Two new energy MPV products launched by SAIC Maxus at the auto show, picture from: Titanium Media App
Due to factors such as road conditions and population, Hong Kong people will prefer MPV models with space advantages when choosing family cars. In the past, Hong Kong people generally chose Japanese MPVs represented by Toyota Alpha and Wilfa. But now, that has changed.
According to the data, from January to November 2023, SAIC Maxus's 9MPV models surpassed Alpha, Wilfa and other models, winning the sales championship of Hong Kong's overall MPV market. From January to March this year, the first momentum continued.
Many people are curious, how did this little-known brand do it?
Hong Kong people's favorite MPV is not Alpha
Many Chinese people may not know the brand SAIC Maxus. But in fact, SAIC Maxus has been in the car-making industry for 13 years, and has been involved in the MPV field for more than 10 years.
SAIC Maxus's MPV product spectrum is relatively complete. From the G10 and G20 in the early fuel era, to the G70 and G90, and then to the Dajia series in the new energy era. Since the launch of the first MPV in 2014, SAIC MAXUS has launched a total of 12 MPV models in the past decade. These MPVs cover a full range of technology routes such as fuel, pure electric, hybrid and hydrogen energy, and there are various sizes such as medium-sized, medium-large and large-sized models. From the perspective of usage scenarios, these MPVs have both home, IKEA, and business models. It can be said that in the field of MPV, SAIC MAXUS is one of the few brands that can provide all energy forms, all categories and all scenarios.
SAIC Maxus is also one of the few Chinese brands to achieve MPV models going overseas. Song Hai, director of the brand public relations department of SAIC Maxus, told Titanium Media App, "Overseas markets have more stringent requirements for product quality and safety performance, and we have passed the five-star collision safety certification in Australia and Europe, which is the only MPV model in the Chinese market that meets this standard." This is also an important reason why everyone 9 has achieved the first sales volume in Hong Kong. ”
Another important reason why everyone 9 sells well in Hong Kong is that many Hong Kong stars choose it, such as Wang Zulan, Chen Hao, Chen Baixiang and other Hong Kong stars are all car owners of everyone 9. "The star effect and the fit between the affordable, aesthetic and other product elements that everyone 9 and Hong Kong people value is an important reason why everyone 9 is the first choice of many Hong Kong people." Hua Jin, deputy general manager of SAIC Maxus, said.
Building on the success of the 9, SAIC Maxus will next expand its MPV lineup in the Hong Kong market. The Everybody 9 and Everybody 7 superhybrids, which were launched at the Beijing Motor Show, are also expected to enter the Hong Kong market later this year.
"In addition to the Hong Kong market, these two products will also enter the overseas MPV market, especially the European market, where new energy is developed. We will continue to expand outwards and explore new opportunities. Hua Jin said.
Compared with other domestic automakers, the overseas market has become an advantageous market for SAIC Maxus. In the past 2023, SAIC Maxus sold 203,700 vehicles globally, a year-on-year increase of 7%, of which 96,700 units were sold in overseas markets, accounting for 47.47%. "It is expected that in a short period of time, SAIC Maxus's overseas business will account for half of our sales." Hao Jingxian, general manager of SAIC Maxus, said.
SAIC Maxus has a wide range of product types, including MPVs, SUVs, pickup trucks, light buses, and even RVs. This makes it have a wider range of export options, especially the pickup products preferred by foreigners, which is an important sales support for SAIC Maxus in overseas markets.
According to Hao Jingxian, in the field of pickup trucks, SAIC Maxus pickup trucks have won the first place in the market share of Chinese pickup brands in Australia for three consecutive years; The Interstellar L (overseas T60) is the top 3 best-selling models in 2023 in Chile, South America, another highland for pickup truck competition; In Mexico, SAIC MAXUS achieved sales of more than 10,000 in the first year of entry with a single model of pickup trucks, and the market share of pickup trucks in the local market segment increased by 2.7% in 2023, also ranking among the top three.
In addition, in the field of light buses, SAIC Maxus's light bus V90 has ranked first in the Australian market share for two consecutive years. At the same time, the new energy light bus EV90 will win the top two market share in many European developed countries such as the United Kingdom, Norway, Italy, and Spain in 2023; The EV30 continues to defend its market share title in Spain.
"In 2022 and 2023, in many developed countries in Europe, our SAIC MAXUS's new energy products will be the first or second in market share. It can be seen that China's products and technologies are competitive in the world. Hao Jingxian said.
Do not roll the price of the volume value
In the face of the increasingly volatile market environment of the domestic automotive industry, Hao Jingxian said that the industry is indeed "rolling", but the key is to "roll out the value". What end users see and experience is the products and services. Sometimes the "volume" to a certain extent, we also have to have some price competition, which is normal, but the core is still to think about how to provide users with more valuable products and services in the end.
Hao Jingxian used the current "refrigerator color TV sofa" as an example. "Regarding the user's demand for a large sofa and a large TV, we have to take into account. We believe that a large sofa and a large TV are required, fuel-efficient technology is required, and driving comfort is also required. In terms of performance, perception, and experience that customers need, we must lead the MPV segment."
Hao Jingxian believes that the track of the automobile industry is a "long-distance track", whether it is technology, capital, marketing, etc., it is a relatively concentrated industry in all aspects. Since there are many participants, the key is to see who can persevere and run to the end. "Automobile companies need to have technical background, customer thinking, and of course, they must also have the current hot new media communication methods and some ideas, and through some persistence, we can continue to provide value to users."
Hao Jingxian, general manager of SAIC Maxus (right), photographed by Titanium Media Appp
SAIC MAXUS has also recently embraced the wave of new media marketing, especially the new way of playing live broadcast. In order to meet the car needs of different users, the products of the live broadcast cover light buses, pickup trucks, MPVs and other multi-strain models; In order to communicate more smoothly with foreign users, seven Chinese languages such as Chinese, English, and Spanish were broadcast in turn; In order to match the different social habits of users, live broadcasts are also launched on multiple platforms such as Channels, Douyin, Kuaishou, and Xiaohongshu. Plan and consider from products, channels, and user touchpoints.
After the fact, it also achieved good results - the total number of views reached 303,000, which was 303% higher than the daily live broadcast, and also attracted hundreds of capital retention information from domestic individual customers, overseas Chinese customers, and domestic customers who are interested in doing automobile export business, and the number of capital retention was higher than the daily 87%.
In terms of marketing, we embrace new media, focus on user value rather than simple product points and configurations, and focus on the Chinese market and radiate the global market in terms of strategy. This is SAIC Maxus's core thinking on "not rolling the price and value".
The penetration rate of new energy MPVs will reach more than 40%.
It can be seen that SAIC Maxus is one of the few brands that has laid out multiple technology routes in the MPV field. There are both gasoline, hybrid and pure electric, and even hydrogen. Does this mean that SAIC Maxus is also not sure about the evolution route of the technical form, so it bets on the whole route?
In this regard, Hao Jingxian told Titanium Media App that in the short and medium term, hybrid technology will become the dominant MPV market, mainly because of the characteristics of MPV, which usually needs to meet the needs of long-distance travel, whether it is for business or family use. In addition, multi-person travel also requires range, so hybrid technology can better meet these needs.
However, in the medium to long term, pure electric technology is the main trend. SAIC is at the forefront of the industry in solid-state battery research, and these advanced solid-state battery technologies will also be applied to SAIC Maxus brand products in the future.
Looking a little further, hydrogen fuel cell technology also has great potential. SAIC is the only car company that has been researching, investing and commercializing hydrogen fuel cells for 23 years. Based on SAIC's technology precipitation, SAIC Maxus has launched the FCV80 and the world's first high-end hydrogen fuel cell MPV, Dajia Hydrogen. Perhaps in ten years' time, hydrogen fuel cell technology is also expected to occupy more seats in the market as technology and infrastructure continue to advance.
From the perspective of the market, since last year, pure electric models in the MPV market accounted for about 6%, while hybrid models accounted for 24%-25% of the share, and the overall proportion of new energy MPVs has developed towards 30%. Entering the first quarter of this year, the market growth momentum is obvious. According to the data of the Passenger Association, the sales of new energy MPVs from January to March this year were 65,000, a year-on-year increase of 59%, and the proportion of the overall MPV market increased to 27.2%.
In this regard, SAIC MAXUS predicts that the overall market share of new energy MPVs will further expand this year, and may account for more than 40% of the entire MPV market, and is even expected to be close to 50%.
"In this booming incremental market, each brand has its own unique niche and market positioning, and the price segment of 25 to 350,000 yuan that we released is aimed at everyone's 9 superhybrid. At present, the models on the market that are similar to or compete with our product do not fully cover this price range. As a result, we have precisely positioned this segment and expect significant growth. Hao Jingxian said. (This article was first published in Titanium Media App, author|Wang Ruihao, editor|Zhang Min)