Image source: @VisualChina
Text|Pole Business, author|Liu Shanshan, editor|Yang Ming
March 21, 2018, inside the Great Wall Motor plant in Baoding, Hebei Province.
The broadcast sounded without warning, announcing to all employees that Chairman Wei Jianjun had asked Gaohuan and Test Mountain to ban any vehicles from entering for receiving important visitors, and that violators would be severely fined.
The mystery was later revealed, and the important visitor was BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu. Earlier, the two had met at BYD in Shenzhen to shake hands.
In a short period of time, the "frankness" of the chairmen of the two giants of domestic brands has attracted many cooperation reveries from the outside world. This friendship was maintained at least until September 2021, when BYD transferred the trademark "Wei" to Great Wall free of charge. Similarly, Great Wall also transferred the "landing ship" trademark to BYD last year
Under market competition, friendship completely capsized, tearing faces into enemies.
On May 25, Great Wall Motor issued a statement through its official WeChat public account, saying that on April 11, Great Wall Motor submitted reporting materials to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, reporting on the use of atmospheric pressure fuel tanks by BYD Qin PLUS DM-i and Song PLUS DM-i, suspected of not meeting the standard of evaporative pollutant emissions from the whole vehicle.
One stone stirs up a thousand waves. Since Gree reported Oaks in 2009, although open and secret battles between various industries have been the norm, there is no precedent for automakers to publicly report another automaker. Moreover, under the strict requirements of China VI, the seriousness of whether the "emission standard" meets the standard is an issue related to the Environmental Protection Law, which has long exceeded the scope of general public relations warfare.
Nowadays, China's new energy vehicles have just seen the hope of joint venture brands such as "overtaking on curves" BBA, and BYD is undoubtedly one of the "leaders". Such a public "report" is not difficult to imagine the huge impact on BYD, which is equivalent to putting Wang Chuanfu on fire. So, why did Wei Jianjun put Wang Chuanfu on fire despite his former friendship?
01 The truth is inconclusive
The BYD Qin PLUS DM-i, which was accused by Great Wall, is a compact model under the BYD Dynasty series, with a reference price of 105,800-145,800 yuan, and will be launched on February 10, 2021. The Song PLUS DM-i is a compact hybrid SUV equipped with BYD's latest DM-i hybrid technology, with a pre-sale price of 153,800-175,800, and will be launched on March 25, 2021.
On the afternoon of May 25, BYD also held a launch conference for the Song Pro DM-i Champion Edition. Perhaps it is no coincidence that the Great Wall chose to openly bombard at this time.
In response to the shelling of Great Wall Motor, BYD issued a statement with many alleged typos, saying that the vehicles sent by Great Wall for inspection did not meet the requirements and the test report was invalid.
BYD pointed out that after understanding the situation mentioned by Great Wall, the test vehicles were purchased, kept and sent for inspection by Great Wall, and the China Automotive Center (Tianjin) carried out the testing of relevant items according to the requirements of Great Wall. Strictly speaking, the test vehicle does not meet the requirements of the national standard inspection status, that is, it should be sampled, stored and sent for inspection by a third party, and requires the completion of 3,000 kilometers of run-in testing, while the vehicle sent for inspection by Great Wall has a mileage of only 450-670 kilometers at the time of testing.
At the same time, BYD said in a statement that it resolutely opposes any form of unfair competition and welcomes relevant departments to come to investigate, collect evidence and test at any time. Many BYD executives also spoke out on social platforms, "Blowing out other people's lights will not make yourself brighter!" ”
However, BYD did not respond positively to Great Wall Motor's accusations about the key indicator of atmospheric pressure fuel tanks, nor did it mention the relevant technologies and patents it owned. On major social platforms, there is a lot of discussion in the industry about this, and there is no conclusion. Some netizens believe that the "running-in" of BYD's response is not directly related to the alleged atmospheric pressure fuel tank, and Great Wall Motor should have certain information to be able to report it in its real name so recklessly.
Some automotive industry technicians said that the so-called atmospheric pressure fuel tank can be understood as a constant pressure fuel tank, which is commonly found in traditional fuel vehicles. Simply put, in the pipeline between the fuel tank and the outside world, there is a carbon canister device, which adsorbs gasoline vapor and helps to fully combust, effectively controlling the pressure of the tank while reducing fuel waste.
For PHEV hybrid vehicles, due to the short engine running time during driving, when the vehicle is driving in EV mode, the engine does not start, which may lead to insufficient adsorption capacity of the carbon canister, and gasoline vapor that is not fully burned will be discharged through the air port of the carbon canister to form pollution. Therefore, the hybrid industry usually uses more costly high-pressure fuel tanks to avoid the evaporation of oil and gas to the outside world.
There are three main categories of automobile emissions: automobile exhaust emissions, evaporation emissions, and refueling emissions. Since July 1, 2023, the full implementation of China VI emission standard 6b stage nationwide, known in the industry as the "world's strictest emission standard" The full landing of the China VI standard, puts forward more stringent requirements for three types of emission requirements, BYD Qin and Song, the fuel tank-related emissions used in the two models belong to the category of evaporative emissions.
This is the core of BYD's bombardment by Great Wall - it alludes to the evaporation emissions of BYD's two models that do not meet the requirements of China VI. From the relevant information, BYD did not clarify whether the fuel tanks of Qin and Song PLUS were normal pressure or high pressure. Emissions that do not meet standards are sensitive topics for global automakers, and Volkswagen and BMW have been heavily fined by various countries for this
However, some insiders pointed out that even if atmospheric pressure fuel tanks are used, the pollution caused by the evaporation emissions of oil and gas of hybrid models is a very complicated matter. In view of the fact that both sides insisted on their own words and said to themselves, whether the situation reported by Great Wall Motor is true needs to be verified and verified by the relevant competent authorities.
A netizen debated the key question is, Great Wall is not a consumer and regulatory authority, does it have the right to report BYD?
"Article 10 of the Product Quality Law stipulates that any unit or individual has the right to report violations of the provisions of this Law to the market regulatory department or other relevant departments." Some members of the legal profession said that anyone has the right to report suspected violations of laws and regulations, whether they are consumers, governments and associations, or competitors.
So, does the Great Wall violate the unfair competition in BYD's response? The above-mentioned legal professionals pointed out that Article 11 of the Anti-Unfair Competition Law stipulates that business operators must not fabricate or disseminate false or misleading information to damage the commercial reputation and product reputation of competitors. If the Great Wall does not fabricate and spread false or misleading information, then there is no "problem of unfair competition".
If the Great Wall report "exaggerates" and "fictitiously" relevant information, it involves "framing" and other issues. "With such media attention, the impact on BYD must be great, and if the report is false, it is suspected of damaging goodwill and other illegal acts." The people said that although emissions have little impact on consumers, they are always a good thing and need to be viewed with normalcy.
02 BYD flew into the sky, and the Great Wall fell to the ground
At present, Muqin PLUS and Song PLUS are BYD's best-selling vehicles. According to data from the Passenger Association, in the first four months of this year, BYD Qin was the highest domestic retail sales of new energy cars, with sales of 131,000 units, accounting for 14% of the market. BYD Song is the highest domestic retail sales of new energy SUVs, with sales of 174,000 units and a market share of 20.5%.
This has helped BYD to firmly hold the domestic automobile sales champion. In the first four months of this year, BYD sold 762,400 units, a year-on-year increase of 91.83%.
Compared with BYD flying into the sky, Great Wall Motor fell to the ground. In the first quarter of this year, Great Wall Motor was the independent car company with the worst decline in sales, down 41.7% year-on-year; After being squeezed out of the top ten on the manufacturer's retail list from January to March, and directly squeezed out of 15 in the list from January to April, the sales of many sub-brands ushered in an extremely tragic decline.
The timeline is extended to 2022, and the gap also scares Wei Jianjun: BYD and Great Wall Motor will sell 1.8685 million and 1.0617 million units respectively in 2022, a difference of 800,000 units. BYD increased by 152.5% year-on-year, Great Wall Motor fell 17.11% year-on-year, and also faced the threat of inventory backlog of 85,100 vehicles.
Reflected in revenue, it is 2.37 times that of BYD Automobile's revenue as Great Wall. In 2022, BYD's revenue will be 424.061 billion yuan, and the revenue of automobile-related business will be 324.7 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth rate of 151.78%. Great Wall Motor's total operating revenue was 137.34 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of only 0.69%.
From the perspective of market competition, BYD's current market position is snatched from the hands of the Great Wall.
In terms of product type and pricing, BYD Song PLUS DM-i has direct competition with Great Wall Motor's PHEV models such as Haval Thunder Dragon, Haval Second-Generation Big Dog, Haval H6, and Weipai Macchiato. For example, in 2022, BYD Song sold 470,000 units, replacing the Haval H6 as the annual sales champion in the SUV market, while the Haval H6 only sold 250,000 units in the same period, down 29% year-on-year. It can be said that BYD Song successfully stepped on the shoulders of the Great Wall Haval.
The different performance of the market makes the "spirit" of the two leaders completely different. Wang Chuanfu set only one goal for BYD in 2023, to become China's largest automaker; Wei Jianjun's goal for Great Wall this year is a total sales target of 1.6 million vehicles and a penetration rate of 40% of new energy vehicles (sales of new energy vehicles are about 600,000 units).
With the intensification of the "price war" of car companies, the Great Wall group of cars that has fallen to the bottom and is in full decline, there are many doubts about whether this year's small goals can be achieved. The unstoppable development momentum of BYD, the goal of "China's largest automaker", seems to be in the bag.
03 Era showdown, who can have the last laugh
Geely, BYD and Great Wall are the three largest private car companies in mainland China. In the era of traditional fuel vehicles, Great Wall Motor is undoubtedly a successful representative.
Wei Jianjun is from an authentic traditional car company. As early as 1996, Wei Jianjun, who has a keen sense of smell, launched the first pickup truck of Great Wall, and has quickly become a giant in the domestic pickup truck field. In 2003, Great Wall Motor became the double champion of pickup trucks and SUVs in China, when Wang Chuanfu just entered the car manufacturing industry halfway by acquiring Xi'an Qinchuan Automobile.
Around 2011, the domestic auto market SUV boom rose, Haval H6 was listed in this year, cost-effective blessing quickly became a national god car, sent the Great Wall into the million-sales club, so that Wei Jianjun became the "richest man" in the A-share and car industry in 2014, when Great Wall Motor's management, technology, route and supply chain problems were successfully covered.
When fuel vehicles brought Wei Jianjun infinite glory, Wang Chuanfu struggled because he was the first to deploy new energy.
"The future is the world of hybrid and electric vehicles." At the inauguration ceremony of Shenzhen Pingshan Base in 2007, Wang Chuanfu was amazing. A year later, BYD launched the world's first mass-produced plug-in hybrid car, the F3DM, but it didn't make a big splash.
Also in 2011, BYD Auto encountered Waterloo, sales plummeted, stock prices plummeted, dealers withdrew from the Internet, and many people thought that "BYD is going to die." At the China Automotive Industry Development Forum in September of that year, it became the target of everyone's bombardment, and some experts said indignantly: "The government is so radical in the development of electric vehicles, BYD is responsible!" ”
The landing of the new energy vehicle policy has given Wang Chuanfu hope to survive the long waiting period of the industry. In the end, after Song MAX began to make up for the design shortcomings, coupled with the leading technology of blade battery and DM-i super hybrid, BYD soared in the new energy era, and the technical level, brand value, supply chain system, and market value volume were considered from multiple angles, and BYD was worthy of being a "leader" in the field of new energy vehicles.
Three feet of ice, not a day's cold. It is no coincidence that BYD has achieved today's achievements. Great Wall Motor fell behind, by no means sudden, the reasons have been discussed a lot, summarized in a few points: product planning is mainly niche cars, extremely complex and strange naming system, insufficient product strength WEY blindly pursuit of high-end failure, product continuity is not strong, channels are weak and marketing channels are weak, etc., dragged down by multiple factors, and finally led to many shortcomings in Great Wall Motor's strategic layout and independent innovation after the advent of the new energy era.
In the final analysis, it may still be due to the "closed thinking" of Wei Jianjun, the head of the company, on new energy when the halo was added.
A typical example is that in 2016, in the face of the menacing tide of new energy, Wei Jianjun, who was immersed in the success of Haval H6, publicly bombarded new energy vehicles as "not energy saving and environmental protection", and Great Wall Motor only became a follower in new energy.
The words and deeds of the head and the tone set by the followers, made Great Wall Motor's turn in the new energy track faltering and undecided, until August 2018, when Great Wall's independent brand ORA was established, was considered to fill the new energy gap.
In March this year, Great Wall Motor underwent internal organizational structure changes and released a new hybrid technology Hi4, in an attempt to fully shift to new energy. But one step is slow and slow, not to mention that the Great Wall is far more than one step slower, China's new energy market has completely entered a white heat, the rule-makers have become BYD, and it is even more difficult for the Great Wall to regain the glory of the past.
For Wei Jianjun, it is also disappointing that Hive Energy, which has been sharpened for ten years, has repeatedly hit the IPO, but has not been able to successfully go public. This is not only related to Great Wall Motor's big step in new energy, but also related to Wei Jianjun's own wealth. According to the previous valuation, as the actual controller of Hive Energy, if successfully listed, Wei Jianjun's net worth can increase by more than 20 billion yuan, and there is hope to beat Wang Chuanfu and return to the first place in the automobile circle
Objectively, Wei Jianjun and his Great Wall Motors are not completely without opportunities. First, the penetration rate of China's new energy vehicles will only be 25% in 2022, and there is still a lot of market space to be tapped; Second, BYD, "Wei Xiaoli" and other have their own shortcomings, and there are many new energy brands that have lost money and stopped production, and Great Wall Motor, which has created explosive models many times, the foundation is still there, and it may not be impossible to make a late attack
It is indeed very important for Great Wall to face up to and make up for its shortcomings, after all, Hi4 hybrid technology and BYD DMi can represent the correct technical route, which is a long-term market verification process. But in a short period of time, it is equally important to win back the market attention - Great Wall Motor hopes to defeat magic with magic and put itself back in the center of public opinion.
Some cases can confirm Great Wall Motor's urgency to exert its strength. In March this year, Great Wall Motor announced the launch of a 10 million yuan bounty plan to crack down on online trolls; In mid-May, at the launch conference of the Haval Thunder Dragon series, Mu Feng, president of Great Wall Motor, said: "Some car companies regard 'controlling public opinion as the primary productive force', some car companies 'spontaneously combust while driving, A-pillar deformation but silent', and some car companies 'win sales and lose the bottom line'." The object of "insinuation" is directed at BYD. In late May, on the day of BYD's Song press conference, an open letter of reporting was released
Kill a thousand enemies, self-damage eight hundred. Domestic fuel vehicles and new energy, two representatives of different eras, finally officially clashed, and no one is the winner at present. But for China's new energy vehicle industry, it is like a warning of the prosperous world: those colorful bubbles may not be so beautiful.