Chinese smart electric vehicle company Avatr has issued a statement regarding the 15-car crash that occurred in Nanning, Guangxi earlier this year, clarifying that the incident was unrelated to the vehicle’s driver assistance system. The company also stated it will take legal action against rumors and defamation.
On Saturday (January 17), Avatr Technology posted an official clarification on its Weibo account, stating that an Avatr 07 was involved in a series of collisions with 15 other vehicles on January 6 in Nanning as a result of speeding. Local traffic police conducted an on-site investigation and provided an accident report, which clearly determined the driver was at fault.
Vehicle data analysis by the manufacturer showed that both before and during the crash, the driver assistance system was never activated. After the collision, safety features such as the airbags deployed normally.
The automaker further stated that following the incident, the driver confirmed that they had never been interviewed by the media. However, after the company first publicly clarified the situation on January 13, some media outlets continued to post completely false reports, such as "the driver claimed the driver assistance system malfunctioned," using malicious editing and dissemination, seriously damaging the company’s brand reputation.
Avatr Technology emphasized that following communication and clarification, leading media platforms have proactively removed such false content. The company will resolutely take all legal measures against continued and future malicious rumors and defamation, and reserves the right to pursue legal responsibility.
According to a previous report by Dahe Daily, on the evening of January 6, near Lengtang Village Station on Metro Line 4 of Nanning’s Wuxiang Avenue, an Avatr electric vehicle suddenly sped from behind at over 100 km/h, crashing into 15 vehicles in succession and causing a chain collision. The offending vehicle eventually toppled onto the road, and several injured persons were taken to hospital.