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After 9 years, Changan Ford's classic B-class car - Mondeo has finally changed!
Although it is not a global car, China's special supply, but thanks to this, its advantages and disadvantages are very prominent, there have been EVOS failure lessons in the front, Can Changan Ford build a new generation of Mondeo into a blockbuster?
As the saying goes, a good man does not mention the courage of the year.
After all, thirty years of Hedong and thirty years of Hexi, no matter how brilliant it was, it has finally become history and the past. Just because it was awesome doesn't mean that it can continue to be awesome today and in the future.
Looking at the ever-changing Chinese auto market, there are many such examples.
For example, Changan Ford's new generation of Mondeo, which was launched on March 18, is such a living example.
01
Once a Ford Mondeo, along with volkswagen Passat
Mondeo, for people in the automotive circle and many consumers, is simply not too familiar, and even some are thunderous.
Once upon a time, in the domestic B-class car market, it once went hand in hand with Volkswagen's B-class car double male - Passat, Maiten, Japanese B-class car three musketeers - Accord, Camry, Tianlai, etc., can be described as going hand in hand, can be called the most shining group of stars in the B-class car segment.
In fact, in the years before the fall of Changan Ford, its Mondeo, Yihu, Fox and other products were also well-known and the sales volume ranked in the top ten of each market segment for a long time.
The fourth generation of Mondeo with the "Martin face" of the Internet celebrity
But roughly since 2016, in just a few years, along with Mondeo, Yihu, Yibo, Fox, etc., not only Changan Ford, but also the head of the once invincible American auto three giants behind it - Ford Motor.
Today's Ford brand in the Chinese market, whether it is sales, word of mouth, or brand image and appeal, can not be compared with the past.
From the first-line top stream that once rivaled the Shenche Volkswagen at a premium, it has fallen to the second-line and third-tier that has been comprehensively suspended by the Japanese system.
02
The new generation of Mondeo, North America was abandoned as China's "special" car
It should be pointed out that the reason why Changan Ford's new generation of Mondeo has attracted so much attention and controversy as soon as it was released, in addition to the above-mentioned Mondeo once had a british name, it is also very important that:
From the beginning of the new generation, Mondeo has been completely reduced to a "Chinese special car", and this new identity label is destined to be extremely controversial.
To put it bluntly, in the past, Mondeo, like the Accord, Camry, Passat and other competitors, not only sold well in the Chinese market, but also generally sold well in the world's best-selling B-class car products.
Today, competing models are still "global" products, but Mondeo has "stopped changing" in its home base in North America.
The reason has also been introduced before, because the American consumers as a whole have no sense of cars, Most of Ford's sales and profits are basically derived from rugged pickup trucks and SUVs, and car projects such as Mondeo have been cut by the North American headquarters.
Ford has since focused on pickup trucks, SUVs, and electrification, and the sedan has been strategically abandoned by Ford.
Americans do not intend to continue to invest, since the Chinese market still has demand, then "Mondeo" this classic car name, "you take it to play by yourself."
In fact, the previous generation of Mondeo (i.e. the very classic fourth generation of "Martin Face" Mondeo) was launched in 2013, and it has been 9 years now.
Referring to the common product replacement cycle of traditional car companies, it is generally about four years, and the long one is only five years, and Ford Mondeo has long been old.
Interestingly, last year, the industry also once expressed deep regret for the official announcement of Mondeo's "suspension of production", and did not expect that Mondeo, which was abandoned by the North American headquarters, was actually resurrected as a "Chinese special edition" this year.
But this Mondeo has long been non-Pimondeo, although the name is still called Mondeo, but the meaning and connotation have been "tasted".
Of course, from another point of view, thanks to the identity of "special supply car" (Ford's local R&D and design) in China, the new car in such dimensions as size space, intelligent network connection and many other Chinese consumers are extremely valued, the new generation of Mondeo can behave so "Chinese", very ford!
So in this sense, the new generation of Mondeo, into the "special car", the defeat also "special car", the identity of the special car to bring it the final outcome, whether it is good or bad, time to give the answer.
03
The pre-price is full of survival, and the prospects for a new generation of Mondeo are geometric
Back to the new generation of Mondeo itself.
The reason why this new generation of Mondeo pre-sale can trigger such a big response and network heat from the outside world, the most direct tipping point is that it is thrown out - the pre-sale starting price of 159,800 yuan!
"Changan Ford is really fighting, this price is too fierce", "Ford finally put down the shelf, the new generation of Mondeo iron heart to go"...
Le tease auto noted that just after Changan Ford officially released the pre-sale price, the industry was shocked, and there were not a few good-looking ones.
In fact, on the night of the Mondeo pre-sale, there were several new cars on the market/pre-sale at the same time in the car circle, and from the perspective of discussion, Mondeo undoubtedly became a big winner of the night.
The "ultra-low" pre-sale starting price of 159,800 yuan really refreshes everyone's inherent perception of ford and Mondeo, a joint venture classic B-class car.
Especially combined with its obvious "intuitive competitiveness dimension" such as the "intuitive competitiveness dimension" of its obviously larger, smarter and stronger power combination than accord and Camry, Changan Ford has shown unprecedented determination and sincerity in the new generation of Mondeo.
Across the screen, everyone can feel the new generation of Mondeo's full desire to survive.
But even so, can it be asserted that the new generation of Mondeo can become a hit and successfully enter the mainstream B-segment car market again?
I think the answer is obviously no, and the reason is also not difficult to understand, we may as well still analyze from the two dimensions of price and product strength:
First, in terms of price, although the pre-sale starting price of 159,800 yuan is indeed quite low, combined with the "configuration table" information feedback from the current terminal, it is difficult to become a version that really attracts users to make a decision.
In fact, with reference to the competitors of other friends, it is the same, this kind of lower entry-level model with a fixed price is often a "cai version", there is not much reference value, and the proportion of users who really choose this entry-level low-end version is often very low.
Therefore, the main sales price of the new generation of Mondeo is still 17.98 yuan, 199,800 yuan two medium and high match, and 219,800 yuan ST-Line top version.
In this way, the obvious huge advantage of the price level is weakened a lot, after all, other joint venture competitors currently generally have a large terminal discount, and the actual transaction price and the middle and high match of Mondeo have not opened a big gap.
Second, in terms of product strength, the most core highlights and selling points of the new generation of Mondeo are also mentioned above:
Larger size (the level basically reaches the B+ class or even C class car where Taurus is located), a more technological interior (1.1 meters long exaggerated central control screen, and thus revealed the leading joint venture intelligent networking experience), and the powerful power combination of the entire series of 2.0T+8AT.
But the corresponding new generation of Mondeo also has some significant and potential weaknesses and risks!
For example, 200,000 yuan level B-class car, consumers usually care about the brand power, word of mouth, used car retention rate, etc., these aspects after years of loneliness, Mondeo has been excluded from the mainstream hot B-class car purchase list for many years;
For example, this powerful power scheme of the whole series of 2.0T+8AT can become both a highlight and a weakness, such a large car full of 2.0T engines, fuel consumption is doomed to be low!
In fact, including Mondeo, Ford's car has always had a poor reputation of "high fuel consumption", and the old owner users are deeply touched.
At a time when oil prices are soaring, the new generation of Mondeo is afraid that many potential consumers can "afford to buy, can't afford to open"...
Many of the same level competitors of friendly businesses give you two or even multiple power combination schemes to choose from at the same time. Care about strong power performance, choose a large displacement, focus on fuel consumption and economic power is enough, choose a small displacement.
In addition, as mentioned earlier, the new generation of Mondeo is a "Special Supply Car of China", not a global research and development demonstration, but a "new car" driven out by the "overtime" of the Ford China team in the past two years.
Therefore, whether the overall reliability and stability will work remains to be seen. After the new car is listed, will there be problems such as the collapse of the reputation of the first batch of user owners?
There is still a great deal of uncertainty.
You know, Ford's previous sales and word of mouth have a thousand miles, to a large extent, but also in Ford's product reliability, quality problems, there is a greater relationship.
Including this seemingly sincere 8AT gearbox, not the Aisin 8AT, which has a relatively good reputation, but the 8AT made by Ford itself!
Last year, Changan Ford was also on the CCTV 315 party due to product quality problems
In the application of many previous Ford products, frustration, smoothness, reliability, etc., are not bad.
Le Tease Observation:
There is no doubt that the new generation of Mondeo "selling" is indeed attractive.
Body size and wheelbase, for the Accord, Camry, Passat, etc., are basically enough to beat a number of hot B-class car competitors on the market. Obviously, there are some cross-level and "big to small" posture, like letting C-class cars like Taurus compete with B-class cars.
The luxurious sense of technology in the interior is very appetizing to young consumers, after all, this is an era of intelligent popularity, "no intelligence is not a car, no big screen in the car is not happy"!
Lu Yi, president of Changan Ford NDSD, warmed up the new car
In terms of price, even if you put aside the entry-level model, the overall is still quite sincere, and the cost performance is indeed higher than that of the Accords.
But! This year, the product force is very strong, the cost performance is also quite high B-class new products, not uncommon (and there will be more), but why is the B-class car market still firmly controlled by Accord and Camry?!
In the end, this market segment has long been relatively solidified, spending 200,000 consumers to buy B-class cars, willing to try early and choose "niche products", there are, but at least for now it is not very much.
In other words, it is not that the new generation of Mondeo is not tempting enough, but that the Accord and Camry after full evolution and movement are already quite fragrant.
That being the case, under the premise that the budget is not bad, buying a more popular, more word-of-mouth and quality assurance Accord will still be a common choice for most people.
You see, the EVOS light chaser listed in November last year is supposed to be the "brother" of the new generation of Mondeo, and Changan Ford has not spent less effort on this strategic product, and the dismal sales performance is only because the pricing is about 30,000 higher than Mondeo?!
In other words, evos light chasers have not been recognized and accepted by consumers, and how can they be successful just by reducing the price of the new generation of Mondeo, which can be called a sister car?
Regardless of whether the new generation of Mondeo can change its life against the sky, more updated, more sincere and cost-effective products are always a good thing for consumers.
I believe that as more new generations of Mondeo come out, Accord and Camry will eventually accelerate to become better and more cost-effective.