The JD.com purchase page now lists terms including a 3,000-km monthly driving limit and invoice issuance restricted to Guangzhou and Shanghai within the full delivery process description.
The Aion UT Super, jointly launched by JD, GAC and CATL, began its first batch of deliveries yesterday, but the rollout immediately ran into a wave of cancellation requests.
Many buyers reported discrepancies between advertised vehicle configurations and actual cars delivered, undisclosed restrictions in the BaaS program, and invoice-issuance limitations affecting subsidy eligibility, putting the trio’s first cross-industry automotive project into a credibility crisis.
The first dispute centers on configuration differences versus promotional claims. Several consumers said JD’s promotional images showed the vehicle equipped with a sunroof and that customer service confirmed this, but the actual cars arrived without a sunroof and the option is unavailable.
Some offline stores even provided conflicting explanations, claiming “two versions with/without sunroof” or “only non-sunroof version.”
JD said outdated product information in certain channels caused the confusion, and as of publication, no purchase channels display imagery featuring a sunroof.
The second controversy involves restrictions in the BaaS plan. The officially promoted RMB 399 ($55.86) per month rental service did not explicitly state a 3,000-km monthly limit, with excess mileage charged at RMB 0.2 ($0.028) per kilometer. High-frequency commuters called the model “a trap.”
JD said the 3,000-km benchmark is based on average private-vehicle usage and covers 90% of households, serving to distinguish private from commercial use and prevent ride-hailing deployment.
Industry analysts noted the policy may also relate to Aion’s previous operating presence in the ride-hailing market.
The third dispute concerns invoice-issuance restrictions. According to owners, invoices can only be issued in Shanghai and Guangzhou, preventing consumers in other regions from accessing higher local subsidies.
For example, Jiangsu offers a RMB 3,000 ($420) subsidy, higher than JD’s RMB 2,000 ($280) offer, prompting some customers to cancel their orders.
Notably, the refund process has proven difficult. The JD App previously marked orders as “non-refundable once locked,” and many users said they succeeded in obtaining refunds only after several days of negotiation.
Legal experts said that if operators fail to clearly disclose key information prominently, such “no-refund” clauses may infringe consumer rights, and inconsistencies between promotional materials and actual vehicles could constitute misleading advertising.
The JD.com purchase link now lists the 3,000-km monthly limit and the invoice-issuance restriction to Guangzhou and Shanghai as part of the full delivery process instructions.
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