IM LS6 brings line-control chassis to 200,000 yuan segment; new national standard effective July 2026

"Wire-controlled chassis is the best physical foundation and technological base for L3 and L4 autonomous driving," said Xiang Jiao, CTO of IM Motors, during a media briefing at the launch of the new-generation IM LS6. He noted that this year marks the beginning of mass adoption of wire-controlled chassis. The IM LS6 has brought this technology down to the 200,000 yuan price segment.

Regulatory Milestone

China's national standard Basic Requirements for Automotive Steering Systems (GB 17675—2025), which took effect on July 1, 2026, has removed the mandatory requirement for "mechanical connection retention." This clears the regulatory path for mass production of wire-controlled steering systems without mechanical backups. The standard was drafted with participation from major automakers including NIO, Li Auto, XPeng, and BYD.

Market Adoption

• The IM LS6, launched on September 23, comes standard with a full wire-controlled chassis, with an equity price starting at 197,900 yuan.
• The Li Auto i9 features standard wire-controlled steering and rear-wheel steering.
• The XPeng GX Ultra flagship edition is equipped with a native wire-controlled chassis as standard.
• The NIO ET9 is the first mass-produced and delivered vehicle in China with a full wire-controlled steering system.

Cost Challenges

Cost remains the primary barrier to widespread adoption of wire-controlled chassis. Li Auto CEO Li Xiang stated in mid-September that wire-controlled steering and rear-wheel steering are rare in 400,000 yuan-level pure electric SUVs due to high costs.

Xiang Jiao acknowledged that while the wire-controlled chassis offers an excellent driving experience, it is expensive. IM Motors was able to bring it to the 200,000 yuan level by leveraging SAIC's in-house R&D, making all components and development "white-box," and utilizing SAIC's supply chain to control costs.

Future Outlook

According to the Technical Roadmap for Electric Vehicle Intelligent Chassis published by the China Society of Automotive Engineers:

• The target cost for wire-controlled steering in 2025 is below 4,000 yuan, meeting L3+ autonomous driving requirements.
• By 2030, costs are expected to drop to 2,500–3,000 yuan, with penetration reaching 30%, supporting L4+ autonomous driving deployment.

Guotai Haitong Securities has listed intelligent chassis as one of its eight major outlooks, estimating that China's intelligent chassis market will reach 107.86 billion yuan by 2030, with wire-controlled steering accounting for 22.91 billion yuan. Huajin Securities stated in March that "wire-controlled chassis has entered a critical phase of industrialization." Multiple brokerages believe the industry window is opening.

Safety Concerns Addressed

In response to safety concerns after the removal of mechanical connections, Pei Yichen, Technical Director of IM Motors' Vehicle Motion Control Department, stated that with reasonable and precise safety redundancy design, wire-controlled steering systems can be safer and more reliable than mechanical steering systems. He noted that wire-controlled systems were first applied in commercial aircraft 40 years ago, leading to a significant reduction in accident rates.