately day 181, meaning Nio added 10,000 units in 21 days.
That pace is broadly in line with the 10,000 units delivered in 26 days between the 60,000th and 70,000th milestones, confirming that monthly production has settled into a steady rhythm above 10,000 units.
In January, the ES8 delivered 17,646 units — claiming the sales crown among all large SUVs and all vehicles priced above 400,000 yuan for a second consecutive month.
In February, the model accounted for more than 54% of Nio‘s total brand output of 20,797 vehicles.
Best Selling Model
The ES8 has been the single most important vehicle in Nio’s shift from sustained losses to its first-ever quarterly profit in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The third-generation model launched at NIO Day 2025 in Hangzhou on September 20 at a starting price of 406,800 yuan ($55,800) for the outright purchase option, or 298,800 yuan ($41,000) under Nio‘s Battery-as-a-Service rental scheme.
That represented a significant reduction from the second-generation’s 498,000–578,000 yuan range, pulling the vehicle into a larger addressable market.
Nio disclosed at launch that 49.2% of ES8 buyers were switching from German luxury brands and 62.4% from traditional premium combustion vehicles — conquesting directly from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi rather than cannibalising existing EV demand.
What Comes Next
Nio is preparing to launch three additional large vehicles this year alongside the ES8: the ES9 full-size flagship SUV, with the unveiling on April 10 and deliveries from June 1; a large five-seat SUV in the third quarter; and the Onvo L80 under its mass-market sub-brand.
