The past four years have been four years of vigorous development of China's MPV market, and it has also been four years for mid-to-high-end MPVs to move from niche to mainstream.
At first, Volkswagen Weiran took the lead in launching a new round of joint venture MPV into China, followed by Kia Carnival, Hyundai Kustu, and Toyota Sena to bring new options to the family market. At the same time, the Denza D9 has tapped into the broad potential of the new energy MPV market, in addition to the well-known VOYAH Dreamer and ZEEKR 009, new power models such as Xpeng X9 and Li MEGA also want to get a share of the pie.
It is undeniable that in the face of the wave of change, Buick GL8, as a "phenomenal" product in the MPV market, has a slightly weak sense of presence in the near future; although the sales performance is still among the best, in this era of reshaping the consumption concept, the perception of "cheap and old" is gradually spreading in the terminal market. How will the Buick GL8 take over?
On April 24, on the eve of the opening of the 2024 Beijing Auto Show, the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV was officially launched, with a price fixed at 359,900 yuan to 419,900 yuan. In the context of a "price war", such figures may not be pleasant, and the replacement of the powertrain alone will obviously not convince consumers to buy it. After an in-depth understanding, it is not difficult to see the strength and determination of the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV to stabilize its position.
Insight into needs, GL8 even understands you better than you
Nowadays, mid-to-high-end MPVs have become a well-deserved Red Sea market, but the truth is that it is easy to step into, but it is difficult to do well. Since entering China 24 years ago, Buick GL8 has won the favor of nearly 1.8 million users, which not only consolidates Buick GL8's position in the MPV market, but also obtains the ability to accurately understand user needs.
The importance of appearance is self-evident, and an excellent mid-to-high-end MPV must cater to the emotional needs of users. The all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV has a distinct family design, elegant, calm, and a strong aura, which is natural in this model. In terms of details, the hidden door handles that pop up automatically add a minimalist and technological element, and the large welcome light carpet brings a home away from home feeling every time you use the car.
Space performance is the core competitiveness of an MPV, but how to achieve "self-consistency" in size and convenience reflects the thinking of the new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV for car use scenarios. In addition to the leading performance of 5219mm in length and 3088mm wheelbase, the new car has a height of 1807mm, which can calmly cope with the scene requirements of "1.8m in height" in some shopping malls and CBD basements, and the width of the car is 1878mm, which can facilitate passengers to get on and off the bus freely even if they encounter narrow parking spaces while retaining appropriate social distance.
Coming to the car, Buick's reputation as a "chair factory" has a long history, and the new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV with a high family position naturally carries forward this advantage. All models are equipped with Nappa leather seats, a backrest that fits the human body, and a moderately soft and hard interior padding to escort every high-quality trip, and six-way aviation headrests, three-level adjustable 8-point massage and other functions can further relieve travel fatigue and create a noble experience.
It is worth mentioning that the new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV provides a concierge flexible island in addition to the intelligent central control layout, which not only maximizes the front aisle, but also facilitates the rear passengers to use the functions such as the air conditioning and heating box and cup holder in the island. In addition, rear passengers can also enjoy a 15.6-inch ceiling screen, supporting 5 levels of electric adjustment and 0-150° manual adjustment, whether sitting or lying down, whether it is business office or audio-visual entertainment, can bring a more efficient, convenient and interesting car experience.
Compared with other market segments, mid-to-high-end MPVs do not need to "create demand without demand", but need to solve demand pain points and cater to user preferences under independent thinking that keeps pace with the times. Therefore, the performance of the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV is both unexpected and reasonable, and the sentence "can surpass the GL8, only the green GL8" has to be convincing.
Across cycles, technology builds a "moat"
As the saying goes: "It is easy to fight the country, but it is difficult to defend the country". The challenge faced by Buick GL8 is not only the sales threat brought by the Denza D9, but also the requirements of the times for technology iteration and product upgrading. "In the new era of intelligent electronics, how can GL8 continue to lead the development of MPVs?" Obviously, the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV is the latest answer.
At the power level, the new car is equipped with SAIC-GM's new generation PHEV intelligent plug-in hybrid system, with a power performance of 7.8s with 000 acceleration and a CLTC comprehensive range of 1370km, which is enough to rank among the first camp of the plug-in hybrid MPV market. Obviously, in the end, we still have to fight the engine for hybrid technology. With the cooperation of the 1.5T hybrid engine and the triple AI intelligent control algorithm, the new car can achieve efficient output under all working conditions, economic performance with fuel consumption of less than 7L, and ensure that the performance status is always online.
In the era of intelligence, the ecology of vehicles and the level of driving assistance have also received more and more attention. To this end, the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV introduces an AI large model intelligent voice assistant, which can realize functions such as customized travel guides and finding special restaurants, as if it comes with a "life encyclopedia" and "intimate housekeeper". The hardware pre-embedding of the NOP intelligent navigation function lays the foundation for L2+ intelligent assisted driving capabilities, automatic on-ramp and automatic/remote parking assistance, etc., which can bring more safety and convenient experience to daily car use.
And when it comes to "safety", the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV spares no effort. The body structure of 10 horizontal and 6 vertical cage armor and the front and rear integrated side air curtains with an area exceeding 50% of the C-NCAP requirements create a strong and reliable "safety fortress", while the car air purifier, as well as the in-car air quality monitoring system and fragrance device, always take care of the respiratory health of passengers and meet the pleasant experience of using the car in terms of smell.
In addition, at the same time as the launch of the all-new Buick GL8 Luzun PHEV, SAIC-GM Buick also announced the planning and layout of the pure electric MPV. In the competition of the pure electric MPV market, the GL8 pure electric MPV concept car will be continuously empowered by cutting-edge technologies such as CTP battery architecture, quasi-900V high-voltage platform, and 5C rate battery cells, which is expected to bring users more amazing product performance while always leading the development of the MPV industry.
Conclusion: In the eyes of consumers, Buick GL8 is an inseparable "identity totem" in the business MPV market, and it is also a comfortable "happiness code" in the household field. In the new historical journey, the Buick GL8 family still has full charm, and the two-way rush between the product and the user will write a better MPV chapter.