(Yicai Global) May 13 -- Chinese new energy vehicle startup Lixiang Automotive has said that the recent brake failure of one of its vehicles is an isolated incident.

The risk doesn't apply on a larger scale to Lixiang One vehicles, the Beijing-based company said on Weibo yesterday.

On May 7, an owner of the firm's first car model said that they were unable to use the standard regenerative braking system to stop the vehicle on a highway but thankfully, the brake pedal still worked. The carmaker said that the reason was a communication failure within the vehicle.

But that is not the only recent problem. On May 8, the company said that a Changsha-based Lixiang One owner had detected smoke in the front cabin but tests showed that the battery was fine. The driver also excluded engine problems, according to a later post on the carmaker's application. The brand-owner has not commented on the reason behind the incident.

Li Xiang founded the eponymous car company in 2015. Lixiang One is the firm's 800-kilometer-range sport-utility vehicle with a price tag of CNY328,000 (USD46,314).

Editor: Emmi Laine