BeyonCa (short for “Beyond the Car”) has revealed its first EV concept, the BeyonCa Gran Turismo Opus 1 and has claimed itself as the world’s first super premium EV brand.
The manufacturer was founded last year with DongFeng Group as one of its strategic investment partners and employs automotive industry veterans, including a group of former Volkswagen executives, as well as experts from electric and internet companies.
Its Singaporean founder and chairman, Soh Weiming, has spent 16 years at Volkswagen in China and is currently CEO of Renault China. Currently, the Beijing-based manufacturer BeyonCa has three R&D offices in China, an R&D center in Singapore and a design center in Munich, Germany.
The manufacturer also revealed that it will launch its first mass-production model in Q1 of 2023, with deliveries taking place from 2024 onwards. Gran Turismo Opus 1 is expected to start at one million yuan.
The BeyonCa Gran Turismo Opus 1 will be supported by a smart cockpit based on Artificial Intelligence that can monitor the driver’s health status in real-time and will stop the vehicle automatically if it detects symptoms of cardiovascular disease, stroke, or driver fatigue.
The EV is also equipped with the world’s first in-cab cloud doctor service where a doctor will appear virtually on the vehicle’s infotainment screen. The cloud doctor team will be supervised by the chief health officer, Dr. Tim Guo, a cardiovascular specialist with over 27 years of experience.
In a report from CarNewsChina, it was revealed that the Opus 1 measures 5.2 meters long with a three meter wheelbase and is built on an 800 volt architecture capable of 300 kW fast charging. The report also reveals that the Opus 1 will be equipped with a 130 kWh battery, with a performance version called the GT Opus 1 R.
The Gran Turismo Opus 1 is the work of a design team with decades of experience creating premium vehicles, led by Dirk van Braeckel, who has spent two decades as chief designer in charge of manufacturing the Bentley Continental GT.
According to the South China Morning Post, the founder and chairman of BeyonCa said that the manufacturer will focus on making large sedans and SUVs and will release three to five new models over the next five years aimed at challenging manufacturers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi. The brand also has plans to seize the Southeast Asian EV market share.
