Li Auto controversies

Li Auto provides free battery replacements below warranty threshold, questioned as covert recall

Corrective action

Media reports and owner accounts state that Li Auto provided free battery pack replacements to Li L6 (2024) owners whose battery health did not meet the official warranty replacement threshold. Under Li Auto's warranty terms, a free replacement requires battery health below 75% within the 8-year/160,000-km warranty or a battery quality problem. Examples include a Suzhou owner with an 86% reading who was notified of a free replacement without being told the reason or shown a test report, and a Changzhou owner whose work order shows a 60,880-yuan battery pack replacement fully covered by warranty in July 2026. Affected vehicles mostly pair the 2024 L6 with Sunwoda-supplied lithium iron phosphate batteries. Li Auto customer service said the only published standard is battery health below 75% within the warranty period, with other cases handled as battery quality issues at store discretion, and the company had not answered the report's questions by press time. Lawyers quoted said such warranty-based replacements could constitute substituting commercial warranty for the statutory recall required by China's Defective Vehicle Product Recall Regulations if the same batch of batteries has a common defect.

Media reports and owner accounts show that Li Auto has been providing free battery pack replacements to Li L6 (2024) owners whose battery health does not meet the official warranty replacement threshold — under Li Auto's warranty terms a free replacement requires battery health below 75% within the 8-year/160,000-km warranty or a battery quality problem. Examples include a Suzhou owner with a reading of 86% who was notified of a free replacement without being told the reason or shown a test report, and a Changzhou owner whose work order shows a 60,880-yuan battery pack replacement fully covered by warranty in July 2026. The affected vehicles mostly pair the 2024 L6 with Sunwoda-supplied lithium iron phosphate batteries. Li Auto customer service said the only published standard is battery health degrading below 75% within the warranty period, with other cases handled as battery quality issues at store discretion, and the company had not answered the report's questions by press time. Lawyers quoted in the report said that if the same batch of batteries has a common defect, such warranty-based replacements could constitute substituting commercial warranty for the statutory recall required by China's Defective Vehicle Product Recall Regulations.

Customer reaction to Li One discontinuation

The decision to stop Li One production shortly after the introduction of the L-series generated negative reactions among some recent Li One buyers, who objected to the rapid transition to newer models.

Alleged mercury found in Li One interior

A video circulated on Weibo in July 2021 showing alleged mercury beads in the seat of a Li One. Li Auto began an investigation and, according to the cited reference, confirmed the authenticity of the reported material.

Li Auto software terms update raises user-rights concerns

Issue disclosure

In September 2021, reports stated that some Li Auto users received an update to the smart software system agreement. The updated terms reportedly covered the collection of some personal privacy data, disclaimers regarding free services, and permissions for information push. According to the reports, users who did not agree to the updated agreement could not continue using their vehicles. The reports framed the update as raising concerns about user rights, centering on the combination of personal data collection, service disclaimers, and push permissions in the agreement, together with the reported consequence that disagreement would prevent continued use of the car.

A report said some Li Auto users received an update to the smart software system agreement that included terms on collecting some personal privacy data, disclaiming free services, and information-push permissions; users who did not agree could not continue using their cars.

Li Auto faces protests from existing owners over new Li ONE

Public backlash

Li Auto faced widespread protests from existing owners following the release of the new Li ONE, according to the article.

Ideal Auto customers allege concealment of new-model information

Issue disclosure

A report says Ideal Auto was alleged to have concealed information about a new model and induced customers to buy older models to clear inventory; the allegations were described as continuing to develop.

Li Auto owners launch consumer-rights campaign over new model launch

Public backlash

Owners of 2020 Li Auto ONE vehicles joined a consumer-rights campaign, with some alleging that Li Auto sales staff had withheld information about the new model and that its launch after their purchases sharply reduced their vehicles’ value.

Li Auto owners protest the 2021 Li ONE launch

Public backlash

Owners of older Li ONE vehicles protested after alleging that Li Auto sales staff had concealed the arrival of the 2021 model before they purchased their cars. The allegations were made by owners and were not established as a finding in the source.

Li Auto faces owner backlash over new-model sales disclosures

Public backlash

Li Auto faced public criticism from owners who said sales staff had told them before the new Li ONE was launched that no new model would arrive during the year or gave them other information that influenced their purchase of the previous model. The article reported that Li Auto and founder Li Xiang had not responded by publication.

Li One braking and smoke-odor reports

Media reports in spring 2020 described a Li One owner’s concerns about braking-system operation and a separate report of smoke odor in the passenger compartment. Li Auto denied that the alleged defect risk applied to other versions of the SUV.

Li ONE front suspension ball joint detachment issue changed from hardware upgrade to recall

In 2020, the issue of the front suspension lower control arm ball joint detaching from the Li ONE after collisions sparked complaints from vehicle owners. The company acknowledged that the occurrence rate was higher than for similar models, corrected its earlier description of a hardware upgrade to a recall, replaced the relevant parts free of charge for 10,469 vehicles, and apologized to users.

Li Auto responds to a vehicle fire incident

Safety incident

Li Auto responded to a vehicle incident in which visible flames and smoke appeared. The company said its on-site inspection found no problem with the vehicle's battery system, that the vehicle had been moved to a safe area for testing, and that it would publish later investigation results. Online commenters questioned the company's description of the incident as smoke rather than fire.

Following a vehicle incident involving visible flames and smoke, Li Auto said its on-site inspection found no problem with the vehicle's battery system, moved the vehicle to a safe area for testing, and said it would publish later investigation results. Online commenters questioned the company's description of the incident as smoke rather than fire.

Li ONE vehicle fire in Guangdong

Safety incident

In August 2020, a Li ONE caught fire on a highway in Zhaoqing, Guangdong. Li Auto stated that its preliminary assessment was that a suspected metal fragment punctured a high-pressure fuel line. The company said the cause awaited further on-site examination and analysis. The incident drew attention to the vehicle's fuel system and to the company's handling of the matter.

Li Auto responds to Li ONE suspension incident

Company response

In August 2020, Li Auto issued a response regarding an incident involving the suspension of its Li ONE model. According to the company's statement, the vehicle's suspension was damaged after the car collided with a road barrier. Li Auto characterized the damage as the result of the collision and stated that the Li ONE's suspension system was safe and reliable. The response addressed public attention on the incident by describing the cause of the suspension damage and affirming the safety of the model's suspension system.

Li Auto stated that a Li ONE's suspension was damaged after a collision with a road barrier and that the vehicle's suspension system was safe and reliable.

Li Auto announces recall of 10,469 Li ONE vehicles

Recall announced

In a controversy note, Li Auto apologized for its earlier "free upgrade" approach and announced an active recall of 10,469 Li ONE vehicles. The company stated that replacement of the front suspension lower control arms was scheduled to begin on November 7. The announcement followed criticism of the earlier approach, which the company addressed with an apology alongside the recall.

On November 6, Li Auto apologized for its earlier “free upgrade” approach and announced an active recall of 10,469 Li ONE vehicles, with replacement of the front suspension lower control arms scheduled to begin November 7.

Li Auto announces a suspension hardware upgrade for Li ONE

Corrective action

Li Auto announced a free upgrade of the front-suspension lower control-arm ball pins for Li ONE vehicles produced on or before June 1, 2020. According to the announcement, the measure was intended to reduce the probability of the ball joint separating after a collision. The upgrade was planned to be completed within the following three months.

Li Auto responds to customer reports of vehicle faults

Issue disclosure

After deliveries of the Li Auto ONE began in December, some owners reported vehicle faults, including an emissions-system warning and an accelerator-pedal failure while driving. Li Auto said the warning was caused by the air-conditioning system’s three-way valve diagnostic mechanism and could be addressed with an OTA update; for the accelerator issue, it said the vehicle had not been taken out of logistics mode before delivery and promised stricter delivery checks and a software update. The article also reports a separate owner account of a power-battery fault that left a vehicle stranded on an elevated road.

Li Auto responds to a vehicle delivery process error

Company response

Li Auto apologized after a customer reported that a vehicle remained in logistics mode after delivery, limiting acceleration after adaptive cruise control was disengaged. The company said the issue was a missed check in its delivery process, and announced stricter delivery inspections and a planned software update to display logistics-mode status on the vehicle screen.

Li Auto responds to CITIC Bank loan disruption

Company response

After CITIC Bank stopped disbursing loans for Li Auto ONE buyers and some customers encountered difficulty completing purchases, Li Auto apologized and announced an emergency solution for affected customers, including alternative financing channels and compensation for eligible applicants.