It was all just a Dreame…

The Chinese company best known for vacuum cleaners, which made bold claims about launching a new automotive brand in markets including Australia, has reportedly shuttered its automotive division.

Today, Dreame released a statement confirming it will focus on four core businesses going forward: smart home products (eg: vacuum cleaners), outdoor products (eg: lawnmowers), smart mobility (eg: electric two-wheelers), and robots.

While it didn’t specifically say it would drop its plans to manufacture cars, China Economic Net reports Dreame will do just that – just a year after announcing its manufacturing plans.

Dreame had revealed a range of upcoming models earlier this year, culminating in an experimental ‘rocket car’ with a 0.9-second claimed 0-100km/h time called the Nebula Next 01 Jet Edition, which it revealed in San Francisco in April.

China Economic Net reports Dreame's automotive arm had nearly 1000 employees at its peak but now has only a few dozen, with many people hired not to work on vehicle development but rather to raise funds for the new business unit.

In a separate expose, reporters from CBN spoke with an employee – who wished to remain anonymous – who said layoffs have occurred in waves, leaving offices largely vacant and money allegedly still owed to suppliers.

Dreame had confirmed to CarExpert in March that it would launch its new automotive division in New Zealand and Australia in early 2027 – an unusually tight timeframe for a company that had yet to commence series production of a single vehicle.

“Australia and New Zealand are a key strategic priority for Dreame’s automotive ambition,” said Ma Long, Dreame Technology chief marketing officer, in March.

“As our first right-hand drive vehicles to launch, we plan to enter the market with our best foot forward into a region with exciting potential for EV growth.”

It planned to launch a range of electric vehicles (EVs) in China before the end of 2026, followed by models under its high-performance Nebula Next brand.

Australia was set to receive electric SUVs under a new Star Motor brand, with hot Nebula Next models with quad-motor electric powertrains expected to follow after entering production in 2027.

Dreame said its Nebula NEXT 01 hypercar and 01X SUV would be able to hit 0-100km/h in 1.8 seconds, matching the Rimac Nevera, and would feature a body and chassis made from a material the company called ‘Blue Carbon Fibre’. It also said it was working on solid-state batteries for its vehicles.

The Nebula Next 01 Jet Edition was even more ambitious, being an electric hypercar with what Dreame called a “jet engine” system that allowed it to hit 0-100km/h in 0.9 seconds – enough to make it the world’s quickest EV.

Dreame also claimed it was working on a Level 3+ autonomous driving system.

It’s unclear just how far development of Dreame vehicles had got before the company pulled the pin on the whole operation.

MORE: 1400kW EV hypercar maker Dreame coming to New Zealand in 2027MORE: Rocket-boosted Dreame electric supercar claimed to hit 100km/h in 0.9 seconds

The Dreame is over: Chinese vacuum cleaner company scraps plans to build EVs – report

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