IM 5 Luxury Review

by Ben Chia, 31 March 2026

The IM 5 marks China’s most credible threat to the Tesla Model 3 yet, with its head-turning style and impressive tech.

There are now a large number of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) populating Singapore’s new car market, in all shapes and sizes. But few have arguably posed a serious threat to the OG of EV brands, Tesla. Until now that is.

IM Motors made its fairly high-profile debut here at the tail end of 2025, and judging from its product offerings, it looks like it intends to tackle Tesla head on. The IM 5 in particular has its sights aimed at the Tesla Model 3, and on this form, the American car brand would certainly have plenty to worry about indeed.

Larger Than Life

Like many of the electric sedans in the market, the IM 5 features a sleek, teardrop-like shape that is maximised for aerodynamic efficiency.

However, its taut lines do give it a somewhat muscular stance that emphasises the car’s sporting pretensions.

From some angles, it does look vaguely like a Porsche Taycan, which is no bad thing in my opinion. At the very least, it does stand out from its now-ubiquitous Tesla Model 3 or BYD Seal rivals, and the design certainly does attract a fair bit of attention from curious passers-by, eager to find out more about this fledgling brand.

The svelte looks also does well to mask the IM 5’s dimensions, because the car is actually pretty large. It measures in at 4,931mm long and 1,960mm wide, which can seem a bit menacing within Singapore’s tight confines. However, as evidenced later in its drive, the IM 5 does not feel too intimidating despite its size.

Screens Everywhere

Even accounting for the minimalism trend that most Chinese EVs tend to go for, the interior of the IM 5 pops out for its distinctive design.

The first thing you notice is the very long 26.3-inch screen that stretches across the dashboard, the right half of which incorporates the driver instrument display.

And then you look downwards and see another screen, this time a 10.5-inch item on the centre console, which is where most of the controls for the car are located.

The left section of the large main screen mostly serves as a display, where your infotainment details and the car’s external camera images come up, although there is also touchscreen functionality too for some of the in-built car apps.

To be frank, I’m not a particular fan of this layout. Having the main controls located lower down can be quite distracting, as you’ll have to take your eyes off the road to, say, adjust the air con.

While there are some handy shortcuts incorporated into the user interface to alleviate the problem somewhat, it’s still not really an ideal setup in my opinion.

Tech And Space

That said, the screens do hide some pretty clever tech within. The automated parking assistance feature, for one, is pretty clever, and does most of the manoeuvring for you with minimal input, requiring you simply to press a button and letting the car do the rest.

There is also the IM’s party trick where it can ‘crab-walk’, or essentially move diagonally sideways. It’s supposedly handy for tackling tight spots, but in truth it’s more of a weird novelty than anything.

In terms of actual practical elements, the IM 5’s elongated form, which has resulted in a rather substantial 2,950mm wheelbase, means that there’s plenty of room for rear passengers to stretch out. The plush and cosseting seats feel very inviting, and there’s surprisingly adequate headroom despite the sloping roofline.

Storage space is decent too, if not exactly class-leading, with the IM 5 offering a reasonable 457 litres worth of boot space, expandable to 1,290 litres with the rear seats folded down. There’s also an 18-litre frunk up front, ideal for small items, though the cover is a bit flimsy.

Steers Like A Small Car

Where the IM 5 impresses the most though, is the way it drives. The car comes with rear-wheel-steering as standard, even on this entry-level Cat A Luxury variant.

It’s the reason why the car can perform its crab-walking trick, but it also results in a car that feels smaller than its size when cornering. The IM 5 feels extremely manoeuvrable in tight carparks, and parking feels like a less stressful affair when compared to other cars with similar dimensions.

You can also feel it in action when changing lanes on the expressway, as the car glides across with an unnaturally smooth motion that feels a bit surreal.

It definitely gives the IM 5 some truly lovely handling chops, and it’s arguably one of the most entertaining EVs to drive this side of a Tesla. The car flows through the bends effortlessly, making a mockery of its size and weight as it slinks its way around like liquid flowing downhill.

When you’re ready to settle down, the car wafts along with a reasonably comfortable ride that’s well-controlled, while still imbuing some firmness into the mix. The base model Luxury doesn’t come with the air suspension of the top-spec Performance variant, which works wonders for ride quality, but it’s still good enough to cope with most road surfaces without fuss.

As with almost all Cat A EVs, the IM 5 Luxury’s performance won’t exactly set your loins on fire. The handy 450Nm of torque means that it offers fairly brisk initial pickup, but push the pedal down and the limitations of the power restrictions become clear. It’s not the fault of the car really, but just don’t expect to set any sort of speed records with this model.

Still, that’s not the point of this car anyway. You opt for a Cat A EV mainly for cost and efficiency reasons, and on that front the IM 5 mostly delivers. A claimed range of 440km on a full charge is just about on par for this sort of car, and the IM 5’s slippery shape means that you can achieve fairly decent economy if you drive it in a measured way.

A Proper Tesla Rival

The most intriguing thing about IM’s strategy is that it aims to match Tesla punch-for-punch with its product line-up. Like its rival, IM offers two models, the IM 5 sedan and IM 6 SUV, and each comes with a Cat A variant, a mid-spec model, and a high-powered Performance version.

Of course, it’s not such a straightforward like-for-like comparison, and there are other nuances to consider. Aside from the Cat A models, the IM cars are significantly more powerful than their Tesla equivalents. They also come with bigger batteries (hence more range), and are priced a fair bit higher too.

At $222,999 with COE (at time of writing), the IM 5 Luxury is not the cheapest Cat A electric sedan around. However, if you’re looking for something in this segment that delivers a premium experience, along with head-turning looks and impressive tech, then the IM 5 is a contender to be taken very seriously indeed.

Technical Specifications

IM 5 Luxury

Powertrain: Single Electric Motor, Rear Wheel Drive 
Power: 109 kW (146bhp) 
Torque: 450 Nm 
Gearbox: Single-Speed (A) 
0-100km/h: 10.1 Seconds 
Top Speed: 180 km/h 
Battery Capacity: 75 kWh 
Drive Range: 440 km (claimed) 
Energy Consumption: 5.2km/kWh (claimed) 
Price: S$222,999 with COE (accurate at the time of this article)