WM Automobile's private "locking of electricity" has triggered public anger The supervision of the whole process of remote upgrading of car companies needs to be increased urgently

Reporter Gong Mengze

Recently, the "power lock" incident of WM Motors has continued to ferment. A number of Wei horse-drawn carriage owners told the "Securities Daily" reporter that at the end of last year, WM launched a campaign called "New Year's Eve User Special", announcing that it could test the vehicles for some car owners for free and give away 200 yuan in red envelopes. However, to the surprise of the participants, they were "locked in power" without their knowledge.

The owner of the WM EX5 revealed to reporters that the available power after participating in the OTA (remote upgrade) was significantly reduced, and the venting voltage rose from 333V to 340V; the full power voltage dropped from 408V to 397V, roughly calculating, the actual battery life was reduced by nearly 20%. The owner of the interview also said that the winter decay of the model with a nominal endurance of 403 kilometers could only run more than 200 kilometers, and the worst one after being "locked" drove more than 100 kilometers.

On January 20, the Securities Daily reporter asked WM for verification, and the reply was: "It is recommended to go to the nearest after-sales outlet for vehicle testing to further determine the impact of battery health, temperature, road conditions and driving habits on endurance." ”

Free upgrades for subsequent voyages shrink

WM "induced" users to be questioned

The so-called "locking power" is that the car company rewrites the battery management system (BMS) to reset the voltage range of the power battery in order to limit the upper charge limit of the battery and the total discharge charge.

Experimental data show that when the battery is running at a SOC greater than 80%, the battery is easy to form crystallization inside, and the performance is aggravated by attenuation; when the remaining power is less than 20%, the internal resistance of the battery is also more serious. Combining the above two points, the industry generally believes that lithium batteries are most ideal for charging and discharging between 20% and 80%. This is consistent with WM OTA operation, which is to pinch the head and tail and select the safety voltage in the middle.

After the above operation, many Wei carriage owners found that their vehicles were not charged enough, and the overall mileage became shorter. In this context, car owners invariably linked WM's "inducing" users to "lock the power" with a number of previous battery safety incidents.

On December 20, 2021, a WM EX5 charging fire in Zhengzhou spontaneously ignited; followed by december 22 and 23, two WM EX5 in Hainan caught fire. 3 vehicles burned in 4 days, which may make weima, which has long been "left behind" by outside gossip, and at the same time, it is in the impulse of the new model W6 and the company is on the verge of listing.

"By adjusting the BMS, the new energy vehicle can reduce the voltage of the power battery cell and the speed of charging and discharging, which can indeed reduce the probability of thermal runaway of the battery." Lithium battery professionals told the "Securities Daily" reporter that the power battery life is irreversible, and "locking the electricity" is an effective means to ensure the safety of the vehicle at present. However, "car companies involving user interests of OTAs, even if they are for security reasons, should also communicate with users head-on and should not intentionally conceal."

In the view of Ma Xiang, a senior civil lawyer, consumers have the right to know about the goods or services they purchase, and "locking the electricity" without informing consumers violates consumers' right to know. In addition, the vehicle charging after the "locked power" is not satisfactory, the mileage is shortened, the user experience is reduced, and the consumer has the right to claim infringement damages.

Car companies "lock the electricity" without authorization to seek self-protection

The supervision of the OTA execution process needs to be regulated urgently

In fact, there is precedent for new energy vehicle companies to "lock the electricity" without authorization in order to seek battery safety.

As early as 2019, Tesla has carried out "protective upgrades" for some of its older models - reducing the available power, reducing the charging speed and increasing the remaining power displayed on the dashboard. It is also because of this OTA that Tesla was fined in Norway, compensating 30 car owners 136,000 crowns (about 94,800 yuan) each.

In August 2021, the owners of GAC Toyota iA5 reported that GAC Toyota artificially reduced the usable capacity of the power battery through OTAs without the consent of the owners, resulting in a shortened mileage; as in the same year, models such as SAIC Roewe ERX5 and BAIC BJEV EX360 and EU5 were also exposed to "lock electricity". It is worth mentioning that before the "power lock" occurred, these car owners suffered offline or online upgrades.

Before the implementation of the "power lock", the above-mentioned car companies did not obtain the consent of the relevant owners, forced or privately modified the BMS through upgrades, and this operation has also become the main reason for the anger of many car owners.

Zhang Xiuyang, director of the China Passenger Car Industry Alliance, told the Securities Daily reporter that many new energy vehicle companies will "lock the electricity" as early as before the vehicle leaves the factory in order to ensure battery safety. For example, when designing a battery system, in order to avoid overcharge and overdischarge, car companies will generally consider the situation that the battery SOC is too high or too low, and set a DOD (discharge depth) for the power battery.

"'Locking the power' and limiting the voltage after the product is sold will not only reduce the consumer product experience, damage the trust of the brand, but also fail to improve the safety performance of the battery pack itself." If the battery cell itself or the BMS and the vehicle power matching are really problematic, further adjustments, optimizations and improvements should be made to improve the stability of the overall battery system. Zhang Xiuyang believes that new energy vehicle companies should be cautious about using "power locking" measures, and it is even more important to let consumers know, accept and understand the reasons behind this action.

As early as November 2020, the State Administration for Market Regulation regulated the filing of automotive OTAs by car companies, requiring manufacturers to file with the Quality Development Bureau of the State Administration for Market Regulation when conducting OTAs for sold vehicles, regardless of whether it involves eliminating product defects. In June 2021, the State Administration for Market Regulation once again issued the Supplementary Notice on the Filing of Remote Upgrade (OTA) Technology Recalls of Automobiles, which further regulates the filing of automotive OTA by car companies and further manages and restricts the OTA service process to a certain extent.