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“During this process, I was a little nervous,” said Sun Yijiong, the newly appointed vice president of SAIC Passenger Cars. He expressed “modesty” at the beginning. This was his first media interview. It is understandable to be nervous.
As a new official, Sun Yijiong has to shoulder his past achievements and explore the direction of transformation. The launch of the ME series has become his new card, and he needs to find a way to play it.
As he said, it was his first time being responsible for the market work. Standing on the front-line market sales, there are big differences from the backend manufacturing he used to be involved in. It will be uncomfortable, and he needs to adapt to the process.
However, having a card in hand means the game has begun. As for whether the card is big or small, it depends on Sun Yijiong’s dealing strategy.
At this year’s Shanghai Auto Show, Roewe first showcased a trump card-the ME series. This is a new car series aimed at young users, and its first model, Roewe Whale, also debuted.
Independent from R Auto, there were concerns about whether the ME series would also choose independence in the future. Sun Yijiong gave a negative answer and said, “The launch of the ME series is definitely for the brand to go up.”
The brand upward of Roewe has always been a persistent issue. In fact, this issue has existed since the birth of Roewe. After experiencing the exploration of the fuel vehicle era and the search for the intelligent era, some gains have been made in several trials.
The first-generation RX series completed the popularization of product and brand recognition. In May last year, the brand new lion logo initiated a brand renewal. The “ME” series will initiate Roewe’s third stage of brand upward.
What is brand upward? Is it necessarily high-end and luxurious?
“No, it’s not just one way to be high-end and luxurious.” The direction is certain, but for Sun Yijiong, the “new recruit”, the problem is how to effectively incorporate the gains from brand upward into the exploration of transformation.
“We are killing two birds with one stone.” In other words, walking with both fuel vehicles and electrification is not a new thing. What is important is whether the product can support both legs and maintain balance.
Roewe has invested heavily in this. In addition to bringing the all-new Roewe RX5 PLUS, all-new Roewe i5 and iMAX8 to the auto show to show off, the focus is on the ME series and Roewe Whale.
Roewe has made a lot of efforts in the ME series.
The brand new family design language, advanced Internet intelligent system, and SAIC’s most forward-looking intelligent driving assistance technology are all installed in Roewe Whale.
This approach is due to the fact that Roewe has encountered numerous competitors in the field of electrification, not only diverse in types, but also with the interference of the technology industry, bringing an unprecedented mode of competition. The capricious market forced Roewe to rethink new ways.
“We have been brewing for a long time.”
The basic idea is to keep up with the times, if not, it will be eliminated. Although Sun Yijiong did not make it clear, the sentence on the big screen resonated with me.
“ME is not the opposite of WE, but a part of WE; ME is not about age, but about resonance”.
Different from the philosophy emphasized by traditional car companies in the past, the ME series aims to break the outdated rules and establish a new design value.
The first model of Roewe Whale, positioned as a coupe SUV, adopts the design concept of “rhythm awakening” and has a simple design style. “We create product designs that can touch the hearts of young people.” Said Shao Changshan, Deputy Chief Designer of Roewe Brand Design, SAIC Group Technology Center Design Department.
There is no doubt that the ME series “bears the mission of Roewe’s opening up new markets, and is more proactive and extreme, which is a declaration of Roewe brand.” Roewe Whale did not use Roewe’s lion logo, but instead uses the English lettering “ROEWE”.
At the same time, the internet intelligence system and intelligent driving assistance system carried by Roewe Whale are called “the most forward-looking of SAIC”, but specific information has not been disclosed. Therefore, it is difficult to judge the product strength of Roewe Whale and the competitiveness of the ME series for the time being.
Sun Yijiong’s words show some confidence. “While we are undergoing personalized transformation, we will not forget technology.”
However, there are still different doubts behind the courage and confidence, pouring in.
After the name of Roewe Whale was announced, a question arose. Will it launch a series of marine organisms like the “Cat” of Great Wall Motors?
“The naming is not necessarily chosen from marine animals,” which means that there is a possibility of doing so.
There is also a clear message that the design of the ME series will break away from the original product line and have a clear distinction from the current lion logo, but between the vehicle matrix, they will still form a coordinated approach.
The idea is good.
However, Roewe still needs to measure up against its opponents, such as UNI-K, which has unexpectedly achieved high-end results for Changan Automobile.”ME series is not compared with Changan UNI-K in particular.” The industry believes that the Roewe ME and Changan UNI are similar in many aspects, but Sun Yijiong thinks differently.
“We have our own features, and our positioning of this model is the smartest fuel car.” The answer is ambiguous, but it is clear that the high-end localization of independent brands represented by Changan UNI is still the border that Roewe ME needs to break through.
This is just one of the challenges that come one after another.
The intense competition environment undoubtedly brings huge challenges and uncertainties to the growth of a new series. Especially for the high-end fuel car market chosen by the ME series, there is no easy path to break through the ceiling constructed by joint venture brands, and there are always challengers behind every step.
In addition, with the resurgence of high-end independent electric vehicles, how much room is left for traditional racetrack brands to move up and jostle for space? The market shuffling is never gentle, can the Roewe whale compete with it?
With dreams on board, these realities will eventually have to be faced.
“Fuel cars still dominate the mainstream car market. Roewe should not give up this market, but compete with new power brands.” Facing these multiple challenges, Roewe ME issued a challenge.
As for what “smartest” means?
In October, hope that Sun Yijiong can give an answer in a more familiar way without being nervous.
Extended reading:
The ambition of IM is shown on the public screen.
In the name of R, can SAIC improve from “understanding” to “re-entering the industry”?
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.