AION UT Review & Prices

The Aion UT is a Chinese electric hatchback that comes packed with standard kit, offers loads of interior space and is surprisingly peppy from behind the wheel, but it’s not as cheap as you might expect and the interior is a let down as a result.

Think of the UT as a foreign exchange student that’s picked up a passion for fashion during their time in the Schengen zone. It’s easy to see the car’s roots, but you can tell there’s an extra layer to it, moulded by European taste.

It has hatchbacks such as the Renault 5 E-Tech, Peugeot E-208 and Vauxhall Corsa Electric set firmly in its sights, though it’s similarly sized to the larger Renault 4 E-Tech, MG4 Urban and Volkswagen ID Polo.

Despite targeting these stylish alternatives, the UT isn’t exactly a looker. It’s not ugly, either, with rather attractive headlights and lots of smooth surfaces, but it’s a bit too generic and the wheels look a touch too small.

Aion UT: electric range, battery and charging data

Range: 268 miles
Efficiency: 3.7mi/kWh
Battery size: 60kWh
Max charge speed: 87kW
Charge time AC: 6h50mins
Charge time DC: 32mins, 10-80%
Charge port location: Right side, front
Power outputs: 204hp

It’s a similar story inside, as the cabin is relatively plain and simple, but with a few eye-grabbing details. The enormous 14.6-inch infotainment touchscreen, ‘floating’ centre console and the ‘ruched’ door cards grab your attention, but once you poke around you notice that almost everything is made from hard, scratchy plastics.

At least the displays feature crisp graphics and are easily legible. The customisable sidebar shortcut menu on the central screen is handy, too, but beyond that the menus are a bit of a faff to navigate. You can’t access the shortcut menu while using Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, either.

There’s plenty of space to get comfortable, though disappointingly the steering wheel only adjusts for height, which can hinder your efforts to find the perfect driving position. Legroom in the back is good but headroom is a little disappointing, especially in sunroof-equipped models. The 440-litre boot is generously sized, with a touch of underfloor storage and a low loading lip.

You only have one battery and motor combo to choose, a 204hp unit paired to a 60kWh battery for a claimed 268 miles of range to a charge. That’s more than a top-trim Renault 4 but less than a Kia EV2.

The UT is a mixed bag from behind the wheel. The suspension is fairly comfortable, the light and direct steering easy to twirl in town and the sharp brakes are easy to judge. Rear visibility is very poor, even if the huge windscreen makes for a great forward view.

Once you’re on the motorway you’ll notice plenty of wind and road noise, and the quick steering means the car feels unsettled, darting around a little too much. It’s far from a hot hatchback, but the UT is surprisingly powerful. The bouncy suspension and no real idea of tyre grip doesn’t inspire confidence, though.

Verdict

The Aion UT is a curious case, because it certainly has a lot going for it in the comfortable driving experience and generous standard kit. On the other hand, the cabin does feel quite cheap and you’ll pay more for a UT than some alternatives with posher badges, so it’s a tricky one to recommend.

Have a look at the latest Aion UT deals on Carwow, as well as Aion UT leasing offers and a range of used UTs available through our trusted dealer network. Carwow can even help you sell your current car when it’s time to make a change.

The Aion UT has a very simple range of trims. The entry-level car costs just under £29,000 and comes as standard with heated seats, leatherette upholstery, reclining seats in the back, a slew of safety assistance kit and diamond cut alloy wheels.

It isn’t cheap, though, costing the same as a Kia EV2 in GT-Line spec and more than any Renault 5 permutation.

The UT Premium Pack adds a panoramic roof, ventilated seats, an electric boot and electric mirrors for £1,200 - as well as specific optional paint and interior finishes.

The UT is comfortable on most roads and easy to drive, but it’s not very well refined

In town

The UT is at home in town thanks to its light, darty steering, powerful yet easy-to-judge brakes and peppy electric motor. Forward and side visibility is excellent, and it’s pretty easy to park and manoeuvre thanks to its tight turning circle. Watch the throttle though, as it’s all too easy to spin a wheel up away from a junction.

It deals with most roads fairly well, too, absorbing bumps and potholes with ease. It’s worth mentioning that while it doesn’t bounce around too much, you can really hear bad roads thud through the cabin - even if you can’t feel them.

On the motorway

Things deteriorate as you pick up speed - which you’ll do quickly thanks to the UT’s surprisingly powerful motor. Once you’re at the national speed limit things get a bit annoying, with lots of wind and road noise and a witless active cruise control system that gets easily confused, braking to avoid cars that aren’t there.

Over-the-shoulder visibility is poor, too, which doesn’t help when changing lanes. The steering is a bit too sensitive, which means the UT feels as though it’s always drifting from side to side.

On a twisty road

Point the Aion down your favourite country lane and you’re in for a treat, albeit with a few downsides, too. Strong acceleration and powerful brakes mean the UT is surprisingly fun between corners, while in sports mode the heavier steering makes it easier to pitch in to bends with confidence.

That being said, you never really have an idea of how much grip the tyres have, and the UT bounces around a lot over bumpier, rougher sections of road. This puts a stop to the fun pretty quickly, as does the tramlining through ruts and grooves.

There are plenty of storage spaces in the UT, but it isn’t as spacious as its size suggests

It’s pretty big for a ‘small’ hatchback, and you can feel that from the UT’s front seats. There’s loads of headroom (emphasised by the big windows) and the seats are highly adjustable, but weirdly the steering wheel only adjusts up and down, not in and out.

There are plenty of storage solutions in the Aion UT, such as an open tray between the seats, decent door bins, a big glovebox and a pair of cupholders. The central dashboard box is not only ugly, it’s awkward to open and the phone charging pad has no grip whatsoever, so your phone goes flying when you get moving. At least there’s an ISOFIX mounting point in the passenger seat and a handy bag hook.

Space in the back seats

In the back there’s plenty of legroom but not that much foot space under the front seats, and headroom is verging on uncomfortably tight, especially on sunroof-equipped cars which have a hump in the headliner. At least the seats recline, which adds some long-distance comfort.

You’ll find storage between the front seats, long but thin door bins, seat-back pouches, a flip-down armrest with a pair of cupholders and a single, lonely USB-A charging port for your rear passengers to fight over. There is a pair of ISOFIX points in the outermost seats.

Boot space

At 440 litres the Aion UT certainly offers more boot space than most cars of this size, even if it can’t hold a candle to the MG4 Urban. A low-opening tailgate makes it easy to load in heavy items, the boot floor can be dropped down and there’s a bit of underfloor storage for the charging cables, but there aren’t any hooks or clever spaces for smaller items. Shame.

Quick infotainment and a pleasant design, but the UT lags behind most alternatives for material quality

Aion may be trying to stand out from the other Chinese brands coming to the UK, but the UT’s interior is much the same as you’ll find in its home-country compatriots. That means an open-plan design with a massive central touchscreen and a smaller display behind the steering wheel.

There’s a near-total lack of physical buttons which means you have to poke and prod your way through the car’s central screen to change the settings. At least there’s a shortcut menu close to the steering wheel, and it’s customisable so you can keep your most important settings close to hand.

This disappears when mirroring your phone, though, which is frustrating as you have to exit Google Maps or Waze to adjust the car’s functions. The climate control bar along the bottom of the screen is easier to use.

It’s a shame the interior plastics are so hard and brittle, because they look pretty smart - especially in two-tone cream and brown. The Mercedes-esque air vents are a highlight and feel premium to adjust, but the fussy driver display menus and controls are a pain to use.

Aion claims a 268-mile range with the UT’s sole, 60kWh battery offering. On our test route around Oxfordshire on mainly fast-paced road conditions we achieved 4.4mi/kWh - nearly matching Aion’s total claimed range in the process. Don’t be surprised to see more than the official figure with some sensible city driving.

An 87kW max charge speed means a 10-80% top up takes 80 minutes on a DC fast charger, while a 0-100% home charge from an 11kW power source will take six hours and 50 minutes. That’s a bit slower than a Renault 4 or Kia EV2, but not by that much.

The UT comfortably comes in under the luxury car tax threshold regardless of options, as well as sitting in the lowest band of road tax and Benefit-in-Kind duty for company car drivers.

Aion UT Euro NCAP score (2026): 5/5

Safe Driving: 66%
Crash Avoidance: 74%
Crash Protection: 91%
Post Crash Safety: 88%

The Aion UT was tested by safety experts Euro NCAP in 2026 under the latest criteria, earning it a solid five star result. It comes as standard with a comprehensive suite of driver assistance and crash avoidance software including automatic emergency braking, driver distraction monitoring and speed limit recognition.

It also features three ISOFIX child seat anchor points across the front and rear seats, handy for a sole parent travelling with multiple children.

Aion is too new to have featured in the 2026 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, but the brand offers a remarkable service and warranty package with every new car it sells. Eight years of free servicing, free MOTs, roadside assistance and warranty - with 100,000 miles of coverage on mechanical components and 125,000 miles of battery cover.

That’s deeply impressive, but only time will tell how the Aion models fare with sustained use.