mPreview: NIO Firefly – Winging Its Way Into The Electric Supermini Segment

The namesake newcomer of NIO’s new sub-brand Firefly has taken off and will land in its first right-hand-drive market, Singapore, in 2026 January. 

What I am most unsure about NIO's new-age sub-brand and its eponymous model is: Do I spell it as "firefly" with a small f or "Firefly" with a big F?

One thing is for sure - the NIO firefly aka Firefly is a small car, in the classic five-door hatchback format which has been defined/refined by European superminis and Japanese minicars for the longest time.

Now the time has come for ambitious Chinese EV automakers to continue growing bigger by going smaller - with new electricars which are downsized in dimensions, equipment and pricing.

In the case of NIO firefly/Firefly (I'll decide on the spelling soon enough), it's a RMB 119k-125k Chinese hatchback that plays in China's RMB 100,000 BEV segment, where competition is cut-throat and consumers are spoilt for choice.

Firefly's rear and front fascia plates between the trio-light clusters can be changed to another design at the dealership.

Therefore, styling is crucial for any runabout to stand a fair chance of succeeding - or at least not failing to make an impression in the marketplace before the marketers and customers move on to the next "little" project for the road.

NIO's Firefly (big F henceforth) is a little vehicle. It is just over 4 metres long (4,003 mm) from front bumper to rear bumper, 1,781 mm wide from skinny side to side, and under 1.6 metres (1,557 mm) in height from tyre rubber to steel roof (with panoramic glass on the higher-spec Comfort variant).

The Firefly is slightly bigger than Honda e (whose side profile bears a resemblance to the Chinese newcomer with “dynamic hoop” C-pillars said to be inspired by the Porsche Targa) and slightly smaller than Volkswagen Golf. 

Firefly has comfortable front seats, logical controls and versatile storage points.

The Firefly has been styled to not just be easy on the eye, which it is, but also to look good, cool and cute simultaneously to everybody - from kids to adults and also the kidadults in between.

Automotive adulting would require the Firefly to be much more than a flyweight in crashworthiness. 

It has performed well in a reassuring variety of full-blown crash tests, including Euro NCAP, in which it scored 96 percent for Adult Occupant Protection - one of the highest ratings across all car categories tested since the start of 2024. The Firefly is also a top scorer in China’s national vehicle safety tests.  

So, this car is compact yet crashworthy. 

It is also worthy of a centrefold, thanks to distinctive styling outside and inside, which takes the supermini template and flies with it to a higher, fresher level.

Firefly backseat has room for two Asian adults and their secret stash, if any.

The triple-lens “trio” configuration of the headlights and tail-lights is the most striking aspect of the Firefly’s design. It is unintentionally similar to the camera array of certain smartphones, but more importantly, it is different from any other cluster of hatchback LED lights today and provides excellent illumination too. 

Driving home the distinctiveness of said lights are the welcome lighting and “Triple light symphony”, with the latter function offering a crowd-pleasing choice of four lightshows (“Heartbeat”, “Drift”, “Crush” and “Dawn”). 

Triple-lens "trio" headlights and tail-lights are the Firefly's exterior design signature.

The Firefly’s second most striking design aspect is the pill-shaped design motif that is everywhere, cohesively, on the exterior and interior. Spotting the Firefly “pill shapes” in a carpark is as fun as looking for fireflies in a park. 

The front and rear fascia plates (with the respective pair of innermost head/tail-lamps), the door handles, the charging-port flap, and even the housings for the side cameras behind the front fenders. Three of the six spokes on the standard wheel covers are pill-shaped, too. 

Inside the cabin, there are apparently 33 pill-shaped details. I stopped counting after the centre console, rear view mirror, sunvisor covers, electric seat adjusters… 

Intuitive 13.2-inch infotainment touchscreen with "Hey, Lumo" digital assistant, along with user-friendly driving aids and fun yet functional features.

Adjusting the Firefly seat was easy and the chair was comfy enough for my 1.73m body frame. 

Based on said body’s ample sitting experience accumulated in seven hatchbacks under my name since 1996, from Japanese pocket rockets to an archetypal German hot hatch, I would say that the Firefly driver’s seat provides decent support in a slightly soft way and the seat material (microfibre/polyurethane) has a pleasant texture but might dirty easily, while the ventilation function is still quite a novelty in this class of cars.

Novel too in the case of the Firefly is its functionality as an everyday five-door hatchback for everyone and his uncle/auntie. 

The 335 litres of boot space is average, but the 1,253 litres of cargo space with the 60/40 split-fold backseats folded away is above average, being a bit more than in the VW Golf. 

Way above average is the Firefly frunk, which has a compartmentalised capacity of 92 litres and can hold a 20-inch carry-on luggage, and comes with a drainage plug that allows the frunk to be washed clean (e.g. after transporting soiled items) or even used as a makeshift ice box for an outing.

There is also hidden storage space under the right-side backseat squab and the front passenger seat (if it’s the Select variant with manual adjustment), ready for random items or contraband. In addition, the cabin is cleverly equipped with front and rear magnetic mounting points for optional stowage accessories

Firefly's 92-litre frunk is practical and washable, with its lid held up by gas struts.

The Firefly would work well as a road-tripper, not only because of its interior flexibility, but also its Chinese “chill pill” driving experience.

About half of my 60 km Shenzhen road test of a Firefly was spent in bad traffic, complete with terrible driving and minimal to non-existent road courtesy.

Which was where/why I appreciated the car’s handy size (to tread through heavy highway traffic), well-sized mirrors (supplemented by clear views from the all-round cameras), tight turning circle of 9.4 metres (perfect for prompt U-turns in town), and semi-autonomous driving mode (to cruise below 80 km/h in relative peace). 

The Firefly cabin didn’t fully muffle the sound of big buses, bigger trucks and loud horns (used aggressively), but wind noise at speed wasn’t noticeable and road noise from the 215/50 R18 tyres wasn’t an issue.  

If the din outside the windows was getting to me, I could use the hi-fi system to drown it out. The Firefly is said, and heard, to be the only vehicle in its market segment to have 14 speakers and Dolby Atmos 7.1 certification as standard. 

The Firefly’s performance was pure electric supermini - immediate, adequate and straightforward. It accelerates from a standstill to 100 km/h in just over 8 seconds, reaches a top speed of 155 km/h and covers up to 330 kilometres (WLTP cycle) on a fully-charged 42 kWh battery. It will never be a speedy dragonfly, but the Firefly is quick enough for city driving. 

I don’t know how quickly NIO’s Firefly can wing its way into the hearts and minds of Singapore’s supermini enthusiasts who are smitten with MINI and company. But I do know that the Firefly is set to take off at the 2026 Singapore Motorshow in January with Wearnes Automotive and hopefully find its own way to glow/grow. 

Singapore-spec Fireflys will probably come "debadged",

Read More: mReview: ORA Good Cat Electric - The Cat's Pyjamas

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