On the night of December 27th, Guangzhou Automobile Group’s (GAC) new energy vehicle brand HYCAN officially launched its first product – HYCAN 007, and announced the pre-sale price. The pre-sale price range is from 260,000 to 400,000 yuan, with the special edition Starship version limited to 500 units per year starting at 340,000 yuan, and the private customized version starting at 400,000 yuan. The new car will start delivery in April 2020.
Innovative Product
Product Highlights
- Maximum NEDC range of 643 km
- Battery capacity of 93 kWh
- Battery energy density of 180 Wh/kg
In terms of appearance, the new car is basically consistent with the concept car that debuted in May. In terms of details, the unique “7” shaped daytime running lights on the front of the vehicle are recognizable, and the sharp headlight styling has a strong sense of aggression, giving the vehicle a compact and sporty feel. As for the design of the front face, I personally feel that the impression will be quite memorable at first sight but lacks a sense of durability.
Moving to the side of the car, the new car adopts a tough style of line design. The A, B, and C pillars, as well as the roof, are all designed in all-black, and the dual-color styling of the exterior rearview mirrors is quite distinctive. In addition, the car is equipped with hidden door handles.
Looking at the back of the car, the tail light design is more exaggerated than the headlight style. Whether viewed from the rear or the side, the “7” shaped style echoes the front headlights. Of course, this style is not new, for example, China’s self-owned brand, Changan CS75 PLUS, also adopted a similar design. However, the style of the new car is slender and sharp, giving an overall impression of simplicity, atmosphere, and sportiness.
In terms of the interior, the new car adopts the currently popular minimalist style. The double-spoke multifunctional steering wheel is decorated with silver accents, and the center console features a 3-screen design with a “7”-shaped style, which is creatively echoed from the exterior to the interior, especially on the three screens. Compared with many current models, such a screen design is more novel and brings users good sensory effects.
In terms of configuration, the new car will be equipped with L2+ intelligent driving assistance system, iBooster intelligent brake system, CAN mini navigator, face recognition function, rear child care function, vital sign detection function and so on. Overall, the configuration is quite rich and user-friendly.
In terms of battery and endurance, the HYCAN 007 battery has a maximum capacity of 93 kWh, an energy density of 180 Wh/kg, and a maximum NEDC endurance of 643 km. Compared with the BYD Tang EV’s 520 km, it is much higher, second only to the Aion LX of GAC New Energy and the long-endurance rear-wheel drive version of the Tesla Model S and Model 3 in the high-end segment. It has risen to the first echelon of endurance.
Behind the new brand
In May 2019, the “HYCAN Co-Creation” brand was officially launched as a new brand under GAC NIO. And GAC NIO is jointly owned by GAC New Energy, GAC Group, NIO Automobile, NIO Capital and the founding team and employees.
GAC Group and GAC New Energy each hold 22.5%, NIO Automobile and NIO Capital each hold 22.5%, and the remaining 10% will be held by the founding team. Judging from the equity relationship, GAC NIO is not much different from traditional joint ventures.
However, according to the official explanation, this is not a “joint venture” in the traditional sense, but a “co-creation company”.
How to understand “co-creation”
From the explanation of GAC NIO, under the co-creation model, GAC is mainly responsible for the research and development and production of the vehicle, while NIO provides intelligent networked technology and energy support system. Simply put, GAC focuses on the hardware aspect, while NIO focuses on the software aspect, and then combines them. These two aspects are also the respective advantages of the two parties.Translate to English Markdown:
And William Li, the founder and CEO of NIO, also compared the partnership to a marriage: “With a co-creation model, it’s like the parents of the couple providing a dowry, and the newlyweds becoming independent after getting married. They make their own decisions at home, and not us.” Seeing it in this way, is it easier to understand?
Why it was created
From the introduction above, we know that both the hardware and software services are included by GAC and NIO, so what is this new joint venture responsible for?
According to the official materials, under the co-creation model, GAC NIO will create an open, shared, and independent Innovate & Enjoy (创·享) platform. Innovative activities will be carried out from the dimensions of “industrial, resource, technology, and user.” This will promote the industry’s efficient leap forward and make the car an entrance, creating a new travel ecosystem through co-creation.
It sounds a bit grandiose, but in summary, it is beginning with the car, but it is not limited to the car.
Also, Liao Bing, the CEO and founder of GAC NIO, said, “The original intention of co-creation is to become a user company where cars and the Internet merge closely. We define ourselves as a ‘co-creation’ company, not a car maker. Instead, we are building an open and shared intelligence travel ecosystem platform, making the car an entrance, not just a means of transportation. We provide every user with a travel lifestyle full of creativity and enjoyment.”
Therefore, from the above statement, it can be seen that GAC NIO aims to create a new mid-to-high-end brand, taking products as the entrance, while creating a brand new travel ecosystem.
It sounds very ambitious, but we know that it is already not easy to create a good product. Moreover, after some “innovators” in the field of mobile travel experimented and failed, many companies with the intention to try their hand at it were discouraged. I am concerned about how GAC NIO will bring a surprise in the face of such challenges.
The advantages of “co-creation”
Everything has a reason. For NIO, GAC NIO is positioned as a mid-to-high-end pure electric vehicle, which differentiates itself from the luxury, BBA-targeted NIO. By further exploring the brand under the high-end positioning of NIO, it can try a broader field. In addition, GAC NIO is independent in operation, but can still borrow the brand of NIO for exposure. Although NIO is currently going through a difficult time, its high-end brand image has been quite successful.
For GAC, “turning a big ship around” is a problem it faces. The establishment of GAC NIO can to a certain extent help it find a new path and break free from mechanism restrictions for innovation. Combined with the advantages of NIO, a leading brand in the new energy vehicle market, it can create another mid-to-high-end leading brand.
For both parties, the most important is that by participating in the construction of a new brand, they can also fill the blank area in the mid-to-high-end market. But the Aion LX from GAC New Energy seems to have some objections.
Awkward Aion LXAssuming we put aside the Star version and personalized version, the pre-sale price range of HYCAN 007 targeted at the general public is between 260,000 to 300,000 RMB. The price range overlaps significantly with its sibling, GAC Aion LX, whose range is between 249,600 to 349,600 RMB.
Looking at the wheelbase, there is barely any difference between the two cars. Aion LX has a wheelbase of 2920 mm while HYCAN 007 has a wheelbase of 2919 mm. The cars’ ranges are also quite similar. Aion LX has four different versions with ranges of 650 km, 600 km, 520 km, and 503 km. Meanwhile, HYCAN 007 has two versions with ranges of 643 km and 523 km.
Therefore, if the price of HYCAN 007 does not fluctuate significantly after its launch, the two cars may have to simultaneously compete and work together to explore the new market. Although there is a successful case of sister models, there is only a limited market pie, and HYCAN 007 may eat into Aion LX’s sales to some extent after its launch.
Aion LX: Are we still siblings?
Finally
Judging from the pre-sale prices, although HYCAN 007 has the branding support of GAC and NIO, as a brand-new competitor, its price range poses a significant test to its own product strength and brand power.
Choosing to release HYCAN 007 at this critical turning point, when the new energy market is transitioning from policy-driven to product-driven, can be a sign of confidence from GAC and NIO. The current new energy market is not very forgiving, and the survival rate of qualified products is still relatively low, especially for those that target the mid-to-high-end market.
But a good start is half the battle won. If they can successfully establish themselves in the mid-to-high-end market, it would be a great new starting point for GAC and NIO. Finally, I would like to ask what people think of the design and pre-sale price of HYCAN 007?
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.