NIO's first fifth-gen swap stations go live, 4,000 stations built, and all three brands, including Firefly, can now swap

NIO, the only automaker in China running a battery swap network at scale, switched on its first fifth-generation stations on August 7 across Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Suzhou, Hefei, Chengdu and Quanzhou. Its 4,000th station, also the first of the new generation, opened the same day at Qiaoxiang Gymnasium in Quanzhou, Fujian.

Unlike the previous four generations, the fifth-gen stations also support Firefly, NIO's entry-level brand. Every model across NIO, Onvo and Firefly is now on the same swap network.

NIO says swap times have improved again. A Firefly can finish a swap in about three minutes. The car parks itself in the bay, and the driver completes everything with one tap from inside the cabin, no need to step out.

That is where swapping beats charging. In rain, snow or freezing weather, drivers stay warm and dry instead of handling a charging cable, and the three-minute turnaround is a clear speed advantage.

Every swap triggers a full health scan of the battery pack at the station, so owners always receive a healthy battery. NIO says this effectively ends the battery degradation anxiety that comes with owning an EV.

The network keeps growing. NIO has built more than 4,000 swap stations covering 550 Chinese cities, including 1,049 along highways. On major highways, stations are spaced roughly 93 miles apart, leaving little room for range anxiety.

Swapping also changes how people buy cars. NIO separates the car from the battery, so buyers can purchase the vehicle and lease the pack instead, which pulls the entry price down significantly.

As of August 7, NIO had delivered more than 120 million swaps in total.