Nobody saw a 5.3-meter family hauler stealing the spotlight in Chengdu. But that's exactly what happened. At the 29th Chengdu International Auto Show, which opened on August 21, Stelato pulled the wraps off the V8 — the brand's first MPV, developed jointly by BAIC and Huawei. A Tarantas.News correspondent photographed the car directly at the show stand. The manufacturer doesn't hold back either, calling the V8 its flagship family MPV. The Chengdu show runs through August 30, 2026.
And this is genuinely a big vehicle. It measures 5,335 mm in length, 2,005 mm in width, and 1,805 or 1,825 mm in height depending on the version, riding on a massive 3,250 mm wheelbase. Every certified configuration comes with seven seats. The Chengdu photos show off two sliding side doors, a huge glass area, an almost continuous light bar up front, and a lidar module on the roof.
But the real story here isn't the size. It's the choice buyers will have to make. The pure-electric V8 gets a 120-kWh battery pack, good for 775 or 830 km on China's CLTC cycle depending on the trim. Impressive numbers — but you can't compare them directly to WLTP or EPA figures. The methodologies are simply too different.
The rear-wheel-drive version runs a single electric motor rated at 227 kW, or roughly 309 horsepower. The all-wheel-drive variant adds a second motor, splitting output between 160 kW and 227 kW for a combined 387 kW, or around 526 horsepower. And for buyers who aren't ready to go fully electric, there's a version with a 1.5-liter gasoline range extender making 118 kW. It pairs with 56 kWh or 75.4 kWh battery packs and can cover up to 339 km on electric power alone, per CLTC.
That's the real intrigue of the V8. Buyers can either go for an EV with a genuinely massive 120-kWh battery, or keep the electric drive while cutting their dependence on charging stations thanks to a gasoline generator under the hood.
Stelato is keeping the V8's price under wraps for now. So any figures floating around Chinese media should be treated as estimates, not an official price list. No confirmed sales date has been announced either.
