SAIC Motor's Huawei-linked SAIC brand reveals Z9 electric SUV with strong Cayenne echoes

A new flagship SUV revealed in a regulatory filing

SAIC, the newest brand from MG and LDV parent SAIC Motor, has revealed a new large electric SUV that bears more than a passing resemblance to the Porsche Cayenne, according to reporting by CarExpert's William Stopford. The vehicle, named the Z9, has surfaced in a filing with China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). ¹

CarExpert reports the Z9 will be the third model line from the SAIC brand, following shortly after the Z7 sedan and wagon. The Z7 models already drew heavy comparisons with the Porsche Taycan from several international outlets, with Germany's Merkur describing the resemblance of the Z7T wagon to the Taycan Sport Turismo from the rear as striking, and French title L'Automobile calling the Z7T an outright copy of the Taycan Sport Turismo, down to the wheel design. ¹⁶⁷

Specifications and positioning

Details published by CarExpert from the MIIT filing show the Z9 will be offered with both single-motor rear-wheel drive and dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrains. Rear-wheel drive variants produce 280kW, while all-wheel drive variants add a 175kW front electric motor. All variants use ternary lithium-ion batteries supplied by CATL, although battery capacities have yet to be disclosed. ¹

The Z9 measures 5139mm long, 2005mm wide and 1776mm tall on a 3086mm wheelbase, with kerb weight between 2595kg and 2794kg, per the CarExpert report. That makes it 209mm longer than a Porsche Cayenne on a 191mm longer wheelbase, and 154mm longer than a Cayenne Electric on a 63mm longer wheelbase. ¹

Unlike the Porsche Cayenne and Cayenne Electric, the SAIC Z9 will be offered with a third row of seating for a total of six seats, according to CarExpert. The publication also notes design echoes of the Cayenne, from slim, wide headlights and a full-width rear light bar to the sculpted bonnet and prominent shoulders, though it characterises the Z9 as an inspired design rather than a blatant copycat like the SR9 from the ailing automaker Zotye. ¹

The SAIC brand and its Huawei alliance context

CarExpert reports the SAIC brand, also known as Shangjie, was introduced in 2025 as SAIC Motor's marque within the Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA), a collaboration between various automakers and tech giant Huawei. Other HIMA marques include Chery's Luxeed and JAC's Maextro, with Seres' AITO the brand confirmed so far with plans for export markets. German outlet Merkur, writing on the Z7, describes the division of roles in the alliance, with SAIC handling production and Huawei supplying infotainment, driver assistance systems and supply chain management. ¹⁶

The fledgling SAIC brand is positioned as a more premium marque within the SAIC Motor stable, specialising in electric and extended-range electric vehicles, much like IM Motors, according to CarExpert. Two IM models, the IM5 and IM6, are exported widely to markets including Australia, but vehicles from the SAIC brand itself have so far been exclusive to China. ¹

The Taycan-inspired lookalike trend extends beyond SAIC. Carscoops reported in March 2026 on the Aistaland GT7, a Huawei and GAC-backed electric estate joining the HIMA alliance that mirrors the Taycan Sport Turismo and rides on an 800-volt architecture with up to three electric motors, measuring 5050mm long on a 3000mm wheelbase. Carscoops noted at the time that Chinese brands had developed a habit of using the number '7' for their Taycan-style models. ⁵

The Porsche benchmark and a contracting Chinese market

The models drawing on Porsche's design language arrive against a backdrop of declining Porsche sales in China. CarExpert reports that Porsche's Chinese sales are down 33 per cent to 21,493 units to the end of September, after 41,938 vehicles were sold there last year, marking a fourth consecutive year of decline. Porsche sold 95,671 vehicles in China in 2021. Carscoops separately reported sales tumbling 26 per cent from 56,887 units to 41,938 in 2025, a drop it said forced significant dealership cuts. ¹⁵

L'Automobile adds a Taycan-specific datapoint: 16,339 examples of the electric sedan were delivered worldwide in 2025, a fall of 22 per cent year on year. The French publication also notes Porsche's China sales fell 26 per cent in 2025 amid intense competition from local manufacturers, particularly in electric vehicles. ⁷

Pricing underlines the gap. Carscoops reported the Taycan starts at 918,000 yuan (about $126,000) for the sedan and 1,008,000 yuan (about $138,000) for the Sport Turismo in China, and cited an expectation that the Z7 would begin around the same point as the Xiaomi SU7, which starts at 229,900 yuan. Merkur, citing CarNewsChina, reported the Z7 is expected to cost between 250,000 and 350,000 yuan, roughly 32,000 to 45,000 euros, while the cheapest Taycan in Germany starts above 100,000 euros. These figures are pre-launch indications rather than confirmed list prices, and relate to the Z7, not the newly revealed Z9, for which pricing has not been reported. ⁵⁶

Porsche itself continues to invest in the Chinese market. Its own newsroom reports that at Auto China 2026 in April it staged the world premiere of the Cayenne Turbo Coupé Electric, a flagship delivering up to 850kW (1156 PS) of overboost power with a drag coefficient of 0.23, alongside the China debut of the Cayenne Turbo Electric SUV and China-exclusive models including a 911 GT3 Sonderwunsch and a Panamera Pure Edition. ²³⁴

What remains unknown

Battery capacities for the Z9 have yet to be disclosed, and no pricing, launch timing or range figures have been reported for the new SUV in the CarExpert coverage of the MIIT filing. There has been no announcement of SAIC brand vehicles leaving China; CarExpert notes that all current HIMA marques except Seres' AITO remain confined to the Chinese market. ¹