In 2007, competition in China's auto market became more intense.
In addition to Great Wall, BYD, Chery and Geely, which have successfully established a foothold in cars and SUVs, and are constantly launching new models in order to achieve new sales targets, rising stars such as Changan Automobile and Yangcheng Automobile Group have also begun to exert their efforts. .
In April, Changan Automobile's CS75 was officially launched for sale.
This new model is equipped with a Nanshan 1.5T engine and a Nanshan 6AT gearbox, and uses a large number of Nanshan Auto Parts products. It has attracted a lot of attention since its launch.
Yangcheng Motor's GS4, on the other hand, is larger than similar models such as CRV and S6. As soon as it was released at the Shanghai Auto Show, it received orders from thousands of consumers.
The price has not yet been announced, and the model has not yet been officially launched to achieve this result, which is definitely excellent.
However, this is not an exaggeration.
What really made various Chinese car companies completely turn their attention to SUVs was the CS95 model launched by Changan Automobile.
This medium-to-large 7-seat SUV equipped with Nanshan Engine's 2.0T engine and 6AT has directly reduced the price of the originally high-priced 7-seat SUV to less than 200,000 yuan.
After being launched on the market, there was a phenomenon of increasing the price for picking up a car.
This situation is not uncommon among joint venture car companies, but it is the first time it has occurred among independent brand car companies.
"Mr. Cao, this time our CS95 and CS75 were able to sell like hotcakes as soon as they were launched, thanks to your suggestion."
"The SUV market is indeed bigger than we thought."
"The 7-seater version of the CS95 was originally priced at 199,900 yuan. Now the 4S store has to pay an additional 5,000 yuan to pick up the car."
"Our original plan was to produce 30,000 vehicles per year, but now it seems that even doubling that number may not be enough to meet market demand."
"Although the CS75 has not reached the point of selling cars at a price increase, it is still ahead of our planned annual production target of 50,000 units."
Yi Jia is in a very good mood now.
Changan Automobile was previously good at mini-cars and was the undisputed king in the field of mini-cars.
But after the emergence of GM-Wuling, it also put a lot of pressure on their micro cars.
Combined with the changes in China's automobile market in recent years, he made the decision to transform and expand passenger cars at the same time.
This involves taking a certain risk.
After all, Changan Automobile has little experience in the field of passenger cars.
And there are already so many players in this market.
After investing a lot of manpower and material resources, no one is sure whether Changan Automobile will be successful.
Now that CS75 and CS95 are on the market, many things have answers.
Whether a new car sells well or not can basically be seen within the first month of its launch.
The so-called slow-burning models basically do not exist in the automobile industry.
Unless the early publicity is too little, a dark horse will appear.
Otherwise, the probability of a model that hits the market in the first month after being launched and comes back to life is infinitely close to zero.
"Mr. Yi, I was just thinking of calling you to congratulate you."
"With these two models, it is entirely possible for you to achieve the sales target of 100,000 passenger cars this year."
"It is possible to enter the 100,000-unit club by producing passenger cars in the first year. Apart from Changan Automobile, there are very few companies that can do this."
"Our Nanshan Group can be said to have borrowed the wind of Changan Automobile, and its performance can grow."
People carry people in sedan chairs.
Now is the honeymoon period for the cooperation between Nanshan Group and Changan Automobile, so Cao Yang naturally has to choose some good words to say.
At present, among the several domestic car companies, Changan Automobile uses the most parts from Nanshan Group in its new cars.
To put it bluntly, Changan Automobile may not make more money than Nanshan Group by selling a CS75 and CS95.
Of course, for models like the CS95 that are sold at a premium, Changan Automobile's profits will definitely be good.
There is no problem in making several hundred million from passenger cars this year.
With this achievement, Yi Jia is enough to go to the higher-ups.
"Originally, I was worried that the passenger car factory to be built would have a relatively large surplus in production capacity, but now it seems that there is no need to worry at all."
"As long as the production capacity can keep up, the sales of CS75 and CS95 next year should be worth looking forward to. In addition, we have two more cars to be launched later, and we can even hit the sales target of 200,000 units next year."
"Mr. Cao, the capacity expansion plan of Changan Automobile's production plant is also ready to be officially launched."
"As long as Nanshan Group can make all the equipment in this new factory, we will give it priority to Nanshan Group."
Return a favor in return.
Whether Changan Automobile can successfully develop its passenger car business depends on the support of Nanshan Group.
Under this situation, Yi Jia naturally tried her best to deepen the relationship between the two parties.
Anyway, Nanshan Group is the best among domestic welding robots, presses and other equipment.
Buying from others is also buying, why not buy from Nanshan Group?
"Thank you, Mr. Yi, for your support. I will have the relevant personnel contact your purchasing department immediately."
"According to the current trend, I think there will be no problem with 250,000 passenger cars next year, let alone 200,000 passenger cars. Even 300,000 cars can be a challenge."
Cao Yang is still very confident in Changan Automobile's new models.
The quality of the main parts is endorsed by Nanshan Group, and the selection of models is very precise.
In addition, the CS95 has a similar appearance to the Highlander, and the CS75 has a similar appearance to the RAV4. The sedans are also designed after the Camry and Corolla.
Under such circumstances, it would be difficult for Changan Automobile to rush into the street.
Just like CS95, the top version is only priced at 199,900 yuan.
For the same Highlander, the top-of-the-line 3.5L sports deluxe version is sold for 497,000 yuan, and the gearbox is still 5AT.
If you were a consumer, would you consider buying a CS95 or a Highlander?
Even with the halo of an imported car and Toyota's brand bonus, it's not worth the 297,000 premium, right?
After all, the price difference on the ground floor is more than 297,000.
Not to mention the differences in subsequent maintenance, insurance and other aspects.
It’s no wonder that the price of CS95 will increase as soon as it is launched.
"Then I'll lend you Mr. Cao's good advice."
"However, we are planning to expand production of CS95 and strive to achieve monthly sales of more than 5,000 units as soon as possible, and later hit the high target of 8,000 monthly sales."
"Mr. Cao needs to worry more about the production capacity of the 2.0T turbocharged engine and other parts."
Yi Jia called Cao Yang. In addition to keeping in touch with each other, discussing production capacity and supply was also a very important topic.
If Nanshan Group cannot supply parts, then the increase in production of CS95 will be a joke.
There are tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of parts in a car, but if one part is missing, it will not be successfully put on the market.
Selling out of stock items was not popular in 2007.
Besides, even if you are missing parts, you can’t be missing an engine, right?
"Production capacity is not a problem. We can supply as many engines as Changan Automobile requires."
"The other parts are the same."
"Even if we move production capacity from other customers, we will definitely give priority to supporting Changan Automobile."
Cao Yang's words made people feel very comfortable.
Of course, this isn't exactly the time to be polite.
Compared with car companies such as Great Wall and Chery, which are researching their own engines, Changan Automobile has clearly stated to Nanshan Group that it does not plan to produce engines and gearboxes for passenger cars and will purchase them all from Nanshan Group in the future.
This naturally makes the strategic cooperation between the two parties closer.
Cao Yang is very optimistic about the future of Changan Automobile.
Even though it only started producing passenger cars this year, it is not impossible that its sales will surpass several other independent brands in the future, and even surpass the joint venture giants.
Just after Cao Yang and Yi Jia finished the phone call, Zhang Jiaqi and Zeng Guangda from Yangcheng Automobile Group also visited Cao Yang in person.
Although their GS4 will not be officially launched until next month, it will also begin to enter the small-batch mass production stage this month.
Nowadays, the booking situation of GS4 is very optimistic, and Yangcheng Motor has naturally increased the relevant production arrangements.
In this way, the supply of related parts needs to be ensured without problems.
"Mr. Zhang and Mr. Zeng, congratulations to you. Yangcheng Motor's independent brand has become an instant hit. It has already become famous in the automobile industry even before it is officially launched."
Both are Yangcheng companies, and the other party is still our customer, so there will be a lot of scope for cooperation in the future.
Cao Yang is naturally willing to maintain a good relationship with Zhang Jiaqi and Zeng Guangda.
Besides, the other party came to visit today, and he was the master.
Of course, you can say more nice words.
"Thanks to Mr. Cao's suggestion, our GS4 regards Honda CRV, BYD S6, Harvard H6 and other models as competitors."
"But we chose to enlarge the size by one size, which looks to be one level higher than theirs."
"Sure enough, Chinese consumers still like big cars."
"For our manufacturer, if the size of the same model is appropriately enlarged, the cost difference will be very small."
"It seems that our large 7-seater SUV must also be launched quickly."
Zhang Jiaqi was in a very good mood.
Although he didn't listen to everything Cao Yang said before, they did listen to the fact that they were getting two SUVs, and they were a little bigger than similar cars.
"Consumers do like making the car bigger, but under such circumstances, it is not appropriate to make a small car."
“Otherwise the gap is too big and consumers probably won’t buy it.”
"I think there is a GS4, and if you develop your 7-seater SUV model, it will be enough in a short time."
Cao Yang thought that Yangcheng Motors had once launched N models in one go, whether they were cars, SUVs or MPVs, with almost all-round layout.
In the end, only a few models sold well, and after a bunch of models fell behind, the overall company didn't make much money.
After all, if you develop a new model, the mold-related investment in parts alone will cost hundreds of millions.
Not to mention other research and development expenses.
"Large SUVs are indeed worth looking forward to. Previously, there were very few models on the market that consumers could choose from."
"Now that Changan Automobile has taken the lead in launching the CS95, it has directly led to a situation where people pay more to buy cars."
"This is really a bit unexpected."
Zeng Guangda also said something with emotion from the side.
To be honest, when he was buying a large SUV before, he felt a little guilty.
Because neither Toyota nor Honda, nor Volkswagen and General Motors, have yet launched a 7-seat SUV model in China.
If you enter rashly now, you will lose everything by then, so Yangcheng Motor's independent brand will hit a wall right from the start.
This is a situation he doesn't want to see.
But now that he sees Changan Automobile's success, he regrets that he did not prioritize the development of large SUVs.
Now the GS4 will be officially launched next month, but the large SUV GS8 will have to wait until the second half of the year.
"Compared with cars of the same level, SUVs look more domineering."
"Domestic consumers had no choice before, so they could only buy cars."
“Now that we have provided them with better choices, many consumers’ desire to buy has naturally been aroused.”
Cao Yang chatted with Zhang Jiaqi and Zeng Guangda there.
"Mr. Cao, to what extent do you think the market share of SUVs can increase?"
"Now various independent brands have begun to launch a large number of SUV models, which will definitely lead to the rapid saturation of this market segment."
"And it will also attract car companies such as Volkswagen, General Motors, and Ford to launch their own SUV models."
"Our situation may not be so good by then."
Zeng Guangda naturally hopes that the SUV market will become bigger and bigger, but now that there are so many players, he is actually not confident whether it can continue to develop.
"Indeed, we caught the joint venture car companies off guard and launched a large number of SUV models before they could react."
"Those giants will definitely not watch us grab share in the SUV market."
"When they exert their efforts, will they return to the car field?"
Zhang Jiaqi was also a little worried.
Due to the hot sales of GS4, they have started the development of GS3 and GS5 models within the company, and the GS8 model will also be mass-produced this year.
In addition, they have also started the development of several models of cars simultaneously.
If there are big changes in the market then, they will definitely be under greater pressure.
"Although the SUV market has grown much faster than cars in the past two years, the market share of SUVs is actually less than 15%."
"According to my calculations, SUV models should be on par with cars in the future."
"Considering the increase in overall market share, it is not surprising that 10 million SUVs will be sold in the next year."
As soon as Cao Yang said these words, Zhang Jiaqi and Zeng Guangda didn't know how to continue.
The two of them looked at each other in silence for a long time.
Although they hope to get some good news from Cao Yang, even drawing some pie is acceptable.
But now this pie is too exaggerated, right?
How many SUV models were sold in China last year?
That’s about 1 million, right?
But Cao Yang now says that the SUV market can reach 10 million units in the future!
What is this concept?
I wouldn’t dare to think like this even after taking chicken blood.
"Mr. Cao, our GS4's current engine and gearbox, as well as major auto parts, are all purchased from Nanshan Group."
"According to the current booking situation, sales will definitely be higher than planned."
"As for the supply of parts, I still need to ask you to pay more attention."
Zeng Guangda felt that he could not continue to discuss the topic of the SUV market, otherwise Cao Yang would become more exaggerated and they would not know how to continue listening.
So he changed the topic a bit abruptly and talked about production capacity guarantee.
In this regard, Cao Yang naturally has no pressure.
After all, compared with the overall production capacity of Nanshan engines and Nanshan gearboxes, the demand for Yangcheng Motors is still not large.
Overall, this meeting was quite enjoyable for both the host and the guest.
After sending Zhang Jiaqi and Zeng Guangda away, Zeng Tingting came over to report some news.
"Toyota Motor announced the list of Highlander's main suppliers through some informal channels today, and compared it with Changan CS95."
"They even announced that they would sue Changan Automobile, saying that their CS95 infringed on Highlander's appearance patent."
"I guess they felt a little pressure from the hot sales of CS95 and wanted to use this opportunity to suppress CS95."
When Zeng Tingting said this, Cao Yang immediately paid attention to it.
Although if the sales of CS95 are affected, Changan Automobile will definitely be the most anxious and have the greatest impact.
However, almost all the main components on the CS95 are supplied by Nanshan Group. Even the equipment and some molds used in Changan Automobile's production plant are also supplied by Nanshan Group.
Once Changan Automobile is affected, the interests of Nanshan Group will eventually be affected.
The most important thing is that the current main customers of Nanshan Group are beginning to tilt towards independent brand car companies.
Once Changan Automobile's CS95 is suppressed, it is likely to set a bad example and allow other auto giants to jump in and suppress their own brands.
In that case, the impact would be huge.
"How has Highlander's sales been since it entered the Chinese market?"
Before making a decision, you must understand some situations.
Otherwise, misjudgment would have a greater impact.
"Thanks to the rapid development of the domestic SUV market, their Highlander officially entered the Chinese market as an import in December last year."
"And it is rumored that it will be produced domestically at Yangcheng Toyota in the future."
"In the first quarter of this year, their Highlander sales exceeded 10,000 units, with an average of more than 3,000 units per month."
"And for the entry-level 2.7L model, there is a situation where the price increases by 20,000 to 30,000 yuan to buy the car."
"It can be said that the sales are very good."
"However, after entering April, the situation of Highlander's increased sales has changed. Now in some 4S stores, Highlander can be mentioned without increasing the price."
"We speculate that this change has a lot to do with the launch of Changan CS95."
"After all, the styling is similar and the power performance is stronger, the price of CS95 is almost half of that of Highlander."
"Many potential consumers will carefully consider whether to buy Highlander or CS95."
"It is estimated that people at Toyota Motor are also aware of this, so they will make a series of counterattacks against CS95."
Zeng Tingting quickly reported the situation she had grasped to Cao Yang.
(End of chapter)
