Onvo announced over the weekend that the 2026 L90 has begun nationwide distribution, as the brand prepares to launch its first LiDAR-equipped model under Nio’s family-oriented sub-brand.
The first batch of display and test-drive vehicles is set to arrive at stores on April 21 — when the updated model officially launches, as revealed over the weekend.
“Everyone is welcome to visit stores and experience its flagship intelligence and next-generation capabilities,” the brand wrote on Weibo.
The updated SUV is the first Onvo model to feature LiDAR, ending the pure-vision approach the sub-brand had promoted since its 2024 launch.
The sensor is roof-mounted in a watchtower-style layout matching Nio‘s premium vehicles.
The LiDAR variant will be sold alongside the existing vision-only version, which will continue to receive OTA updates.
Onvo‘s head of product Eric Yu said on Weibo earlier this month that the updated L90’s production cost has risen by approximately 10,000 yuan ($1,450) due to rising prices of components such as high-performance memory.
The current L90 starts at 179,800 yuan (approximately $26,400) when purchased with Nio’s Battery as a Service (BaaS) subscription model.
Without BaaS, including the battery in the purchase price, it is priced from 265,800 yuan (approximately $38,900).
Specs
Under the hood, the 2026 L90 replaces the Nvidia Orin-X chip with Nio‘s in-house Shenji NX9031 — a 5-nanometer autonomous driving processor already deployed across the main Nio brand.
The model also introduces the latest version of the Nio World Model (NWM), which the company describes as China’s first embodied driving model for autonomous driving.
A blue indicator light has been added to the side mirror housing, integrated alongside the turn signal.
The light activates when the vehicle’s intelligent driving system is engaged.
Onvo described it as an “identity marker” for autonomous driving and a road safety signal — “making AI visible, reducing misunderstandings, and improving safety.”
The feature has already been rolled out across the wider Nio Group.
It was included in the 2026 facelifts of the ET5, ET5T, ES6, and EC6 earlier this month and in Firefly’s refreshed hatchback on April 7.
The 2026 L90 is the first Onvo model to adopt it.
Dual-Tone Exterior
Over the weekend, Onvo published a detailed design post on its social media channels breaking down the exterior changes to the 2026 L90.
The updated model introduces two new dual-tone body colors — silver-purple and purple-gold.
Dual-tone paint schemes were first introduced within the Nio Group on the flagship ET9 Horizon Edition last year.
The 2026 L90 is the first Onvo model to adopt the approach.
The silver-purple scheme pairs “Chenhui Silver” — a new-generation shade developed with BASF — on the lower body with “Ningye Purple” above the beltline.
The design team described the silver as evoking natural reflections rather than a cold metallic finish.
“This silver is not an ice-cold metallic color — it is more like the starry reflections of Chaka Salt Lake,” they wrote.
The purple was inspired by the night sky above the Great Wall — “deep yet not oppressive, with a quiet sense of refinement.”
The purple-gold combination — “Ningye Purple” over “Yunxi Gold” — draws on traditional Eastern symbolism.
“Purple symbolizes nobility, and gold represents wealth,” the designers wrote.
The pairing is intended to balance restraint with warmth: “The deep purple tempers the brightness of gold, while the gold illuminates the calmness of purple.”
Beijing Auto Show
The Onvo L90’s launch on Tuesday comes days before the Beijing Auto Show, which runs from April 24 to May 3.
Upcoming model launches during the event underscore the strategic importance of the large SUV segment in China, where competition in the three-row SUV category is particularly intense.
There, Nio is set to showcase the ES9, its new flagship SUV — and China’s largest sport-utility vehicle — for which it opened pre-orders on April 9.
Onvo is expected to present the L80, a five-seat variant of the L90 that shares most of its components, during the event.
The company’s founder and CEO William Li identified the ES9 and the L80 as the company’s top priorities for Q2 at an internal meeting earlier this month.
“There will be a new product effect in May and June, and deliveries should steadily increase,” Li told employees. “These are all high-margin large vehicles. The next two months are critical.”
L80 deliveries are expected to begin in mid-May, timed to coincide with Onvo‘s second anniversary on May 15.
Co-founder and president Lihong Qin said last month that the L80’s pricing will slot between the L60 and L90.
Q1 Deliveries
Onvo started the year by recording its two worst monthly delivery figures since handovers began in September 2024.
The reduction hit January volumes in China, due to the purchase tax exemption for new energy vehicles, which took effect on January 1.
February was dragged down further by the Chinese New Year holiday — the longest on record, according to the China Passenger Car Association.
Deliveries rebounded in March, more than doubling to 6,877 units — a 131% sequential increase and a 42.7% rise year over year.
The L90 contributed 3,360 of those units, a 155% jump from February.
The L60 accounted for 3,517 — slightly ahead of the larger SUV but still down 27% compared to March 2025.
First-quarter L90 deliveries totaled 6,179 units — well below the pace set during its first three months on sale, when the model averaged over 10,000 monthly units.
That early momentum had made the L90 what Onvo described on Weibo as “the annual sales champion among large pure electric SUVs in 2025.”
The L90 reached 50,000 cumulative deliveries on April 3 — eight months after sales began in August 2025.
