According to the latest data from The Paper, in the past January, Xpeng Motors' sales declined again, selling only 8,250 units, a figure that is not even as good as Huawei, Ideal, Weilai and other competitors, and slightly inferior to Nezha and Leap. Xpeng Motors is facing increased competition in the external market, as well as internal corruption and infighting, which are particularly evident in the Xpeng X9.
The X9, an MPV model with high hopes from Xpeng, attracted widespread attention when it debuted at the Guangzhou Auto Show, attracting a large number of fans. However, a crash safety expert noted that the X9 had significant flaws in its design, sacrificing safety for the sake of space. In the event of a rear-end collision, the safety of rear passengers cannot be guaranteed. This accusation has undoubtedly put tremendous pressure on Xpeng Motors.
In response to the doubts, Xpeng's public relations, safety and technology departments rushed out, providing design drawings and claiming that the X9's rear-end collision at 88 km/h would not threaten the safety of third-row passengers. However, they ignore a key statistic: what is the overlap rate in a rear-end collision? It's like a firearm shooting, where a bullet passing by and hitting the center of the eyebrow are two completely different concepts.
It is understood that Xpeng X9 has been full of controversy from the beginning of the project. The various departments within the company quarreled and even fought for their own interests. In the process of designing an MPV, more than a dozen cups were smashed because of disagreements. Xpeng Motors revealed this story, perhaps to show the hard-won success of the X9, but at the same time, it also raises questions about its internal management: are they all so emotionally unstable? The designer's differences of opinion are so big that they need to be solved by smashing the cup, is the safety of such a car still guaranteed?
The root of all this confusion may be found in Xpeng's request for the X9: the space is large enough to be larger than any of its competitors. However, the pursuit of space under constant conditions will inevitably lead to some compromises in other areas, and hopefully this will not include safety features. For example, in order to make more space in the trunk, the trunk team challenged the rear-wheel team to minimize the size of the rear-wheel steering system as much as possible. The rear wheel team was forced to design the smallest components, resulting in a significant increase in trunk space. However, this optimization comes at the expense of steering performance.
For another example, in order to increase the space of the body, the chassis, styling, general assembly and other departments have proposed to compress each other's space needs. Each department claims that they have no way back, but pressure from their superiors forces them to come up with a solution. The atmosphere in the conference room was tense to the extreme, as if it was just a point. At this time, experienced department heads often choose to solve the problem in a drastic way - since they can't convince their colleagues at the same level, they simply smash the cup to cause a sensation and push the problem to He Xiaopeng to make a decision. The "water cup" flew around, and finally landed on He Xiaopeng's table.
Xpeng's internal management problems have always been with us. Not only are there many contradictions within the design team, but there is also a serious problem of corruption in the supply chain. Shockingly, the person who discovered the problem was not Xpeng Motors, but Volkswagen of Germany. In order to facilitate the cooperation between the two parties, He Xiaopeng has provided internal information to Volkswagen for reference. I didn't know if I didn't check, and I was shocked when I checked it, and Volkswagen's auditors found that the price of auto parts purchased by Xpeng was much higher than the market price. At a Chinese-style dinner, Volkswagen CEO Braid tactfully pointed out to He Xiaopeng: "Your purchase price seems to be a little unreasonable, 25% higher than the outside." This made He Xiaopeng deeply embarrassed, because even he himself did not know about the corruption problem in his own company.
Corruption in the supply chain is likely to affect the safety of automobiles. Every rebate paid for Xpeng's purchases and sales may eventually turn into defective parts or high car prices, all of which are ultimately paid for by the car owner. Why did the various departments get into such a heated fight during the design of the X9 model? Is it just to provide users with a larger space experience? Not really. They may still have an unwritten rule in their minds: If the space in charge of their own department becomes smaller, the opportunities for procurement will be reduced, so how can they profit from it? As a result, the water cups flying out of the conference room have undoubtedly become a symbol of the renminbi in the eyes of the participants.
Last year, there were 12 people on the list of Xpeng executives, and this year there are only two left. Internal strife and corruption are gradually draining Xpeng's competitiveness. Before Xpeng Motors has stepped on the field of the "new energy vehicle company knockout competition", it may collapse in the locker room. Xpeng Motors must face up to its own internal problems, otherwise no matter how brilliant the future is, it will be just empty talk.
(ENDS)