Model Y Performance version has an EPA range of 507 km; Wuling, GAC, and BYD switch to producing masks.

PART 1 Weekly Index

PART 2 Weekly News

① EPA Range for Tesla Model Y Performance Released by EPA

Recently, the US Environmental Protection Agency has released the EPA range for the Tesla Model Y Performance: 315 miles (507 km).

As a comparison, let’s take a look at the range of battery-electric SUVs from traditional automakers.

Mercedes-Benz EQC EPA range is 328 km with a battery capacity of 79.2 kWh.
Jaguar I-PACE EPA range is 407 km with a battery capacity of 81 kWh.
Audi e-tron WLTP range is 436 km with a battery capacity of 86.5 kWh (there is currently no EPA range, referring to WLTP. In general, EPA is lower than WLTP).

(Image source: electrek)

Quick Comment: With reference to the range of traditional automakers, you should already have an idea. One more comparison is that the EPA range of the Model 3 Performance (with 19 inch wheels) is 489 km. That is to say, even if the Model Y is equipped with 19-inch wheels, its range is 18 km longer than that of the Model 3 Performance (with 19-inch wheels). It has to be said that Tesla’s improvement in drive efficiency is really exaggerated.

② Wuling, GAC, BYD Shift to Mask Production

On February 6, SAIC-GM-Wuling joined its suppliers to shift production to masks, with a daily output of up to 1.7 million.

(Image source: Wuling Motors Official)On February 8th, BYD announced to design and manufacture protective equipment for the production of masks and disinfectants. Masks and disinfectants are expected to be produced and shipped around February 17th (mask production capacity can reach 5 million per day by the end of this month, and disinfectant production capacity is 50,000 bottles per day) until the epidemic is alleviated and eliminated.

(Image source: BYD official website)

On the same day, GAC Group is also studying the creation of a mask production line.

Comment: Three car companies, SAIC-GM-Wuling, BYD and GAC Group, are preparing mask production lines in an emergency, which makes me feel the determination of everyone to fight against the virus together. I hope the mask production line will be put into use as soon as possible to alleviate the shortage of medical supplies. However, the most hopeful thing is that the epidemic can end soon, after all, this cross-border cooperation is not something we are hoping to see.

③ IDEAL ONE will be equipped with WeChat in car

On February 8th, the staff of IDEAL Automotive released a video about the future OTA version of IDEAL ONE in the IDEAL APP, in which the product manager of the intelligent system introduced the use of WeChat in car.

Drivers can interact with WeChat in car through control buttons on the steering wheel or voice, from the video, it can be seen that WeChat in car can support sending messages and making voice calls.

(Image source: video screenshot)

Comment: Using a mobile phone while driving is a very dangerous thing. IDEAL ONE offers WeChat in car which allows drivers to avoid using smartphones to some extent. However, is the interaction display interface of this WeChat in car a bit small? Also, from the video, it can be seen that the time display of the future OTA version has been changed to digital display, which is more intuitive than the previous pointer display. Then the question is, how much role do you think WeChat in car will play in the future OTA version of IDEAL ONE?

④ NIO announces the completion of 100 million US dollar convertible bond financing

The investors of this investment are two Asian investment funds, with amounts of 70 million US dollars and about 30 million US dollars respectively.

In addition, NIO also stated in the announcement that it is currently carrying out several other financing projects, and the results of the current stage are still uncertain. The progress of financing projects will be disclosed according to the requirements of relevant laws.

(Image source: NIO official website)

Quick Comment: According to the current situation shown in the announcement, NIO still needs financing. In the current situation, financing is certainly important for NIO, but market confidence comes from NIO’s own ability to generate cash flow. In 2020, whether NIO can maintain the stable sales growth of last year is also a problem that NIO needs to pay attention to.

**⑤ Tesla’s latest steering wheel patent exposure

Recently, Tesla’s latest steering wheel patent diagram was exposed, and from the picture, it can be seen that in the future, Tesla’s interior design will cancel the gear shift design and realize full touch operation without physical buttons.

Several key information shown in the patent document:

The original gear shift lever has been cancelled, and the gear shift is achieved through the touch screen below the steering wheel;
Equipped with a touch screen and tactile feedback, different gestures can operate corresponding functions;
The steering wheel has RFID detection and NFC activation functions;
In addition, Tesla is also considering controlling more functions in automatic driving through handwriting or other complex gestures in the design of the new steering wheel, such as videos or multimedia.

Quick Comment: It’s not important whether the gear shift is cancelled, or whether it is completely touch controlled. The most important thing is that it needs to be easy to use, which is the most basic thing. However, putting the gear shift operation on the steering wheel raises my curiosity. I hope to see the latest physical steering wheel as soon as possible.

**⑥ The total number of Beijing’s small passenger car indicators in 2020 is announced

On February 7th, the total number of small passenger car indicators in Beijing in 2020 was announced, with a total of 100,000 indicators. Among them, there are 38,200 indicators for ordinary small passenger cars (personal), 54,200 indicators for new energy small passenger cars (personal), and the rest are unit indicators and operational indicators.

> Quick Comment: After we posted on Weibo, “As everyone has a pessimistic expectation for this year’s auto market, we would like to conduct a survey: Will you postpone your car purchase plan due to the epidemic?” Many netizens believe that they should have a private car during the epidemic period, as public transportation is at a higher risk under the current situation.

However, some netizens stated that they will postpone their car purchase plan due to concerns about the impact on their work and income, even if they have the money, they need to watch and observe. So, I want to ask, what are the plans for friends who will have new energy quotas this month?

Author & Editor: Bai Long