It seems that since last year, Toyota has been extremely active in promoting new things.
Xena, Veranda, Lingfang/Weisa, Corolla Ruifang/Fenglanda, one new car after another is listed like dumplings.
In fact, this was not the case with Toyota in the past.
In the case of the new Highlander, the foreigners on the other side of the ocean are tired of opening up, and we haven't even seen the shadow yet. In the end, after a small makeover, domestic consumers ushered in the long-awaited fourth-generation Highlander in June last year.
Why has Toyota, which has always been procrastinating, now turned sex? Many people say that Toyota is to improve its product matrix and further seize the market. If you think about it, such a statement is not unreasonable.
Sai Na came to the MPV market; Veranda gave GAC Toyota a sister model for the benchmark Rongfang; Lingfang and Weisa filled the gap between the Crown Landplay/Highlander and Rongfang/Velanda; and the Corolla Sharpener/Fenglanda filled the gap in Toyota's entry-level compact SUV. Each car has its proper role and positioning, and it seems that the arrangement is indeed appropriate.
However, if we take the perspective a little higher, you will find that behind Toyota's aggressive launch of many new cars, there is a sense of panic in the face of the electric age.
As we all know, Akio Toyoda has not had a good face for electric vehicles. Some insiders have analyzed that the original intention of Toyota Akio's shelling of electric vehicles is still for their own interests.
When the wave of electrification surged in, Toyota was caught off guard. Maybe Toyota has noticed the process of electrification, but it may not have expected it to come so quickly and so fiercely.
You know, the research and development cycle of a new car is very long, and there is a huge amount of money invested. And when electrification is approaching at an unexpected speed, Toyota must still have a large number of fuel vehicle projects in its hands.
If you choose to embrace electric power at this time, it means that all previous projects must be abandoned. Such a loss, even a giant like Toyota can not afford.
So you will see that Akio Toyoda has repeatedly contradicted electrification in public, and the intention is actually not difficult to understand, that is, to buy time for Toyota - before the full arrival of electrification, the value of fuel vehicles will be exerted as much as possible to reduce losses. Reflected in reality, it is the listing of one new car after another.
Of course, in order to quickly gain widespread recognition and recognition from the market, sometimes it is necessary to have some blessings from the beginning. For example, Ling Fang and Wei Sa, who have a relationship with Lexus RX, and Corolla Ruifang, who carries the name of Corolla, are not difficult to taste the meaning of the word "feelings".
Although Toyota is not bad in size, it cannot withstand the torrent of the times in the end. How did that sentence come about? Oh yes, but I can't beat it and join. Then there was the scene where Akio Toyoda released more than a dozen new energy vehicles in one go.
Speaking of which, Akio Toyoda is buying time for fuel vehicles while also buying time for his own electric vehicles. After all, electric vehicles still have to be done. However, the reality is that in addition to the rapid momentum of electrification that caught Toyota by surprise, the dazzling achievements of independent car companies in new energy vehicles also made Toyota jealous.
The new forces led by "Wei Xiaoli" and BYD, which started early on the new energy track, are all tough opponents that Toyota will have to face in the future. It may be hard for Toyota to think that it is going to face our own brands so seriously today.
In fact, not only Toyota, even if it is as strong as the BBA, can not be exempted. Maybe it's contempt, maybe it's really their own difficulties and grievances, but in any case, they are undoubtedly slow to meet the matter of electrification. Autonomous car companies, on the other hand, have keenly seized this opportunity.
Of course, we do not doubt that Toyota has a strong strength and heritage, as to whether it can continue to be brilliant in the era of electrification, I believe that time will tell us the answer.