The impact that Xingchen Automobile Ziweixing has had on the automotive industry after its release is actually greater than many people imagined.
In particular, the application of the world's first 8AT automatic transmission has not only caused great repercussions in China, but also international auto parts giants and international automobile giants are also eyeing this world-leading technology product.
Among them, Aisin, the old rival of Nanshan Gearbox, pays more attention to it than anyone else.
"President, we have made it clear that Xingchen Automobile will hold a listing event on January 11."
"After that, you can buy Ziweixing at the corresponding 4S store."
"As soon as they are launched on the market, we will immediately purchase two new cars from the Huaxia branch, disassemble the 8AT automatic transmission, and then directly fly them back to China for disassembly and research."
Aisin Headquarters Sales Headquarters Okumura and R&D Director Hiroyuki Nakazawa reported the latest situation related to the Nanshan transmission 8AT to President Hisato Yoshikawa.
Aisin, which aspires to become the world's largest gearbox company, has suffered miserably from Nanshan Gearbox in recent years.
Originally, I was thinking about whether I could rely on the 8AT being developed to regain my advantage.
They have even been working with the Lexus LS460 to confirm some prototypes, and it is expected that mass production will be smooth in the next year.
Unexpectedly, Nanshan Gearbox took the lead again.
It’s no wonder that Aisin’s senior executives are so angry.
"Didn't Xingchen Motors already hold a test drive event?"
"In this event, there must be a focus on promoting 8AT, right?"
"Didn't you collect any useful information?"
Hisato Yoshikawa was obviously not satisfied with Okumura's report.
I haven't gotten any useful information back, so I have to keep waiting.
This feeling is so uncomfortable.
"I don't know whether it is intentional or unintentional. Although Xingchen Motors has been emphasizing that it is the world's first model equipped with 8AT, it has not introduced too much about the technical parameters of 8AT."
"I suspect that their 8AT performance is mediocre and has no special highlights."
"It's just a product that was developed urgently to upgrade the product."
Okumura feels that Nanshan Transmission cannot achieve so many technological breakthroughs again and again in just a few years.
This is obviously unreasonable.
Therefore, the 8AT of Nanshan transmission has average performance, which makes logical sense.
"Don't always underestimate our opponents."
"If Spring City Automobile Group or Xifeng Automobile Group comes up with 8AT, you say the product performance will definitely not be good, and I agree."
"But what's going on with Nanshan Gearbox? It's not the first time you've dealt with them."
"So far, their 6AT has almost taken away our market."
When Hisato Yoshikawa said this, he felt extremely distressed.
Why am I so unlucky?
I encountered something like this when I was in office.
Will I be able to retire honorably by then?
"President, how about I go directly to China? As soon as Ziweixing is launched, we can confirm its gearbox performance immediately."
"At that time, if we just disassemble the gearbox and take it home, some comprehensive performance will be difficult to grasp."
"It would be better to conduct some confirmations directly in the laboratory of the Huaxia branch. In the end, the tests that cannot be done in China are brought back to the headquarters for testing."
Hiroyuki Nakazawa interjected and made his own suggestions.
Ever since Nanshan Transmission's 8AT was about to be mass-produced, and the news spread in the industry, he was under great pressure.
If you can leave the headquarters and go on a business trip to China, you can get some fresh air.
Otherwise, you will feel so stressed that you will be unable to bear it.
"This method also works. You must accurately grasp the various information of the Nanshan gearbox 8AT."
"If we lose to Nanshan Transmission again this time, we will only be able to supply Toyota Motors in the future."
When Hisato Yoshikawa said this, both Nakazawa and Okumura looked a little solemn.
If they really get to that point, they should never expect to have a chance to get a promotion or a salary increase in their lifetime.
…
Aisin and Denso are the most direct and important parts companies of Toyota Motor.
Aisin also plays an important role in Toyota's ability to impress consumers with its durability and fuel economy.
As a luxury brand under Toyota, Lexus must be the first to install various advanced component technologies on Lexus models.
Just like the Lexus LS460, which competes with the Mercedes-Benz S Series, BMW 7 Series and Audi A8, it is preparing to use Aisin's 8AT automatic transmission for the first time.
The 8 gears can meet the requirements of strong power and ultra-low fuel consumption to the maximum extent, and the volume is equivalent to the previous generation 6-speed gearbox.
This was originally one of the biggest selling points of the LS460.
Now the lethality has been greatly reduced.
Many people can remember the Olympic champion.
But does anyone remember the silver or bronze medalists?
The technological applications in the automotive industry are similar.
The first model equipped with 8AT, once this hat falls on other models, there will be a lot fewer consumers who can remember the LS460.
In accordance with Toyota's expectations, Lexus LS460 will interpret the true definition of luxury from the perspective of top performance, with noble, elegant and agile flagship temperament.
This car integrates the elegance of appearance with technological innovation, creating a luxury car with precise design, mature technology and excellent quality.
However, this idea was poured cold water on.
"President, I think it is necessary for Aisin to start research on 9AT automatic transmissions. Otherwise, China's Nanshan Transmission will sell 8ATs everywhere in the future, and it will be difficult for our high-end models to widen the gap with other brands."
As the head of Toyota Motor's North American headquarters, Tetsuaki Kobayashi has a very powerful say within Toyota.
Lexus's largest sales market is also in North America.
The new generation LS460, which originally had high hopes, found that its advantages were missing a lot before it was launched. This is definitely something Kobayashi Tetsuaki cannot accept.
"Is it too anxious to start researching 9AT even before 8AT has been officially mass-produced?"
Fujio Zhang was not in a very good mood, but he was not in a state of confusion.
In the past two years, Toyota's global development has been very good overall.
If it continues at this pace, it is even expected to become the second largest car company in the world.
"There is actually not much difference in the technical difficulty between 8AT and 9AT. When there are more 9AT, it just sounds better, but there is not a huge difference in actual performance."
"But if we want to produce luxury models, we must make consumers think that the gearbox we are equipped with is the most advanced in the world, so that consumers are willing to pay that price."
Kobayashi Zheming has a pretty accurate grasp of consumers' minds.
I may not be able to use most of the performance of 9AT, but I have to have it.
In fact, there are many equipments in a car that consumers may not use once a year.
The most common one is the skylight. In cities, many people really don’t open it once a year.
But if the model you choose when buying a car does not have a sunroof, you will definitely feel unhappy.
"What you said makes sense."
"But this time we must let Aisin stop holding us back."
"If 9AT cannot be developed before Nanshan gearbox, then Aisin's board of directors will consider reorganization!"
Fujio Zhang is obviously very dissatisfied with Aisin's performance in the past few years.
But he knew the reason, so he didn't impose any serious punishment on Aixin's group.
But if he falls behind again and again, it is equivalent to forcing him to take action.
…
Christmas is the most important holiday of the year for Europeans and Americans.
However, in China, the Christmas atmosphere is just so-so.
Seeing that the 8AT has been successfully mass-produced, Ji Hua can finally spare time to run orders.
"Mr. Cao, I think Ford's luxury brands Lincoln, Land Rover and Jaguar, as well as General Motors' Cadillac, are the most likely models to be equipped with our 8AT first."
"So I plan to go to the United States immediately after this Christmas vacation to visit the purchasing and design personnel of Ford and GM, and introduce our 8AT to them."
The end of December and the beginning of January every year is the period for various summary reports. If Ji Hua is going on a business trip to the United States, he will naturally report to Cao Yang in advance.
"You can also visit Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi. Then you can tell Mercedes-Benz that BMW intends to equip its flagship model with 8AT."
"When we visited BMW, we could say that Mercedes-Benz has the intention to carry our 8AT."
"Similarly, when we visit Cadillac, we can say that Audi is ready to use our 8AT."
"In short, before the 8AT of Aisin and ZF has been officially mass-produced, we should quickly grab a part of the market."
"It will not be so easy for them to regain their advantageous position from us in the future."
When Cao Yang reminded him, Ji Hua immediately became happy.
This trick is probably really effective.
"I heard that the Aisin 8AT is about to be developed, and it is planned to be installed on Lexus' flagship model first."
"When the time comes to communicate with those customers, I will also share some of the information I have learned with them."
"The mixture of true and false news can stimulate them to make decisions as quickly as possible."
Ji Hua also learned what he was learning and applied it immediately, and was immediately ready to further stimulate those customers.
After all, there is competition among various automobile giants.
Just like the Mercedes-Benz S Series, BMW 7 Series, Audi A8 and Lexus LS series, these are the flagship models in the sedan field of their respective brands.
Once a car adopts 8AT first, other models will naturally not want to fall behind.
Unless there is no better option.
Historically, after the LS460 was first used, it played a very good role in promoting its sales in the United States.
Even in the American market, the sales volume of LS460 is higher than that of BMW 7 Series and Audi A8.
Aisin's 8AT also waited until ZF's 8AT was mass-produced before it was willing to supply it to other luxury brands.
This time difference is not an ordinary skill.
"Those that can use 8AT are definitely luxury models, and the affordability of the price is also much higher."
"Although our actual production cost of 8AT is only 50% higher than that of 6AT, I think there is no problem if the price is doubled."
"Even in the early stages of mass production, we can directly sell them for a period of time at three to five times the selling price of 6AT, and quickly recover our investment in R&D and production lines."
"After Aisin and ZF's 8AT are launched, we will quickly start to reduce prices, which will make Mercedes-Benz, BMW and other OEMs have a hard time."
Although Ji Hua is a highly skilled person, he does not have any business acumen.
The current 8AT is completely an exclusive business.
If you don’t make good money for a year or two, when will you wait?
Besides, this kind of routine is a favorite of European and American companies.
First develop a new technology product yourself, and then sell it at a sky-high price to quickly recoup your investment.
Then when similar products from other manufacturers come out, they will immediately reduce the price.
The best thing is to be able to directly force other companies to survive by lowering prices. That would be the best thing.
The price can be increased later.
If it doesn't work, then it's just a matter of lowering the price to grab orders from other companies, and we can continue to live a good life for a few years.
When the selling price drops to a certain level, there is no profit left.
Then you can consider giving up this product and start launching a new generation of more technologically advanced things.
"No problem, just follow your idea."
"Whether the output value of Nanshan Transmission can reach a new high in 2006 depends on the performance of the 8AT."
"The size of our 8AT is very close to that of the 6AT, and even some of the installation locations are the same."
"The best thing is to persuade some car companies to switch gearboxes during mass production, so that the 8AT can be fully launched in the second half of 2006."
The development of a new model is really time-consuming.
The advantages of Nanshan gearbox are likely to be consumed while waiting.
This is naturally not a situation Cao Yang wants to see.
Therefore, at the beginning of research and development, the problems that need to be faced when switching to mass production have been taken into consideration.
For example, if you want to make major changes to the installation dimensions, it will take a lot of time.
It would be much easier if it was just a simple replacement.
"When the time comes, we will directly provide them with a package of solutions to help them achieve switching during mass production."
"I think there are so many car companies, one or two will be interested."
"As soon as someone starts it, other families will definitely feel the pressure."
"When the time comes, we don't need to push them, they will be more active than us."
Having said this, Ji Hua became more confident in the prospects of 8AT.
Once you master the technical advantages, it will be much easier to engage in marketing.
Otherwise, life would be too difficult if we were just there to fight for costs.
…
2005 is still a good year for Nanshan Group.
Ordinary employees will definitely have a holiday on New Year's Day.
However, except for some leaders who were given a holiday on January 1st, Cao Yang called them back for a summary meeting on the 2nd.
This is basically the tradition of Nanshan Group.
Every year during the New Year's Day holiday, we should make a summary of the past year.
This year is no exception.
"Mr. Cao, the group's turnover exceeded 60 billion in 2005, a year-on-year increase of more than 20%, and the growth rate has slowed down."
"Specifically, Nanshan Transmission is still the largest branch of the group. The number of 6AT/6MT/4AT/4MT transmissions sold throughout the year reached 3.3 million units, and the turnover exceeded 23.5 billion yuan."'
"Nanshan Special Steel continues to steadily exert its advantages, with annual turnover reaching 11.2 billion yuan."
"The production capacity of the pipe-making factory will also be released starting this year, and the turnover is expected to continue to increase."
As the Minister of Finance, Dong Shengnan naturally reported the operating data of Nanshan Group first as in previous years.
This is also something that all participants are very interested in.
Nanshan Group is not a listed company and will not publish financial statements to the outside world.
Therefore, as long as Cao Yang does not want to publish these data, ordinary people will not know it.
Except for the tax bureau.
"The performance of Nanshan Auto Parts this year is as stable as ever. The bearing and gear business has reached 7 billion yuan. This is mainly due to its contribution to the supply of Ford Motor's transmission factory."
"BYD's sales have increased rapidly this year, and the parts used by Nanshan Auto Parts for Great Wall, Chery, Geely and other models are also increasing rapidly. The turnover of these parts has increased directly from 5.2 billion last year to 7.6 billion."
"Similarly, due to the increase in sales of its own brands, Nanshan Engine sold more than 500,000 engines in 2005, contributing a turnover of approximately 5.2 billion."
"Nanshan Mold's performance is also relatively impressive. Thanks to the mass production of hot stamping molds, its turnover last year reached 1.4 billion yuan, which is consistent with the group's overall growth rate."
"Nanshan Equipment also made a big breakthrough in 2005. Various machine tools began to be shipped in large quantities, and sales reached a record of 3 billion yuan."
"In addition, Nanshan Robot's performance is also good. It has achieved a 100% increase in turnover to 400 million without any fanfare."
"In addition, Autohome also contributed 800 million yuan in turnover to the group last year, and other businesses such as Nanshan Investment also contributed several hundred million yuan."
"With the efforts of each branch, we successfully completed the goals set by the company at the beginning of the year, laying a solid foundation for continued growth next year."
Following Dong Shengnan's report, the participants were in a very good mood.
If the company is good, you can be better.
This concept has begun to gain popularity among Nanshan Group.
After all, after many years of increasing the year-end bonus by one month each year compared with the previous year, and then increasing the basic salary by 10%, the employee benefits of Nanshan Group are already very good.
For these executives, although they do not own shares in the company, their year-end bonuses are many times more than those of ordinary employees.
Cao Yang happily took out 2% of the annual net profit as an additional bonus for those above the section chief level.
For a person of Dong Shengnan's level, the annual bonus can reach around 1 million.
In 2005, it was definitely very high.
Even if it is placed in future generations, it will not be low.
Since your own income is closely related to the company's development, everyone will naturally care about the company's development and hope that the company can achieve its goals every year.
"In the past year, Xingchen Motors, a subsidiary of the group, also officially started to make efforts."
“Next year’s investments are expected to set new records.”
"The investment amount in the new vehicle production plant, engine plant and various parts factories is expected to exceed 5 billion."
"So the pressure next year is actually very high. Each business department needs to continue to work hard and challenge to achieve higher goals."
After Dong Shengnan explained the overall situation, Cao Yang naturally had to stand up and tell everyone about the plan for 2006.
"Although the turnover reached 60 billion last year, the profit target was also achieved."
"But basically all the money I earned last year was spent this year."
“The R&D and factory investment in various new models, new technology parts, and new equipment are all very huge.”
"In order to support the development of the group, the turnover target for 2006 is 72 billion, and the profit margin will not be lower than that of 2005."
"At the same time, we are challenging to achieve the 80 billion turnover target."
When a company first starts to develop, it can easily double its turnover.
But it is obviously difficult to double the current size.
Of course, if Nanshan Investment has any surprises in the financial market, there is hope that profits will double.
With enough liquidity in hand, Cao Yang can make some more drastic moves.
In the future, Nanshan Group will become a 100-billion-level enterprise, which is what happened in the past few years.
"In order to maintain sustainable development, each branch must also fully grasp the development direction of new technologies."
“For some core technologies related to the future, don’t be afraid of burning money.”
“If we don’t have enough people, we’ll hire people; if we don’t have enough equipment, we’ll invest in equipment.”
"Nanshan Group is taking the route of relying on technology to win orders. This logic has never changed and will not change."
"So whether it's auto parts or equipment business, we must maintain sufficient industry competitiveness."
"With the development of the Internet industry, communication technology will also be iterated simultaneously."
"Some places abroad have already begun to use 3G networks. Sooner or later, China will enter the 3G or even 4G era."
"At that time, it will inevitably bring many different things to the automotive industry."
"In addition to traditional advantageous parts, Nanshan Auto Parts must fully accumulate technology and make some innovations in automotive electronic parts."
“Especially in the parts related to the cockpit, we must have some unique advantages.”
"At the same time, the group will also increase investment in related research and development of semiconductor components."
"Whether it is a joint venture project with BYD or the group's own semiconductor division, we need to continue to increase research on new technologies."
Before thoroughly building technical advantages, Cao Yang would directly provide guidance to each business department on the development direction.
In this way, we can avoid detours and become a leading international presence as soon as possible.
"Mr. Cao, Xingchen 3 uses a hybrid system. This year we are planning to focus on the hybrid battery technology and strive to complete the research and development of related technologies within the year."
Dai Hanbiao also stepped forward to express his position promptly.
Nanshan auto parts is the core business of the company. Although the turnover is not as high as that of Nanshan gearbox, its importance is not lower at all.
(End of chapter)
