Car stuff (public number: chedongxi)
The author | James
Edit the | Juice
Last week, the electric vehicles of the top three Japanese brands were collectively showdown in the Chinese market!
Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 officially listed, priced at 175,000 to 218,000; GAC Toyota and FAW Toyota's bZ4X began pre-sale, the price range of 220,000 to 300,000; Dongfeng Nissan Aria opened blind booking, is expected to be listed soon. In the face of the overwhelming domestic electric vehicles, can the Japanese top three who played the card for the first time play a game?
Today, China's new energy vehicle market has long been fully opened, with a market share of nearly 30%. However, according to the March insurance data, among the best-selling new energy vehicles in China, the top 20 brands did not have a Single Japanese brand.
Obviously, there is not much market and time left for the Japanese top three electric vehicles.
So can these three cars open up the situation in the domestic new energy market? In terms of power and endurance, e:NS1, bZ4X, and Ariya have no advantages over the same level of independent and joint venture brands, but at the intelligent level, the configuration of the three cars is significantly behind the 2022 era, and even being hung by independent brand models.
▲Comparison of japanese top three pure trams
e: NS1, bZ4X, Ariya only have single-lane L2 automatic driving, but the reality of the industry is that 150,000-level cars are equipped with command lane changes, 200,000 yuan of cars will have NOA functions, 300,000 yuan of cars will have the function of off-the-hand driving and even urban L2.
In the configuration of the smart cockpit, the three cars only have basic navigation and voice control, support mobile phone App control of the vehicle, and there is no obvious upgrade compared with the current model. For example, the more practical download App, watch video, visible speaking of the voice system, continuous dialogue and other functions are not supported in the three cars.
It can be said that the three pure trams launched by the Japanese three in 2022 are difficult to form an advantage with the pure trams of independent brands in the basic parameters, and the difference is even further compared with the pure electric benchmark Tesla Model Y.
Nowadays, domestic car owners have a strong desire for intelligence, and how to make the Chinese pay for the japanese three electric vehicles that are late in coming?
First, "oil to electricity" is still continuing There is no advantage in performance parameters
Honda e: NS1, Toyota bZ4X, Nissan Ariya positioning is different, so these three cars have different rival models in terms of electric performance.
1. Honda benchmarks its own brand of 150,000 pure electricity
In terms of electrical performance, the e:NS1 does not perform well. Its single motor has a maximum power of 150 kW (about 204 hp) and a maximum torque of 310 N·m. Compared with the 1.5T turbocharged engine of the honda XR-V, a fuel vehicle in the same class, there is no significant improvement in power, with 28 horsepower and 90N·m of torque. However, the e:NS1 car weighs nearly 300kg more than the XR-V, and the actual driving power of the e:NS1 may not be as good as the high-end version of the XR-V.
▲Honda e:NS1
If compared with the same level of Xiaopeng G3i, BYD Song PLUS EV, the advantages of independent brand models are actually not obvious.
▲Honda e:NS1 compared with the same level of independent brand models
For example, the Motor Power Parameters of Xiaopeng G3i, BYD Song PLUS EV, honda e:NS1 are basically the same, the battery capacity is about 70kWh, The Xiaopeng G3i high-end model has 520km NEDC endurance, BYD Song PLUS EV has 505km NEDC endurance, and Honda e:NS1 high-end model has 510km CLTC endurance. Due to the different standards, the paper parameters of the three-car endurance are not obvious.
▲Xiaopeng G3i
It can be said that the Honda e:NS1 has electric performance that is not lower than the average level. However, if we analyze it on the other hand, the performance difference between independent brands and joint venture brands in the electric era is almost zero, and the advantages of joint venture brands are gradually decreasing.
From the moment Honda unveiled the e:NS1, I believe many people have noticed that a large battery protrudes under the chassis of this car. From this point alone, e:NS1 has a full "oil to electricity" meaning.
e:NS1 This car is based on the front-drive pure electric architecture e:N Architecture F, which is a single-motor front drive force system. It can also be seen in the disassembly diagram that the upper part of the battery Pack of the platform is not flat, which should make up a lot of space for the fuel vehicle structure.
Honda forewel pure electric architecture e:N Architecture F
Coupled with the fact that e:NS1 has the exact same 2610mm wheelbase as Dongfeng Honda XR-V and GAC Honda Binzhi two fuel vehicles, or the domestic market special supply car developed by the Chinese team, it can basically be judged that Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 and the upcoming GAC Honda e:NP1 are electric vehicles built based on the fuel platform.
▲e:N Architecture power system
In the Honda electric platform unveiled last year, the e:N Architecture W has two powertrains of all-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive, and also adopts a flat power battery pack, which may be the real pure electric platform.
2, Toyota bZ4X benchmark Volkswagen ID.4
Toyota bZ4X has a single-motor front drive and a dual-motor four-wheel drive two-wheel drive, the front-drive model is equipped with a 150kW (about 204 hp) motor, the maximum torque of 265N·m. The all-wheel drive model is equipped with dual 80kW (about 109 hp), a total of 160 kW (about 217 hp) power motors, and a maximum torque of 336 N·m.
Toyota bZ4X
In terms of battery capacity, the previous conference did not explain. The car was sold to GAC Toyota to learn that the bZ4X was equipped with a battery with a capacity of 72.82kWh. Compared with the Honda e:NS1, the battery capacity of the Toyota bZ4X has not been significantly improved, but the battery life has improved significantly. Its two-wheel drive model has a CLTC range of 615km, and the four-wheel drive model has a CLTC range of 560km.
Coupled with the pre-sale price range of Toyota's bZ4X of 220,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan, the positioning is significantly higher, and Toyota faces stronger opponents.
Looking through the entire automotive market, the pure electric SUV between 200,000 yuan and 300,000 yuan is indeed not mature enough.
Among the independent brand models, BYD Tang EV is the most advantageous car in the same model size, but the pre-price has exceeded 300,000 yuan. Other models are obviously weak, GAC Aean LX, Zero Run C11, WM W6... Without exception, these models have not really leveraged the market of 200,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan.
Toyota bZ4X compared to Volkswagen ID.4
On the contrary, the joint venture brand has a good life in this market, especially the Volkswagen ID.4. According to the insurance volume data of domestic new energy vehicles in March this year, the insurance volume of the TWO models of the North and South Volkswagen ID.4 X and ID.4 CROZZ models was 2527 and 3230 vehicles respectively, totaling 5757 vehicles.
▲SAIC Volkswagen ID.4 X
The Toyota bZ4X is another pure electric model that challenges the price range of 200,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan.
Compared to the Volkswagen ID.4, the Toyota bZ4X has a similar range, but the ID.4 battery has an additional capacity of 10kWh. At the same time, the performance of the four-wheel drive version of the ID.4 is more powerful than that of the bZ4X, while Toyota is more like distributing half of the power of the two-wheel drive to the rear axle, and the performance improvement of the four-wheel drive is not obvious.
Here can draw a second conclusion, in terms of electric performance, Toyota bZ4X to face the real opponent is actually volkswagen ID.4, and the performance and endurance of the two mainstream models of the car have reached the same level, and can even be described with knife precision.
3, Nissan Ariya benchmark Model Y
The real strength of the Japanese top three is actually Dongfeng Nissan Ariya.
The car has not yet released parameters, nor specific price information, but from the previous declaration, this car is indeed not simple.
▲Dongfeng Nissan Ariya declaration chart
Dongfeng Nissan Aria is also divided into two power versions, single-motor front-drive and dual-motor four-wheel drive, of which the single-motor model has a maximum of 178kW (about 242 horsepower) power, and the dual-motor model has 320kW (about 435 horsepower) power, and the power system is directly close to the Tesla Model Y.
Nissan Ariya vs Tesla Model Y
However, in terms of endurance, the distance between the two cars is somewhat large. At present, Nissan has announced the EPA endurance estimate of the Ariya single-motor model in the United States, which is about 480km, and the EPA endurance of the dual-motor model is estimated at 424km. Compared with the American version of tesla Model Y, the EPA of the high-performance version model has a range of 484km, and the EPA of the long-endurance model has a range of 528km.
In terms of endurance, nissan Ariaya, whether it is a single motor or a dual motor, has lost to model Y, but the gap between the two is very close.
Tesla Model Y
In addition, Dongfeng Nissan Ariya's high-end model has a battery capacity of 87kWh, which is 8.6kWh more than tesla Model Y high-performance version, but the weight of the car is 200kg more. In terms of 100 km/h acceleration performance, Nissan Ariya will also have a certain degree of decline.
That is to say, Nissan Ariya originally wanted to make a model with full power and endurance, but in fact it failed to dominate the parameters.
Compared with Honda's "oil to electricity", Toyota bZ4X and Nissan Ariya both use pure electric platforms. Therefore, in terms of electric performance, Toyota and Nissan have significantly improved, and the pricing is also higher.
Compared with Honda's "oil to electricity", Toyota bZ4X and Nissan Ariya both use pure electric platforms. Therefore, in terms of electric performance, Toyota and Nissan have significantly improved, and the pricing is also higher.
In the competition of electric performance, in addition to the Nissan Ariya can not really benchmark the Model Y, Toyota bZ4X, Honda e: NS1 have a certain degree of competitiveness in the same price range, the parameters are not significantly behind, but also did not get an absolute lead.
Second, only equipped with single-lane L2 backward era
In terms of power and endurance, the Honda e: NS1, Toyota bZ4X, Nissan Ariya and the same class of models can still compete back and forth. In the field of intelligence, the situation is about to change.
In terms of autonomous driving, all three cars are only equipped with a single-lane L2 automatic driving function.
However, the reality of the domestic new energy vehicle market is that the 100,000 yuan level car already has the L2 level automatic driving function, the 200,000 yuan level car has advanced functions such as command lane change, and the 300,000 yuan level car needs to have more L2 advanced functions such as NOA and off-hand driving.
It can be said that the automatic driving system of the Japanese three-strong pure tram is obviously lagging behind this era.
1. 150,000 models already have the function of commanding lane change
Honda e: NS1 in addition to the minimum model, are also equipped with Honda SENSING safety super sense system, this system can achieve L2 level automatic driving function on highways, urban expressways and other sections, but also has traffic congestion auxiliary function, these two functions can be said to be the basic function of L2 automatic driving, but also the standard configuration of 100,000 yuan class models.
▲ Honda e: NS1 is equipped with L2 automatic driving system
For example, in the 150,000 to 200,000 yuan class model, the Xiaopeng G3i, which is the same level as e:NS1, has a command-type lane change function, and it will automatically adjust the speed when driving into the corner, which can significantly save more energy in the daily driving process.
At the same time, Xiaopeng G3i also supports advanced functions such as automatic parking in and out parking spaces, mobile app parking, summoning, remote key parking, etc.
2, 200,000 yuan model is having NOA
The bZ4X comes standard with the third-generation Toyota Safety Sense (TSS 3.0) Smart Walk security system, which is also the first model in China to be equipped with this system. However, compared to the TSS 2.0 on toyota's other models, this system only has some safety upgrades (door opening warning system and predictive active driver assistance system), and there is no improvement in the L2's automatic driving function.
▲Toyota bZ4X driver assistance function
The system's perception hardware is a single sight camera and a millimeter-wave radar, which can achieve L2 level autonomous driving functions.
▲Toyota bZ4X driver assistance hardware configuration
However, in the price range of 220,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan for the bZ4X, there are already many models that can be equipped with NOA functions. For example, Xiaopeng P7 and Tesla Model 3 are strong in this price segment, and noA functions can be achieved through optional configuration.
▲Tesla's NOA function
3. Models above 300,000 yuan have more advanced functions
The specific configuration of Nissan Aria is unknown, but according to the declaration chart, it can be speculated that it is equipped with a ProPILOT super intelligent driving system. This system has ICC integrated adaptive cruise function and has been installed in many models such as Tianlai.
Nissan Aria, which may be more priced after the listing, will have to face competition from the BMW iX3 and Tesla Model Y. For example, the BMW iX3 has a traffic jam assist function, supporting off-the-hand driving within 60km/h, and the Tesla Model Y can also be equipped with an optional NOA function.
It is worth noting that the Nissan Ariya overseas version of the model is equipped with a ProPILOT 2.0 automatic driving system. This system can realize navigation assisted driving (NOA), after opening, the vehicle can follow the navigation route, and can also actively change lanes to overtake during driving, or enter and exit ramps.
▲Nissan ProPILOT 2.0 autonomous driving system
And, when the vehicle is cruising in a single lane, Nissan's ProPILOT 2.0 also allows the driver to let go of his hands to drive, only to confirm on the steering wheel when overtaking and changing lanes.
Compared with the domestic ProPILOT, the sensor of the ProPILOT 2.0 system is more complex, with three single sight cameras and 5 millimeter wave radars.
▲ Comparison of domestic (left) and overseas (right) Nissan Ariya assisted driving cameras
Maybe in a future version of Nissan Ariya, we can experience this system. However, from the current declaration chart, the front-view camera module of Dongfeng Nissan Ariya is significantly smaller, so it is speculated that it is not equipped with the ProPILOT 2.0 system.
Overall, the automatic driving ability of the Japanese three-strong pure electric SUV has lagged behind a whole generation compared with the models on sale, and is being hoisted by independent brands and overseas brand models.
In 2022, coinciding with the time when large computing chips such as Nvidia Orin are on the car, the urban L2 is getting closer and closer to mass production. The Japanese Sanqiang pure electric SUV is equipped with a high-speed single-lane L2, which has been difficult to attract more domestic users.
Third, the highlights of the intelligent cockpit are insufficient, inheriting the fuel era
Looking at the pure tram market in 2022, the smart cockpit must be one of the core configurations of new cars.
But in this regard, the Honda e: NS1, Toyota bZ4X, Nissan Ariya still have few bright spots.
Honda e:NS1 is equipped with honda CONNECT 3.0 smart cockpit system with a 15.1-inch central control screen and 10.25-inch digital instrumentation, as well as streaming mirrors and driver status perception system.
▲ Honda e: NS1 cockpit
On the central control screen, e:NS1 can realize AR real-life navigation, electronic payment functions, and also have entertainment functions such as QQ music, Himalaya, and cloud listening. The AI voice assistant in the car can recognize navigation, music, car control commands, and can also recognize dialects such as Sichuanese and Cantonese.
Toyota bZ4X is equipped with a 7-inch LCD instrument and a 12.3-inch central control screen, the software and system are basically the same as its other models, whether it is the functional layout or interface design is very similar.
Toyota bZ4X cockpit
Functionally, basic navigation can be realized, and the software and hardware in the car such as window, air conditioning, navigation, music, and Bluetooth phone can be controlled by voice. At the same time, there are music, podcasts, videos and other content services. As can be seen from Apple's official website, bZ4X supports Apple's CarPlay mobile phone mapping system.
Unfortunately, Toyota did not add an app store to the car machine.
Nissan Aria is equipped with dual 12.3-inch screens, which are quite common in the automotive industry. But since the car has not yet been launched, the software features are temporarily unknown. But Apple's official website also shows that Nissan Aria will support Apple CarPlay.
▲ Nissan Aria interior
In summary, the intelligent cockpit system of the Japanese three-strong pure electric SUV is still relatively basic, and its functions are also being hoisted by the smart cars on the market.
Compared with the joint venture models of the same level, the Volkswagen ID. series is equipped with wireless CarPlay as standard, and the local optimization of the built-in system of the car is still insufficient.
▲Volkswagen ID.4 supports wireless Carplay
Compared with the same level of independent brand models, Models within 200,000 yuan such as Xiaopeng G3i and BYD Song PLUS EV all have Android models. For example, xiaopeng P5, its intelligent cockpit configuration is more powerful, with 8155 chips, not only can freely download apps, but also has continuous dialogue, visible and speakable and other advanced AI voice functions.
▲Xiaopeng G3i smart cockpit
It is true that in the field of cockpit intelligence, the local optimization level of joint venture brands is generally not high, and there is still a long distance compared with the "big tablet" that can play Apps, watch videos, and play games.
The reason is that the investment in software research and development is not enough. In recent years, software has been the direction of efforts of many overseas brands.
In the past, domestic Tesla models did not have localized video apps, and there were no domestic manufacturers to provide software specifically for Tesla vehicles. Therefore, Tesla's Chinese software team started on its own and successively developed localized video apps such as Youku and Bilibili.
▲BMW i7 rear screen
In addition, there are luxury brand models that have joined the services of domestic companies, such as Mercedes-Benz adding Huawei HMS for Car for some cars, BMW joining Tencent Small Scene, and the newly released BMW i7 adding localized applications such as Huawei App Store and iQiyi to the rear screen.
Not long ago, Volkswagen announced that its CARIAD software company has established a domestic team, with more than 600 R & D personnel, and will lead the OTA update and autonomous driving research and development of electric vehicle models in the future. At the end of 2020, BMW's software development team in China has exceeded 400 people. In March this year, Mercedes-Benz established an R&D center in Shanghai, which will focus on research and development in the fields of intelligent interconnection, autonomous driving, software and hardware development and big data, and the team is expected to be hundreds of people.
When European and American car companies rushed to establish software research and development teams in China, the top three Japanese car companies were collectively absent. An excellent local software team is behind a set of easy-to-use intelligent car and machine systems.
The top three Japanese brands rarely explore the application ecological level, and the update is relatively lagging behind, not to mention the innovative form of creating a smart cockpit.
The pure electric SUV launched in 2022 by the Japanese three is even more difficult to attract domestic users from the perspective of smart cockpit.
Conclusion: It is difficult to have the "Japanese Top Three" in the era of pure electricity
From the early days of the development of electric vehicles, independent brands have realized that electrification is an opportunity for the rise of China's automotive industry. Because the three-electric system of electric vehicles generally comes from suppliers, it is difficult to open a huge gap between products.
This phenomenon becomes more pronounced as intelligence enters the automotive industry. The lack of localization ability of overseas car companies is precisely the opportunity for the rise of domestic car companies.
After 2010, Japanese brands have experienced a counterattack from the bottom to the peak, and the sales of Toyota, Honda and Nissan, the top three Japanese companies, in China are also quite strong. However, the electrification transformation of Japanese brands is indeed a step too late, and the first batch of pure electric platform models will be available in 2022.
In addition to the late entry, honda e: NS1, Toyota bZ4X, Nissan Ariya's electric performance is not outstanding, automatic driving is generally behind the same class of models a generation, cockpit configuration is mostly limited to basic functions, so that these three cars have more "untimely" feeling.
If it had been a little earlier, the pure tram of the Japanese top three might have been able to beat another piece of the sky.