Nio plans to launch a special edition of its ES8 flagship SUV at the Guangzhou auto show, which opens on November 27, according to Chinese car portal Autohome, which would be the model’s second this year as the large SUV’s sales pace shows signs of slowing.
Autohome said on Tuesday that it learned of the launch plan “from relevant channels.” Nio has not announced a special edition of the ES8.
The portal said official details are not yet available and that it expects the special edition to differ from the current model mainly in colors and design details.
The third-generation ES8 is sold in five configurations across five-, six- and seven-seat layouts, priced from 382,800 yuan to 446,800 yuan ($57,500 to $67,100), or 274,800 yuan to 338,800 yuan ($41,300 to $50,900) with the battery rented under Nio’s battery-as-a-service plan.
The six- and seven-seat versions cost 406,800 yuan to 446,800 yuan ($61,100 to $67,100), or from 298,800 yuan ($44,900) with battery rental.
Nio added a five-seat version on July 9, offered as Executive Luxury at 382,800 yuan ($57,500) and Executive Signature at 422,800 yuan ($63,500), or 274,800 yuan ($41,300) and 314,800 yuan ($47,300) with battery rental, according to the company.
That version has the same exterior dimensions as the six- and seven-seat models, at 5,280 mm long, 2,010 mm wide and 1,800 mm tall (207.9, 79.1 and 70.9 inches), with a 3,130 mm (123.2-inch) wheelbase.
What Carries Over
Autohome described the special edition against the current car’s specification, which it expects to remain largely unchanged.
The ES8 is built on a 900-volt architecture and uses a 180-kilowatt induction motor at the front and a 340-kilowatt permanent-magnet motor at the rear, for combined output of 520 kilowatts (697 horsepower) and 700 Nm of torque.
Every version carries a 102-kilowatt-hour battery. The five-seater is rated at 655 km (407 miles) on China’s CLTC test cycle, the figure Autohome cited, while the six- and seven-seat versions are rated at 635 km (395 miles).
The SUV rides on dual-chamber air suspension with single-valve external CDC adaptive dampers.
Chip and Cabin
Driver assistance runs on Nio’s in-house Shenji NX9031 chip and the Aquila sensing system with 31 sensors. Autohomesaid the system uses Nio’s NWM world model and supports point-to-point navigation assistance.
Inside, the ES8 has a Skyline digital display and a 15.6-inch center screen running Nio’s SkyOS operating system. The portal said two new display themes have been added, called “Football Feast” and “Sun-Shadow Sequence.”
The audio system has 27 speakers in an 8.1.4.2 layout, powered by a 2,600-watt amplifier.
Nio said on Tuesday that it began pushing version 1.6.0 of its Cedar smart system to the ET9, ES9 and new ES8, with more than 60 upgrades.
Earlier Add-Ons
A special edition would follow other moves to refresh the ES8’s appeal without changing its hardware.
In September, Nio began selling a wheel kit for the ES8 at 25,800 yuan ($3,900), offset by a 10,000-yuan ($1,500) credit.
The ES8 already has one special edition. Nio launched the ES8 Xuanjin Special Edition at the Beijing auto show on April 24, priced at 456,800 yuan ($68,600), or 348,800 yuan ($52,400) with battery rental.
That version is based on the six-seat Executive Signature and pairs a black exterior with dark-gold chrome trim. It is not among the five configurations Autohome listed for the current lineup.
Nio has used the same approach across its lineup. In September, the company added special editions or design packages to four existing models in about two weeks, including the EC6 Aura Edition, and none of them changed the powertrain, battery or driver-assistance hardware.
Slowing Pace
The ES8 is Nio Inc.’s best-selling vehicle, and the special edition would arrive as its momentum fades.
The SUV reached 160,000 deliveries on October 23, 33 days after its 150,000th, its slowest 10,000-unit stretch since its first. The five previous stretches each took 30 days.
The ES8 delivered 10,542 units in September, its third straight month above 10,000, according to Nio’s model figures. That is well below its peak of 22,258 in December 2025.
The model delivered 110,485 units in the first nine months of 2026. Quarterly volumes fell from 45,184 in the first quarter to 33,472 in the second and 31,829 in the third.
Nio did not give an October figure for the model when it reported group deliveries on November 1, saying only that the ES8 ranked first among large SUVs and vehicles priced around 400,000 yuan ($60,100) in China from January to October. The Nio brand delivered 18,125 vehicles in October, its lowest monthly total since February and down 15% from September.
Group deliveries fell 15.2% year over year to 34,246, short of the more than 40,000 a month that Founder and CEO William Li set as the fourth-quarter target.
The China Passenger Car Association placed the ES8 fifth among large SUVs from Chinese brands in September, with 10,546 retail sales.
The 24th Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition runs from November 27 to December 6.
The ES8 recorded its best month in December 2025, its first full winter on sale, when Nio delivered 22,258 units of the SUV.
