Recently, it was learned from the Weilai App community that Weilai will launch a BaaS to buyout program.
In the early days of car purchase, NIO generally offers two options: buy out the battery and BaaS. Among them, BaaS is a battery rental service launched by NIO based on the separation of vehicle and electricity, that is, users can pay a certain fee per month to rent NIO batteries. The service has been controversial since its launch in August 2020, with some arguing that BaaS is cost-effective and others that it is not.
Perhaps in response to different voices, Weilai gave a new option - you can no longer BaaS, buy out the battery.
Although the official has not yet disclosed the specific plan, Weilai's official account "User Dadao" revealed part of the policy of BaaS to buyout in its reply to users.
Specifically, by terminating the BaaS lease agreement, a brand new battery can be purchased. Among them, the purchase of 75/70kWh battery packs need to pay 70,000 yuan + 3,000 yuan service fee, the purchase of 100kWh battery packs need to pay 128,000 yuan + 3,000 yuan service fees, service fees mainly include new battery logistics, testing and disassembly costs. However, due to the subsidy issue involved, BaaS users who were originally 100 degrees cannot buy out 75 degree batteries.
In terms of buyout fees, because banking and financial companies do not support battery pack loan services, they can only buy in full and do not support loan mortgages. Importantly, the previous monthly rent payment cannot be used to offset the outgoing cost, because the BaaS business is used first and paid later, so the rent previously incurred is not refundable, that is, all rents from the pick-up date to the buyout date are BaaS costs that have been incurred.
If the user chooses not to replace the new battery, but chooses the battery that is already used on the car, the service fee of 3000 yuan can be waived. After the BaaS buyout, users no longer need to pay the battery protection fee, and WEILAI will dock with the insurance company.
This means that users who have already chosen BaaS can continue to make choices whenever they want to buy out the battery. The price of the BaaS buyout is consistent with the price of the new car directly buying out the battery.
However, the 3,000 yuan service fee charged for the purchase of new batteries seems to be within a reasonable range, but according to the logic of Weilai power exchange, the so-called new battery also needs to circulate in Weilai's power exchange system.
The part of the early BaaS lease fee that cannot be deducted from the cost of buying out the battery has caused controversy, perhaps it is different from the ideal plan of some BaaS users, and has been questioned by some users. There are also users who choose to buy out the battery also expressed unfairness, proposing to introduce a plan to buy out the battery user to BaaS, and even appeared "buy out to baaS return group".
However, the BaaS lease fee does not count the buyout fee, which is actually similar to the model of renting and buying a house, which is equivalent to a "regret medicine" provided by the landlord after the tenant rents for a period of time, but the rental fee cannot be refunded. After all, leasing is not the same as paying in installments.
From Weilai's point of view, the introduction of the lease-to-buy program is the same as the logic of the original buyout of the battery and BaaS, which is not mandatory, but gives a choice. It is equivalent to expanding the flexibility of NIO's battery service.
Therefore, renting first and then buying, the cost is doomed to be less than the first to buy out. Through calculation, the purchase cost of the BaaS model will reach the purchase price of the vehicle in 5-6 years, that is, the critical point. The policy based on the fact that the lease fee is not deductible from the cost of buying out the battery means that the later the buyout, the more loss.
Relatively speaking, the new scheme is more suitable for BaaS users who plan to sell their cars in the short term after buying a car. Because baaS's used car transaction is not mature at present, there are not many car dealers willing to take over, while the whole car with batteries is treated differently, and the car loss will be less. Although Weizu comes from a used car platform, providing a lease-to-buy solution also means that car owners can buy and sell without being limited to official two.
In addition, the lease-to-buy also provides an option for new buyers of Used Cars in BaaS, giving new buyers of used cars the opportunity to re-choose to buy out batteries. And as for whether the value is worth buying, the options are just options, and the choice still all depends on personal preference.
As a typical user-oriented enterprise, Weilai is good at conforming to the wishes of car owners and giving endless choices. What remains unchanged is that in this process, Weilai's battery business is still an arithmetic problem and a multiple choice problem, which makes people with "choice difficulty" addictive.