FAW Expands Its Micro-EV Line With a More Practical Pony

FAW Bestune has launched a five-door version of its tiny Pony electric hatchback in China, turning the original three-door city car into a more practical four-seat micro-EV. Prices start at 44,900 yuan, or about US$6,735, while a limited launch discount brings the entry version down to 39,900 yuan.

The five-door Pony, also known in some markets as the Bestune Xiaoma, was introduced on 28 October 2026. It keeps the original model’s cheerful, boxy styling but gains two additional doors, a much longer wheelbase and substantially more luggage space.

The original three-door Pony remains on sale alongside the new version. It is only 3,000 mm long and is priced from 34,900 to 42,900 yuan, but its limited rear access and small boot have constrained its appeal.

The five-door car measures 3,350 mm long, 1,540 mm wide and 1,600 mm high, with a 2,215 mm wheelbase. Compared with the three-door Pony, it is 350 mm longer, 30 mm wider and 30 mm lower, while its wheelbase has grown by 262 mm.

That extra wheelbase is the most important change. It gives rear passengers more legroom and makes entry and exit far easier, while the addition of rear doors removes the need to fold or move a front seat to reach the second row.

The car has four seats rather than five. It uses a conventional hatchback layout with two front doors, two rear doors and a tailgate, making it one of the few true five-door vehicles in China’s micro-EV segment.

Boot capacity rises from 81 litres in the three-door Pony to 265 litres in the five-door version. With the rear seats folded, cargo space expands to 1,052 litres, a major improvement for a car of this size.

The five-door Pony retains the original’s simple, rounded design language. It has small “cute” headlamps and tail-lights, a small front air intake, semi-hidden door handles and 13-inch wheel covers.

Ground clearance is 130 mm, and buyers can choose from five exterior colours: orange, blue, green, brown and white. The car’s compact dimensions and tall body make it clearly aimed at dense urban environments rather than long-distance travel.

Inside, the Pony has a four-seat cabin with a driver-focused dashboard. It includes a 7-inch LCD instrument display behind a two-spoke steering wheel, while an optional 10.1-inch central touchscreen sits above rotary controls on the centre console.

The longer wheelbase improves rear-seat comfort, but the Pony remains a microcar rather than a family hatchback. Its 3.35-metre length places it well below conventional compact hatchbacks, although it is a full road car rather than a low-speed neighbourhood vehicle.

Power comes from a rear-mounted permanent-magnet synchronous electric motor producing 30 kW, or about 40 hp, and 92 Nm of torque. The rear wheels are driven, and the top speed is limited to 103 km/h.

Two lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, battery options are available. The smaller 17 kWh pack delivers 222 km of CLTC range, while the larger 27.2 kWh pack extends that figure to 328 km.

Under the more conservative WLTP cycle, the same versions are rated at 182 km and 269 km respectively. All four variants support fast charging, with a claimed 30–80 percent charging time of about 30 minutes.

Prices range from 44,900 to 54,900 yuan, or roughly US$6,735 to US$8,230. The launch promotion reduces every version by 5,000 yuan, making the entry car available from 39,900 yuan, or about US$5,990.

The five-door Pony is therefore positioned as an affordable urban EV with practicality that the original model lacked. It offers more space, easier access and a much larger boot, while retaining the low price and simple mechanical layout that made the three-door Pony popular.

The model enters a crowded Chinese micro-EV market, where stretched versions of tiny electric cars are becoming increasingly common. Its competitors include the four-door Wuling Hongguang Mini EV, Geely EX2 and Changan Lumin Plus, all of which aim to offer more usability without moving too far beyond the microcar format.

For FAW Bestune, the five-door Pony is a logical response to changing buyer expectations. The original three-door version recorded 47,929 deliveries in China between January and September 2026, but that was 37.5 percent lower than a year earlier, suggesting that the brand needed a more versatile version to sustain demand.