Author: Kua JI
Editor: Zhou Changxian
If we count from the first domestically produced CDK that was assembled and rolled off the production line in 1983, China’s passenger car industry has been in existence for more than thirty years. Throughout these decades, Chinese automotive professionals have never stopped working towards surpassing foreign brands.
From the humble origins of market-driven technology exchange, to today’s booming new energy industry, the Chinese auto industry is getting closer and closer to a breakthrough. This conclusion is largely due to the remarkable progress of several domestically-developed car models, which have demonstrated the strength of local brands.
BYD Qin PLUS is one of the market leaders in this regard.
Data released by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) shows that in January 2022, the sales volume of BYD Qin was 26,541 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 962.1%, ranking third after Xuan Yi, Lang Yi, and Su Teng. This achievement is not accidental. Since the launch of the DM-i model, the Qin PLUS has entered a period of rapid growth, achieving a cumulative sales volume of 169,800 units in 2021, topping the A-class new energy vehicle market in China, even when the DM-i system production capacity was limited.
This year, the production capacity problem of the DM-i hybrid system has been somewhat alleviated, and after more than a year of brewing, consumer awareness of the DM-i hybrid system has reached new heights, plus the strong market demand for mid-size sedans, BYD Qin is expected to once again break through and achieve a target annual sales of over 300,000 units.
Restructuring the Mid-size Sedan Market
There is an interesting phenomenon that when you ask a child to draw a car, the vast majority of them will draw a sedan first.
“If I have a budget of around 100,000 yuan, and I want to buy a sedan, what model can you recommend?” If you work in the automotive industry, you are likely to encounter such car purchasing demands from friends and acquaintances.
These two phenomena largely indicate that the sedan is the most traditional car model in the eyes of Chinese consumers and the foundation of the Chinese auto market.
In recent years, domestic brands have developed well in the SUV market, with star products such as H6, CS75, and BYD Song. However, in the mid-size sedan market, domestic brands have not been as successful. This is mainly because joint venture brands have entrenched themselves in this market. From the previous Focus, Cruze, to now the Xuan Yi, Lang Yi, as well as the leading Corolla and Civic, the solid product layout of joint venture brands leaves little room for domestic brands to break in.
It wasn’t until the arrival of Qin PLUS that this situation began to change gradually.
Unlike the traditional competition method with pure gasoline vehicles as used by Geely Emgrand and Dongfeng Fengguang, the Qin PLUS was fortunate enough to leverage new energy sources to compete.
In fact, as a leader in the new energy industry, BYD had already launched the world’s first plug-in hybrid F3 DM vehicle in 2008. After more than ten years of development, BYD’s hybrid system has also been iterated, and the DM-i super hybrid system was born, establishing a foundation for the Qin PLUS to compete head-to-head with joint venture sedans.
From the perspective of the development of the new energy industry, the price range of 100,000 to 200,000 RMB was also the most difficult segment for new energy vehicle penetration. This was mainly due to the “travel demand” faced by consumers who chose vehicles in this price range.
As we all know, the current state of range anxiety and charging difficulties is still the biggest concern for consumers in third- and fourth-tier cities who choose new energy vehicles. To a large extent, being forced to choose gasoline vehicles is their last resort.
The debut of the Qin PLUS DM-i broke this stalemate.
On the one hand, the DM-i super hybrid system allowed consumers to dispel the worry of charging difficulties, and its fuel consumption of 3.8L/100KM made the “economically affordable” Japanese cars look good.
On the other hand, compared with joint venture sedans of the same price range, the Qin PLUS has many advantages such as larger space, stronger power, quieter and smoother, etc., which crushed the joint venture brand models such as Nissan Sylphy and Volkswagen Lavida with its superior hard strength, achieving remarkable market performance.
Under the background of the accelerated transformation towards the “New Four Modernizations” in the automotive industry, from the perspective of long-term development, the family sedan market guarded by joint venture brands will gradually be eroded by new energy vehicles. With the rapid growth of the penetration rate of new energy vehicle, the Qin PLUS, as the first mover, is expected to reshape the future pattern of the family sedan market and become the champion of the new era.
Thriving in the New Energy Era
Many people believe that the Qin PLUS has rapidly gained popularity in third- and fourth-tier cities due to its ultra-efficient characteristics.
After all, the vast majority of consumers in third- and fourth-tier cities are pragmatic in selecting a car. They want a vehicle with spacious interior, comfortable driving experience, and fuel efficiency. In fact, these dimensions are also important factors that allowed joint venture sedans to dominate the mainstream market in the past.With the support of the DM-i super hybrid system, Qin PLUS has five major advantages of fast, efficient, clean, smooth, and green, which has achieved the overturning of joint venture sedans in terms of product strength. This is the fundamental reason for its rapid popularity in the sedan market.
What’s even more exciting is that Qin PLUS is a model that can be popularized in a larger market.
In addition to meeting the rigid needs of consumers in third- and fourth-tier cities, Qin PLUS also has a high visibility in first- and second-tier cities, mainly due to its advantage of qualifying for green license plates.
For example, in cities like Shanghai, where license plates are restricted, obtaining a passenger car license plate is a scarce resource. The preferential policy of sending green license plates for new energy vehicles has attracted many consumers to look into new energy models.
In the current new energy market, plug-in hybrid models with purely electric range exceeding 100 km are rare, and those equipped with supercharging function are even rarer. Qin PLUS DM-i not only provides two pure electric range models of 55 km and 120 km for customers to choose from, but also some models are equipped with fast charging function. Its outstanding performance makes Qin PLUS stand out and enter the sight of more consumers.
It is worth mentioning that, different from Toyota and Honda’s conventional hybrid technology based on gasoline, DM-i is a super hybrid system based on electricity. Its design of ultra-safe high-capacity battery and high-performance high-power flat-wire motor lays a foundation for a substantial reduction in fuel consumption.
In short, when the battery is fully charged, DM-i super hybrid is an electric vehicle, while when the battery is insufficient, DM-i super hybrid becomes a hybrid vehicle with ultra-low fuel consumption.
Moreover, compared with fuel vehicles, Qin PLUS DM-i, which is primarily based on electricity, has a natural advantage of quietness and smoothness, and compared with hybrid models, it also has an unmatched price advantage.
It is these unique advantages that give Qin PLUS DM-i the confidence to surpass joint venture sedans and reshape the market pattern of sedans.
In the new era of independent brand overtaking, Qin PLUS DM-i is showing its prowess.
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.