"Hollow out the mind" and make the pain points dividends! | week of car market observation

The "May Day" holiday, which was supposed to be the peak consumption season of the automobile market, became particularly "low-key" due to the impact of the epidemic, and even the Asian Games Village automobile trading market, known as the "barometer" of the Beijing automobile market, was also a door to the door. Judging from market feedback, the customer arrival volume and transaction volume of 4S stores in Beijing during the "May Day" holiday are generally much lower than that of the same period last year.

How can the car market in the epidemic not passively "lie flat"? In order to encourage automobile consumption, favorable policies of the state and local governments have been frequently introduced, and at the same time, many car companies have begun to dig deep into market demand in order to seek opportunities in danger. "From the perspective of the automotive industry and the contribution of the entire industry to the entire national economy, the automotive industry cannot be allowed to 'lie flat'. As a result, regaining confidence in development is the only option facing the automotive industry. Su Hui, executive vice president of the China Automobile Dealers Association Tangible Market Chamber of Commerce, said.

The MPV market hides dividends

During the "May Day" period, SAIC Maxus' new MPV G90 was finally listed. Among them, the seven-seat recommended model is priced at 219,900-299,900 yuan, and the six-seat recommended model is priced at 249,900-329,900 yuan. The reason why I say "finally" is because the G90 was originally scheduled to go public on March 31. It is understood that the sudden outbreak of the epidemic has disrupted the normal production and business plan of SAIC Maxus, and serious problems have arisen in the transportation of raw materials and vehicles. Until recently, SAIC Maxus Wuxi Base, which undertook the heavy responsibility of production, resumed work and production. The relevant person in charge of SAIC Maxus particularly emphasized the purpose of listing the G90, that is, to seize the higher-end market, "facing the future, SAIC Maxus will also create a richer high-end MPV matrix through core technology, advanced intelligent manufacturing concepts and C2B users to create customization and other advantages, and achieve comprehensive product and brand upgrades."

In fact, the domestic MPV market has been in a downward trend since 2016. Even if the "two-child" policy is implemented, the MPV market has not been able to usher in the expected dividends, and even BYD, which has performed strongly in the sedan and SUV camp, has also performed bleakly in the MPV market. According to the data, the cumulative sales volume of the MPV market from January to March 2022 was 206,000 units, down 7.7% year-on-year. However, it should be noted that although the overall market is lower, it is mainly the low-end MPV market that is shrinking, and the mid-to-high-end MPV has accounted for more than 50% of the market share, and the share has increased by 12.2% compared with the same period last year. The demand in the mid-to-high-end MPV market is still strong, but it is not easy to eat this cake.

Almost everyone who has ridden an MPV has felt this way, and the cramped space in the third row is often embarrassing, even mainstream models such as the Buick GL8 and the Honda Odyssey have not been able to avoid this problem. The market has unmet demand, and car companies have a breakthrough point to break through the market. "For the G90, every occupant is so important that we have cleverly laid out the cockpit." The above-mentioned person in charge was introduced. This is the most attractive place of the G90, that is, "all seats are equal, everyone is VIP", which directly solves the pain points of family and business cars, which is also the result of the active co-creation of SAIC Maxus and users. Inside the G90, in addition to the one-piece smart triple screen in the front row and the space capsule luxury seats in the second row, the G90 provides the third row of users with the same luxurious configuration as the front VIP seats: equipped with two independent power seats, supporting heating, ventilation, massage, leg rest and power adjustment functions, and equipped with an oversized rear window with a viewing area of 0.2 square meters.

It can be seen that the former MPV models are designed with the concept of "the first row of drivers, the second row of bosses, and the third row of dispensables", which has led to most consumers with family travel needs having to give up MPV models with more space and more convenient to get on and off, and choose SUVs instead. With the car companies digging deep into this pain point, the mid-to-high-end MPV is fully transforming into "IKEA YISHANG". In the words of Lu Fang, CEO of Lantu, "it is necessary to meet the scene of multi-person travel with high quality, and even pay attention to the driving experience of drivers." Unlike the focus of the SAIC Maxus G90, the recently listed Lantu Dreamer pays more attention to the driver's comfort requirements. Not long ago, Hongqi's first MPV (internal code "C095") began road tests, and the new car will be launched in the second quarter of this year. From the spy look, the car's rear comfort is significantly stronger than Toyota's aviation seats. It can be seen that in order to achieve better interior space, most of the high-end MPV that has been listed and will be listed this year are more than 5.1m in length, more than 3m in wheelbase, and nearly 2m in width, and the size exceeds last year's best-selling high-end MPV Toyota Alpha.

There is no doubt that the MPV market is a blue ocean with rich market potential, but if you want to gain a foothold in this market segment, it is not only the competition of product strength, but more importantly, the use of differentiated competition to suppress the appeal of traditional joint venture brands in the MPV market.

The new policy stimulates the circulation of the car market

On May 1, the Ministry of Public Security's newly revised "Provisions on Motor Vehicle Registration" was officially implemented, and the new regulations introduced a series of facilitation measures in the registration and inspection of motor vehicles: First, motor vehicle registration can enjoy "one-stop service", which means that the procedures for buying cars, selling cars, buying insurance, annual inspections and other procedures can be handled one-stop; second, the registration of small and micro non-operating vehicles in different places can be "one certificate and one office" nationwide, without providing other certificates; third, the registration of new cars can be exempted from inspection and license. The registration of new cars is expected to be reduced from the original 8 links and 5 working days to 3 links and 2 working days; fourth, the change information of motor vehicles can be realized without returning to the original registration place; fifth, the license plate exchange system can be realized, and if the owner has two cars under his name, he can exchange license plates.

Guo Yan, director of the China Automotive Strategic Development Research Center of Tianjin University, told the China Times reporter: "The implementation of the new regulations on the registration of motor vehicles has a positive significance for various types of motor vehicles, including fuel vehicles and electric vehicles, and is expected to have a positive impact on the development of the automotive industry, which will enhance the activity of new and second-hand car transactions at the same time." ”

Since the beginning of this year, Guangzhou, Shenyang, Hangzhou, Changsha, Zhuhai, Foshan, Nanjing and other places have introduced measures to promote automobile consumption, which mainly include increasing passenger car indicators, subsidies for the purchase of new cars or new energy vehicles, subsidies for old cars for new ones, and the introduction of different forms of consumption coupons or direct profits. On April 25, the State Council issued the Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Further Releasing Consumption Potential and Promoting the Sustained Recovery of Consumption, proposing to steadily increase bulk consumption such as automobiles. Among them, it is clearly pointed out that all regions must not add new car purchase restriction measures, promote the transformation of consumer goods such as automobiles from purchase management to use management, and support the accelerated development of new energy vehicles.

"In my decades of career, I have rarely seen the current sluggish car market, but in the face of a variety of uncertainties and unknown expectations of 'containment', I always try to find a way out. The automotive industry and the macro economy are like the relationship between fish and water, and the main tone of economic stability is also applicable to the current development of the automobile industry, at this time, what the automotive industry has to do is to stabilize the stock, stabilize customers, and let the market have confidence. Su Hui stressed.

Responsible Editor: Li Yan'an Editor-in-Chief: Yu Jianping