Introduction: The balance of 2021 is less than half a month left. Near the end of the year, it is a key node for car companies to impact the annual sales target, and the new cars listed during this period have also undertaken the task of moving in the first quarter of next year or even the whole year. Recently, a number of car companies have successively launched strategic new models, setting the tone for brand development in 2022.
(Text/Pan Yuchen Editor/Lou Bing)
Mercedes-Benz EQS goes public
On December 17, Mercedes-Benz EQS was officially launched. A total of four models were launched, with prices ranging from 1,079,600 to 1,518,600 yuan.
Auto market observation: In the global wave of electrification, Mercedes-Benz, which was once punished for "dieselgate", has also opened its own transformation path in the inner volume with volkswagen, BMW and other compatriots. For traditional heroes, "elephant turning" is particularly difficult, not only requires time and skill, but more importantly, motivation.
China is the world's largest market, the largest new energy vehicle market, and the first market segment of Mercedes-Benz in the world. Mercedes-Benz wants to promote the growth of new energy vehicle sales, and the Chinese market has an unquestionable core position. Since the beginning of EQC in 2019, every electric vehicle of Mercedes-Benz has not been absent from the Chinese market, but due to the average mileage and high price, the EQC model is more like a three-pronged star.
Since the beginning of this year, Mercedes-Benz has further increased the launch of electrified models in China, and during this year's Guangzhou Auto Show, it also launched two models of EQA\EQB, but these two are also electrified models based on GLA\GLB.
The special thing about EQS is that it is not only the only car in the current Mercedes-Benz EQ series, but also a model based only on the EVA pure electric platform, which is essentially different from the previous "oil to electricity".
However, for Mercedes-Benz, whether it is based on a pure electric platform or not, how to combine the electricity and intelligence of new energy vehicles, as well as the luxury attributes of traditional high-end brands, is the biggest test of new cars.
From EQS, we can also see a lot of designs derived from existing products. The new car features a family-owned design of the EQ series, but the distinctive two-tone bodywork is derived from the Maybach brand. Although it is a pure electric vehicle, the front face of the EQS adopts a closed grille design called "Dark Night Star Emblem", and the two sides continue to be full of high-tech headlights, and the middle is connected by a through-type LED light strip. The side lines of the body are smooth and dynamic, and the drag coefficient of only 0.2cd is a highlight. The tail is accompanied by the same sci-fi 3D spiral taillight strip.
Inside, the EQS also features a high-tech interior atmosphere, such as hyperscreen with LED curved screen materials, which fuse the main driver's dashboard, center control and co-pilot display, and replace all physical buttons. The system has a built-in NVIDIA Xavier AI chip to learn user habits.
In terms of power, the EQS is equipped with single and dual motors with 245kW and 380kW respectively, respectively, and the CLTC has a cruising range of 849km, 813km and 720km, and is equipped with L2 level auxiliary driving system.
At present, in the joint venture new energy vehicle market, there is no pure electric luxury car of the same level for the time being. For most consumers, price is perhaps the biggest obstacle before choosing EQS.
Guangqi Honda type is listed
On December 16, GUANGC Honda was officially launched. A total of six models were launched, with prices ranging from 129,900 to 166,900 yuan.
Car market observation: The original name of the model is INTEGRA, which can be traced back to the compact sports car launched by Honda in the 1980s. The model produced by Guangqi Honda also highlights this point in terms of appearance design. Whether it is the narrow blackened dot array grille, or the sharp headlight group on both sides like a blade version, the sporty style of the new car is highlighted as much as possible, coupled with the movement surrounding that can be seen everywhere in the body, the name of the new car "type" is indeed a stroke of god.
Inside the car, the styling also uses some high-tech designs to cater to young users, such as a suspended central control screen and a penetrating air conditioner outlet. The new car is also equipped with features that enhance human-machine interaction, such as CarPlay, Android Auto, and smart portable card keys, and for the first time, it is equipped with a 12-speaker "Centerpoint" sound system.
In terms of power, the new car is equipped with a 1.5T turbocharged engine with a maximum power of 134 kW and a peak torque of 240 N·m, matching a 6-speed manual and CVT gearbox.
Although the new car looks very sporty, the introduction of the Chinese production and sales style this time carries more of the task of Honda's dual-car strategy in China.
In recent years, Honda Has developed rapidly in China. With the introduction of new products, sales are also increasing year by year. But at the same time, Toyota, Nissan and other brands are also in the market rise period, and the competition between the same kind is still quite fierce. The emergence of the epidemic and the instability of the supply chain have also posed new challenges for Honda's further growth.
For Guangqi Honda, after the listing of the eleventh generation Civic, it is in urgent need of a compact car that can walk to maintain the balance, and the promotion of sales by the tenth generation of Civic sports styling has also driven Guangqi Honda to land the domestic model.
Compared with the recently launched brother model, the 11th Generation Civic, the sporty shape of the model is more aggressive and unique, and it is basically the same in terms of body size, power and other parameters. The price of the two is basically in the same range. From the perspective of consumers, the type also provides one more choice for young users who prefer Japanese sports styles. In addition to the same room exercise, including Volkswagen's new Sagittarius, Buick Veyron Pro and other models, is also a strong opponent of the model.
Dongfeng Infiniti QX60 opened pre-sale
On December 16, Dongfeng Infiniti's new generation QX60 opened pre-sale. A total of 6 models of new cars were launched, and the pre-sale price was 450,000-660,000 yuan.
Auto Market Observation: It has been exactly 6 years since Dongfeng Infiniti last released a new domestic car. As the first Japanese luxury brand to achieve domestic production, Infiniti got up early, but it could not even catch up with the late set. Seeing that the Japanese brother Lexus, who insisted on importing, continued to break sales records, Nissan's heart was probably also full of mixed feelings.
It is worth mentioning that the Infiniti QX60, which launched the pre-sale, was previously sold in the form of imports in China. Although the domestic ownership is scarce, this medium and large SUV was named by the CCTV 3.15 evening party at the beginning of this year, and as for the reason for the list, it is naturally an old problem of the Nissan CVT gearbox.
Infiniti is also well aware of these issues. Therefore, the main change of the new generation of QX60 is the improvement of the previous series of ills. The all-new Infiniti QX60 replaces the old CVT transmission with a 9AT transmission from ZF and comes standard with an intelligent all-wheel drive system that can support up to 50:50 power distribution up to front and rear.
The power section of the new car is powered by a 2.0L VC-Turbo variable compression ratio turbocharged engine with a maximum power of 185 kW and a peak torque of 376 Nm. Unfortunately, due to emission and fuel economy considerations, the overseas version of the 3.5L naturally aspirated engine was not introduced to China.
In terms of appearance, the new car adopts a new family-style design in the details of the front face and headlights, and the overall shape is more fashionable, which can be seen that Infiniti's target user portrait is still dominated by young consumers.
For Infiniti, which has been away from the market for a long time, the new generation of QX60 determines whether Japanese luxury brands can still firmly continue in the Chinese market. Since 2018, despite the overall decline in China's auto market, the luxury auto market has significantly grown against the trend. However, Infiniti, which has not launched a new model for a long time, cannot enjoy this dividend at all, and sales have declined year by year in the same period. From January to November this year, Infiniti's cumulative sales were only 7,700 vehicles, down 64.7% year-on-year.
Therefore, the domestic new generation of QX60 can be regarded as Infiniti's work. However, in order to gain a foothold in the highly competitive Chinese market, infiniti QX60 also needs to deal with a series of second-tier luxury brand competitors, such as Cadillac XT6, Volvo XC60, Lincoln Aviator and so on.
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