(Yicai) Nov. 6 -- Vehicle weight issues directly affect Nio's technological approach, because even a 1.2-time increase to the standard will cause more than double the damage to road pavements, according to the chief executive officer of electric vehicle startup Nio.

Based on the "fourth power law" in road engineering, the structural damage vehicles cause to roads is proportional to the fourth power of axle load, with 1.2 to the fourth being about 2.07, Li Bin, who is also founder and chairman of Nio, said at an auto forum during the World Internet Conference yesterday.

In addition, Li and Li Shufu, chairman of Geely Holding Group, held their first public dialogue at the forum after teaming up on battery charging and swapping on Sept. 28. Their conversation focused on the lifespan of power batteries and the route of energy replenishment, with Li Bin raising the issue of vehicle weight.

Nio's battery packs usually weigh 400 to 500 kilograms, Li Bin said, noting that the lighter weight means the company must accept constraints such as smaller battery pack capacity and shorter range and continue to seek solutions under these conditions.

On July 6 last year, Li said during a livestream that the auto industry has improved EVs' range by expanding battery capacity, but "heavier cars cause greater damage to roads, so many countries base taxes on vehicle weight," with the topic briefly trending on social media.

"If more than 300 million cars in China become heavy-duty vehicles, the roads will be crushed," Li told Yicai in May this year, calling for national restrictions on vehicle weight. "Without national guidance, the industry will engage in disorderly competition."

The average curb weight of new passenger vehicles in China was 1,704 kilograms in 2024, up from 1,312 kg in 2012, according to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The increase in new energy passenger vehicles is even more pronounced, with the figure reaching 1,939 kg in the first four months of this year, industry statistics showed.

Regulators are also following up with relevant measures, linking EVs' energy consumption limits to their curb weight starting Jan. 1 this year, and imposing stricter limits for vehicles weighing 2,710 kg or above. From the same day, buyers of new energy vehicles must pay half of the standard auto purchase tax, instead of receiving a full exemption.

Competent authorities have begun discussing a tax system reform based on vehicle weight, Yicai learned.

Editor: Martin Kadiev