Did the NIO ES9 just blow Hammond's mind?

Added: 2026-05-12

[00:00:00]Today we're doing something very different. We're here today to see the Neo ES9 test drives on a secret proving ground here in Shanghai. But not only that, we're here to speak to Richard Hammond, who's come over from the UK to also test drive the ES9. So, let's find out what he has to say for himself.

[00:00:22]>> Elliot, nice to meet you.

[00:00:25]>> Yeah, you sound more familiar.

[00:00:27]>> Yeah, I probably do. I've been here a while. quite bad.

[00:00:30]>> My parents like, "Are you going to come back yet?"

[00:00:31]>> Ever? No, I quite like it. Yeah, I'm happy. Well, well done. They're not very happy.

[00:00:40]>> So, Richard, how have you found driving the ES9?

[00:00:44]>> Uh, it's I think the story is about the suspension.

[00:00:47]>> I obviously the tech on board is mindblowing.

[00:00:50]>> Yeah, it's crazy, right?

[00:00:52]>> Yeah. I think it's it's got a massive range 600 odd kilm which is just as well because you'd need that to play with all the foot massage and the way the air conditioning moves. You're being monitored by a camera and if it spots sunlight sitting in one place for a long time and the temperature re it'll send it'll send the air con there.

[00:01:10]>> It's impressive, isn't it?

[00:01:11]>> But all of that put all of that aside even the foot massage which >> I loved.

[00:01:17]>> Um it is about the suspension. The thing's well just under three tons.

[00:01:21]>> Yeah. uh but fully active hydraulic and beyond the software and the solid state which is amazing all that stuff the engineering I'm really really interested in so they put the pump most cars >> with active hydraulic there's one pump in the middle and it distributes into the wheels but as you all know in this thing yes >> the pumps are tiny and they're at the wheel and I think they're unsprung >> Mhm.

[00:01:46]>> which is mindblowing. But what that means is it can react quickly because the pumps are on site because there's always going to be a little delay because the compressibility blah blah blah. So it means on the Belgian parv >> the only reason you know you're on Belgian par is you can hear it.

[00:01:59]>> That's insane, isn't it?

[00:02:01]>> It is incredible. I mean it's >> I think for me the most incredible thing about this is that they've got like a pothole database.

[00:02:08]>> Yeah.

[00:02:09]>> So it scans the road but it knows where all the potholes are.

[00:02:12]>> Yeah. And it shares it. So every Neo is uploading that information. It has to be more than four cars. So if more than four Neos any model encounter a pothole, that data goes up and is then shared back with all the others.

[00:02:24]>> But >> if subsequently it's mended >> and four Neos or more go over, it's uploaded then it's canled. So if as long as it's there, this thing will be preparing for it.

[00:02:34]>> Exactly.

[00:02:34]>> And getting ready to push and then pull to get out of there. It's it's this suspension and we've seen it on the Porsches. I've driven it in the TA, >> but that again is centrally distributed.

[00:02:44]But this is a different aim >> completely.

[00:02:47]>> This is comfort. The strange thing is in the tyan, >> you can feel it. It's like the body is flying. You can feel the body control happening >> which if you think about it, it's on it's on four legs. And if it can extend or contract those legs at will, it can alter the >> completely >> the angle at which it flies. You don't feel quite the same sensation of that in this because it's about making it creamy smooth. It's it's impressive. I was saying if this came to the UK, I don't think there'd be a database big enough to cover the UK. So, >> no, no, you could it would just probably No, I'm not going. That's ridiculous.

[00:03:20]>> I don't I mean, the only thing is I don't think this is coming to the UK.

[00:03:24]>> Well, they're thinking about it, aren't they?

[00:03:26]>> It's a bit big. It >> is quite big. Yeah.

[00:03:27]>> And this B- road it might.

[00:03:29]>> This is not a UK car, but it's it's it's >> it's funny, isn't it? When you load a car, and they're good in the Chinese automotive sector at doing this, you load it with clever tech. At first it's like yeah yeah yeah all right you do that just because you can but you get past the point where you start to think no actually that >> it's really quite good >> and things to look out for that that really gave me some comfort about this in terms of the authenticity of the physical architecture.

[00:03:55]>> Uh have you pulled the airline tables out the center rest >> and have you seen that little brace? So when it comes down there's a there's a a triangulating brace stink.

[00:04:03]>> Now that that's not just a piece of code. No, >> that's somebody thinking, "Right, I'm going to give it a table, but it can't be wobbly, so I want a folding out triangulating arm on it." That's clever.

[00:04:12]>> And there's kind of a lot of that kind of detailed thinking in the >> I was ready to think it's plasticky.

[00:04:20]>> If we think 5 years ago >> Mhm.

[00:04:23]>> China having a go at luxury.

[00:04:26]>> That's right.

[00:04:27]>> Let's just put a bit of chrome on it.

[00:04:28]There you go. That's luxurious. Luxury.

[00:04:30]Yeah. Now that is if luxury is about space, >> comfort and your physical environment.

[00:04:36]>> That's what they're addressing. It's impressive.

[00:04:37]>> Yeah. So your grandfather worked for Mulliner, right?

[00:04:41]>> He did, but the Mullin are in Birmingham, not the posh on. So they were doing all the old Mayflowers and stuff. He wasn't building Bentley sadly.

[00:04:47]>> But what would he say about cars like this or cars being built in China?

[00:04:51]>> I just don't think it would compute.

[00:04:52]>> No.

[00:04:53]>> Um and let's be honest, none of us would. 10 years ago, Chinese cars just meant really, really cheap and terrible.

[00:04:58]And now they are. They've suddenly learned how to make cars at a good price but really well. I think >> the western automotive sector is going to have to >> governments can impose tariffs but that's artificially manipulating capitalist >> fundamentals isn't it? So it doesn't work. I think as consumers if you can buy something like this for >> a third the price of the equivalent Range Rover I think as as a government to say to its consumers no you can't have that. I really want it. you can't have it. I I don't know. It's going to be interesting. The answer is all makers are going to have to think, okay, >> otherwise it'll be like when the Japanese motorcycle industry came over and the British were sitting there in their bowler hats going, "Oh, those never come up with anything. It won't be, oh dear. They've made better bikes that work better, look better, and are cheaper, >> and they're here.

[00:05:47]>> So, what did we buy?"

[00:05:48]>> Yeah, exactly.

[00:05:48]>> Um, so I think it needs a It's time for a very big wakeup call.

[00:05:53]>> Start thinking, Japs.

[00:05:54]>> Yeah. Watch out.

[00:05:55]>> Well, it's coming.

[00:05:56]>> Yeah, exactly. Yeah, >> but just >> go on >> EVs generally.

[00:06:00]>> Yes.

[00:06:00]>> Um I'm I'm certainly not one of those people who think it's divided. It's going to be one or the other. It can't be that binary division into two. No, the world can't do that. Not at >> all.

[00:06:11]>> Um and doesn't need to.

[00:06:13]>> No, there's space for everyone.

[00:06:14]>> Well, in some applications, full electric is brilliant. Love their range extenders over here. And as people are making ever more thermally efficient internal combustion engines that rotary that's massively more therally efficient running at optimum speed then they have a place but so does hydrogen combustion >> in anything that goes depot to depot um so does synthetic fuel as a means of banking hydrogen renewably generated. Um the picture and engineers are already doing the picture is going to be brilliant multifaceted and exciting. I'm convinced of that and there's room for all of it in there.

[00:06:46]>> Yeah. And I think for me the thing I'm looking forward to most is then making it much more lighter. So like the sports car kind of >> well when we get solid state and we get those structural batteries and if if the battery effectively is a structure of the car then suddenly that changes very >> everything. Yeah. There's never there's never been a better time to be into cars as a journalist as a consumer or as an industrialist.

[00:07:09]>> Very exciting times.

[00:07:10]>> Good times.

[00:07:18]Right. So, here we go. Um, we have this proving ground we can drive around twice. So, this is going to be my very first reactions to driving the ES9. So, I already know this is going to be fairly similar to the ET9 that we drove last year. It's going to be very impressive in the suspension department.

[00:07:35]Of course, it's got the Skyide suspension, and we're going faster down here, but we can't go too fast because the speed limit is 60. Uh, we're doing a little bit faster than that, but straight away it's so smooth. It is so smooth. I think the ET9 was amazing, but this very much takes it on the next level. This is a a generation further on from the ET9. So, already I can feel a huge difference.

[00:08:00]So, we're going to go around this corner at 70. And it Oh, wow. It completely flattens out when you're going around the corner.

[00:08:10]Wow. And steer with the steering wheel.

[00:08:12]Steer by wire. first certified steer by wire in China. That is incredible. I just have to turn the wheel just a slight slight bit and it turns around the corner really well. Of course, acceleration is very brisk. It's probably not the fastest thing in the world. Uh and braking is braking is is good. I don't want to skid because this is not the place to do this. So yeah, my first impressions are well, I'm extremely impressed.

[00:08:44]I mean, here we go around this corner.

[00:08:46]This is like a slalom. Look how little input I have to put into the steering wheel to go around these corners. And it's turning the car. We're doing 75.

[00:08:56]Wow. You can go up to 100 round here.

[00:09:01]And I'm having to put in about Who? I made the cameraman drop the camera.

[00:09:08]Yeah, this is this is incredible. This is next level. And of course, let's be realistic. People aren't going to be driving this round a proven ground or probably around the track even. But if you're driving in the city or driving on country roads, you really need a car like this because it's so luxurious. And I think for your passengers in the back, here we go. Around this corner, a little bit faster.

[00:09:29]Bit more steering input. I guess it's like going around a roundabout. Of course, you can feel it because you can't get away from physics. You can't get away from the weight, but it does really flatten out compared to a normal kind of SUV.

[00:09:42]Of course, it still comes with Normie.

[00:09:44]We have Normie up there. The faithful companion to Neo users. Here we go.

[00:09:48]Going around another corner. A little bit slower here cuz it's a bit tighter.

[00:09:52]Applying a bit of brake.

[00:09:55]Yeah, I mean it's it's really very competent.

[00:09:59]That was the end of our ES9 test drive.

[00:10:02]Obviously, an absolutely fantastic car.

[00:10:04]technological marvel. This is going to be very popular when it comes on sale in China. Glad I got the experience I got today. Thank you for watching.