About forty years ago, the first Volkswagen entered China, and since then it has begun to dominate the Chinese market. For a long time, Volkswagen regarded China as the largest consumer market and never worried that it would one day be replaced.
However, in the past four decades, the Chinese automobile industry, which once exchanged market for technology, has occupied a leading position in the field of new energy when the electric era comes, which has made Volkswagen begin to re-examine Chinese cars.
Recently, Volkswagen's new board of directors was held in Berlin, and at the board meeting, which was called a "large-scale seminar" by Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess, the Volkswagen Group not only conducted a phased inventory of the "NEW AUTO" strategy released for nearly a year, and discussed the priorities of this year's work, but also revealed for the first time to the outside world the volkswagen group's major competitors in five dimensions, including brand, technology platform, software, battery and charging, as well as mobility.
Although Diess mentioned brands from Chinese mainland in its text posted on a social platform, in a PPT screenshot attached, the logos of companies such as NINGDE Times, BYD, Weilai and Xiaopeng appeared impressively. Among them, in the vehicle brand dimension, Volkswagen has listed BYD, Weilai and Xiaopeng as its main opponents; in the field of batteries and charging, it includes Ningde Times and BYD.
Obviously, from no worries to competitive attention, it is enough to show that Chinese cars have become comparable to the existence of old car giants.
Since entering the new century, under the guidance of the state's policy of encouraging the development of independent brands, encouraging independent innovation, and encouraging independent intellectual property rights, China's automobile design, research and development and manufacturing capabilities have been greatly improved, and its product strength has been continuously enhanced. Especially when new energy vehicles have become an important direction and trend in the development of global automobiles, Chinese independent brands have seized the opportunity and practiced their internal skills, and finally let themselves gain the respect they deserve.
That is to say, the current pattern of the world automobile industry is being rewritten by Chinese cars, and even Volkswagen has to put down its high head and really look to the East.
The public is by no means unfounded.
In the vehicle brand dimension, at least for now, the pace of Volkswagen's electrification products has lagged behind Tesla, BYD, and even less than the new car-making forces Weilai and Xiaopeng. Volkswagen's global electric vehicle sales data released on April 14 showed that in the first quarter of this year, Volkswagen's performance was still far behind Tesla's 310,000 vehicles and BYD's 286,000 vehicles (including PHEV); while looking at luxury brands alone, Audi's 24,200 vehicles in the first quarter of this year also lagged behind Weilai's 25,800 vehicles.
Of course, this is just a microcosm of one of the competitive dimensions of Volkswagen's "NEW AUTO" strategy. Volkswagen, the world's second-largest car company, is clearly aware of the importance of systematic capabilities – underpinned by technology platforms, software, batteries and charging, as well as mobility/autonomous driving.
In the field of technology, NINGDE times ranks first in the world in power battery technology, one of the core technologies of new energy, and BYD is also thriving.
It can be said that on the track of electric vehicles, Chinese brands have accumulated a considerable amount of technology and experience, with the advantages of innovation, rapid iteration and more flexible adjustment of direction, while Volkswagen's transformation is facing difficulties like elephants turning around, and it is obvious that Chinese cars have a position and strength that cannot be ignored in the world.
On another level, the influence of Chinese cars in the European market is increasing. At present, BYD and NIO have stepped into the Footsteps of entering the European market, and Norway is the first stop. Different from BYD's traditional car sales model, NIO has brought products and the entire user service system into the Norwegian market, including NIO Center, NIO App, substation, mobile services, etc. In other words, Norwegian car owners can enjoy the same service as domestic Weilai car owners. In addition, NIO is the first company to enter the European market in the whole system.
More critically, while Chinese auto products are entering Europe, they are also gradually building a sound parts supply system and after-sales maintenance service network, laying the foundation for the sustained growth of auto product exports, which makes the influence of Chinese cars more prominent.
Although Chinese cars have not yet begun to fully develop in Germany, the hometown of Volkswagen, German cars have already felt the pressure from Chinese cars. Recently, one of Europe's largest television stations said in a program that China's electric vehicle industry has achieved a leading position, and the German automotive industry must increase investment in the transformation to electric vehicles to maintain competitiveness. "We must give China's opponents enough respect." The guests at the scene of the show made it clear.
There are more and more such voices, and it is more and more proof that the rise of Chinese automobiles is a must.
Tesla founder Musk has publicly stated that the competitiveness of Chinese automakers is the first in the world, and the development of the electric vehicle market has deep potential, "I have full respect for many Chinese car companies."
The more this happens, the more pressure on Dies, which has already stated: the next golf must not be Tesla! The next golf must not come from China! The next blockbuster has to be a Wolfsburg Trinity!
Next, it depends on whether Volkswagen can withstand the rise of Chinese cars, because this is a fact, and it is an irreversible fact.
Write | Water miao
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