Text: Shanghai Ayi
In 2024, almost all the hot spots and controversies in the automobile circle, in addition to the ruthless tearing between car brands, are various MPV models.
For example, at the beginning of the year, one of the most popular focuses in the industry was the highly topical and controversial MEGA launched by Ideal. In the past two days, the ZEEKR brand has launched a ZEEKR 009 glorious version priced at 789,000 yuan and a wheel that has to be manually polished for 30 hours.
After the first two years of brewing, it seems that the wealth of the sky has finally come to the MPV field that was either commercial or commercial in the past.
Indeed, in 2023, Wuling Hongguang, which has long occupied the first place in the MPV market sales list, has begun to decline in sales. The top spot of a compact MPV is almost being snatched up by the Denza D9, a mid-to-large MPV that has also sold 110,000 units.
On the one hand, this shift in market focus stems from the changing and developing demographic structure of Chinese families. The use of MPVs has begun to tilt towards home users. Seven-seater MPV products for families, with higher configuration, larger space, more comfortable driving and stronger sense of technology, have become the primary consideration when people choose MPV.
On the other hand, it also stems from the past automobile market in China, and various segments are gradually saturated. That is to say, the traditional "micro-surface" products such as Wuling Hongguang have not been affected much, but the market share of such products has encountered a bottleneck, and the new growth point does not belong to them.
Of course, when all independent brands such as Ideal and Zeekr are squeezed into the blue ocean of this market, a new problem is born. What is a good MPV, and whether it can become a brand and product that truly controls the core voice in this market segment, has become the focus of everyone in the next stage.
In fact, for ordinary consumers, it seems that they will not surrender their attention more to the exclusive use of the domineering president, such as the Zeekrypton 009 glow version.
Refrigerators, color TVs, and large sofas are certainly attractive, but if there is more brand heritage, it is another important plus that can provide a sense of psychological safety. Of course, if we can further provide as many configurations as possible in the process of brand protection, it will add a complete set of competitiveness.
Obviously, within the boundaries of these conditions, the range of options is already very small. The GAC Toyota Sena is such a product that meets almost all conditions. Or rather, it's a better product than you think.
Why do I say that?
The strongest Sena in the world
Why is GAC Toyota Saina a product that can almost meet the current development trend of MPV?
First of all, it is necessary to say that in the more than 30 years since the birth of Sena, the overall tone and product characteristics that meet the needs of the family have been fully verified and affirmed in the North American market, which loves big cars, and later on a global scale.
At the same time, after entering China, GAC Toyota, a joint venture giant that plays a pivotal role in the Chinese auto market, has already figured out the real needs of Chinese consumers for more than 20 years.
The basic ability has been affirmed by the world, and the customization ability to adapt to the Chinese market is the most distinctive product feature of this Saina. It is no exaggeration to say that GAC Toyota has created a family MPV for the Chinese market that has truly become a model benchmark in terms of comfort, technology, driving performance, and user experience.
For example, the domestic version of the Sena central control part is equipped with a full LCD instrument and a larger 12.3-inch central control screen, while the imported model uses a mechanical instrument and a 4/7-inch TFT LCD instrument. Obviously, this is to cater to the overall trend of faster intelligent advancement in the Chinese auto market as a whole. In this way, whether it is in the degree of coolness, or in order to better human-computer interaction, it can provide a better user experience.
At present, it is obvious that GAC Toyota also intends to do so, and the 8155 chip + 12G can be used to make the car machine run more smoothly during use, and the response speed is increased by 8 times. At the same time, the redundancy of computing power also provides support and guarantee for the continuous upgrading of Saina's vehicle machine in the future.
At the same time, the car machine supports the interconnection of CarPlay, CarLife, and HiCar mobile phone systems at the same time, which brings great convenience. The new car is equipped with a head-up display, which can be linked with the 12.3-inch high-definition central control screen and the dashboard to make driving information clear at a glance.
In addition, the intelligent voice assistance system jointly developed with Huawei can communicate naturally like a human and understand the mix and match of Mandarin and dialects. The smart assistant can also realize the interconnection of the car and the home. With voice control, the driver and occupants can even adjust the lights, air conditioning, curtains, etc. in the car. In addition, various functions of the vehicle can be remotely controlled from outside the vehicle through a mobile phone.
In addition to intelligent technology, in terms of comfort experience, in fact, the domestic version of Sena has actually done much more than that.
For example, the E-Four electronic all-wheel drive system, which greatly improves driving stability and safety. It can realize a wide range of torque distribution, and flexibly adjust the power of the front and rear wheels. Providing better driving handling is one aspect, and more importantly, the active safety experience is greatly improved. With the T-Pilot intelligent driving assistance system, which has been verified for more than 20 billion kilometers with the goal of "error-free driving assistance", it is equipped with more than 20 billion kilometers of accident-free driving assistance system to achieve an easier and smarter driving experience.
At the same time, GAC Toyota's version of the Sena is also equipped with the same one-piece airline seat as Alpha for the first time. Unlike the North American version, this is exclusive to the Chinese market. The seat adopts an 8-layer composite structure, selected from Bavarian high-grade leather, which is soft and more snug and fitting. You can enjoy a "zero-gravity" lying position at any time in the airline seat, and you can easily get plenty of legroom by adjusting the electric slide rails.
There is no doubt that Toyota and GAC Toyota have basically equipped the mainstream product points that can be provided in the market.
On the one hand, it takes into account comfort, and on the other hand, it brings a cutting-edge technological experience. Fundamentally speaking, what Toyota wants to create for Sena is a complete set of all-round competitive products.
As one of the best Sena models in the world, GAC Toyota's Sena can compete with all products on the market, at least in terms of product strength. But a new question is, why should GAC Toyota Sena be upgraded specifically for Chinese users?
Build the best Sena,
Stemming from the importance of the market
From the market level, as a veteran MPV product that has been on the market for more than 30 years, the test and reputation that Saina has endured in the field of household MPV over the years have made them know what kind of needs family users have.
The technology and configuration are no different, but they will not go to the technology pile just for these two indicators. GAC Toyota is well aware of what kind of riding scene and life scene everyone in the family needs in an MPV model like Saina.
At the same time, the technology configuration that does not fall behind at all is a complete plus for Sena. It has enough strength to compete with products in the price range. In the case of positioning the same household, only focusing on the field of car manufacturing technology, no competitor dares to underestimate Saina.
Market data doesn't lie.
In the past 2023 alone, in the overall sales list of MPVs, Seina's annual ranking ranked fourth in the MPV market. The total sales volume is 76,575 units, and an average of 6,381 units can be sold in a month.
Don't underestimate this number.
In addition to the Denza D9, which ranks first and second, and the old MPV king Buick GL8, only GAC Trumpchi's M8 ranks ahead of Sena by a small margin.
In fact, just for now, even if it is only the No. 1 Denza D9, it is still only ahead of the race by 20,000 or 30,000 units. From this point of view, the entire market is still in a stage of uniform growth and steady climbing. Equal opportunities for all, and past rankings will not be the final ones at the moment.
Of course, as for the form of energy that is now the direction of trend development, whether it is the ideal MEGA, the 009 of ZEEKR, or the Denza D9, pure electric is a very important development trend.
But a more pragmatic point of view is that in the current situation, products with larger and heavier bodies and continuously larger batteries still need to solve the anxiety of efficiency and mileage of energy replenishment. Saina, which is still using the hybrid mode, is still committed to achieving an economical and anxiety-free travel experience.
Don't think it's a conservative energy strategy.
In fact, when a family MPV is at this stage, in various family travel scenarios, energy anxiety occurs, and even energy replenishment "crisis". You will find that a product that gives the whole family peace of mind is the best product.
Obviously, this is not a route that Toyota is taking alone. At the upcoming Beijing Auto Show, the GL8 Luzun, which has dominated the MPV field for many years, will also launch a plug-in hybrid model. In fact, what should be avoided is that the brand influence they have accumulated in the field of business MPV for many years will not let users turn around to find charging piles on the way to business negotiations because of power outages.
There is no doubt that only established manufacturers such as Toyota and Buick can truly have a deeper understanding of the user's usage scenarios. Only by thoroughly understanding these scenarios can we provide the core competitiveness of MPV models - peace of mind.
This is the experience that must be provided by both home and commercial MPVs, and it is also a respect for users.
Obviously, Sena can do exactly that.
end
For the MPV market, the price range of more than 300,000 to 400,000 yuan is another market that will inevitably become a red sea of prices after more than 100,000 yuan in the past.
If you want to survive in this market, you need to have strong product competitiveness. It is more necessary to truly understand the needs of users and understand their wishes.
Obviously, the products of Seina for the Chinese market have been fully customized and even specially upgraded, and its purpose is to truly understand the overall operation logic of the MPV market and provide users with a truly comfortable, intelligent and safe travel experience. Obviously, this is also the real underlying logic of GAC Toyota to create such a Sena with the highest configuration in the world.
Choosing a more secure hybrid power mode that Toyota is best at to provide a more secure travel experience for the whole family is also based on this underlying logic.
The importance attached to the Chinese market and Chinese consumers has contributed to the result that the Chinese version of Sena has become the most advanced version in the world. At the same time, the 24 models of Saina are different from other brands that only lower the entry configuration to reduce the price, but directly reduce the main sales version, bringing consumers a high-end cost performance at the beginning, which can be called the best choice for 300,000-level family MPV.
Of course, the market will also give enough feedback to brands that make products with heart. When China's MPV market really begins to enter the precipitation period and reshuffle, users will inevitably give a better market feedback and sales feedback to products like Saina that really keep up with the times and do not blindly follow the times.