Deng Simiao from Co-pilot Temple
Reference of intelligent vehicles | Official account AI4Auto
NETA’s new car has arrived, the NETA S, with a price range of 1.998-3.388 million yuan.
It is both electric and hybrid, and is getting closer and closer to sales and market data, but also getting farther and farther away from its original intention of making cars for the people.
It is now striving for the high-end luxury car market, no longer focusing on low-end models priced at tens or hundreds of thousands of yuan.
The heart of NETA is well known to everyone.
Zhou Hongyi, who once brought NETA to the market, finds himself in an embarrassing position of breaking promises again.
Looking back, could this be a major reason why 360 hurriedly stopped investing in NETA?
What kind of car is this?
The NETA S is a mid-to-large-sized sedan with two types of power: pure electric and hybrid. A total of eight models have been launched, with a price range of 1.998-3.388 million yuan, and is expected to start deliveries in the fourth quarter.
In terms of appearance, the car is 4980/1980/1450mm in length, width, and height respectively, with a wheelbase of 2980mm.
Compared to the Changan Shenlan SL03 and the BYD Sealion, the NETA S is longer and wider, with a longer wheelbase.
In addition, the car has a streamlined design and a wind resistance of 0.216cd, with frameless doors.
The interior is equipped with four screens – a 17.6-inch center screen, a 12.3-inch co-pilot entertainment screen, an AR-HUD head-up display, and a LCD instrument panel, all powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8155 chip.
There are a total of 21 speakers in the car, including 12 main speakers, 1 subwoofer, 4 ceiling speakers, and 4 headrest speakers.
In terms of power, for the four-wheel drive deluxe and sparkling models, the maximum power is 340 kW, the maximum torque is 620N·m, and the zero-to-100 km/h acceleration time is 3.9 seconds, with a range of 650 km.
Of course, these two models are the most expensive, except for the LIDAR version.
The maximum power of the other six models is 170 kW, the maximum torque is 310N·m, and the zero-to-100 km/h acceleration time is 6.9 seconds.
The hybrid model small, medium, and large versions have a pure electric range of 310 km and a total range of 1160 km when fully fueled and charged, while the rear-wheel drive long-range medium, large, and LIDAR versions have a pure electric range of 715 km.
In terms of intelligent driving, new cars are equipped with 5 millimeter-wave radars, 11 cameras, and 12 ultrasonic radars.
Among them, the Laser Radar Niezha S is equipped with 2 96-line solid-state laser radars and a Huawei MDC610 computing platform, realizing the latest NETA PILOT 4.0 assisted driving scheme for the first time.
The platform hardware has a maximum of 200 TOPS computing power, which is relatively lower than the mainstream full-scenario intelligent driving platform on the market.
Specifically, this scheme provides functions such as urban navigation assistance, high-speed navigation assistance, remote summoning, and memory parking.
Other models are equipped with the NETA PILOT 3.0 assisted driving scheme, which does not provide urban navigation assistance.
Niezha is no longer making cars for the people?
The Laser Radar and Bright Edition models that Niezha promoted this time are not cheap, with the former priced at 319,800 yuan and the latter at 338,800 yuan.
Even the lowest configuration–the extended-range model with a range of 1,160km–is priced at 199,800 yuan.
The reason for the transformation is probably that only higher average vehicle prices can quickly turn around the gross profit margin and achieve self-sufficiency. Struggling in the tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yuan range not only yields thin profits, but it also makes it difficult to balance the cost of intelligent research and development.
But in doing so, they break the previously pledged “making cars for the people” price range, which is out of character.
All along, Niezha has left the impression of being affordable and cost-effective, which can also be seen through its two models, Niezha V and Niezha U.
Niezha’s founder, Zhang Yong, also once clearly stated: “With 100,000 yuan, we can also make a good intelligent car.”
360’s Zhou Hongyi, a former “good shareholder” of Niezha, has also supported the “making cars for the people” route, saying:
360’s cooperation with Niezha is not to create luxury cars. We hope to be able to make intelligent new energy vehicles that ordinary people can afford. Cars that are priced around 100,000 yuan will have no difference in human-machine interaction experience compared to a 2 million yuan Maybach in the future.
The main reason to produce national intelligent cars for 150,000 yuan or less is because this price range accounts for about 70% of the total sales volume of the automobile industry. If this market is not opened up, it means that intelligent electric vehicles will always be niche products.But nowadays, despite the vows made between the two parties, their actions seem to be at odds with one another.
Cracks between the two sides have already been exposed.
Just a month ago, the 360 company promised to invest 2.9 billion, but now they are withholding 1 billion from the agreement by transferring their 3.532% stake, represented by the registered capital of NETA Auto at a cost of 79.9944 million yuan.
This sudden change of heart, and the way it was publicly announced, is undoubtedly indicative of some sort of rift or conflict between the two sides.
Furthermore, NETA Auto’s recently announced D3 financing round of 3 billion yuan no longer includes involvement from 360.
It is unclear whether the direction of the new car model represents the cause or effect of the rift between NETA Auto and 360.
Regardless of its cause or effect, Zhou Hongyi, who had publicly proclaimed to “build cars for the people” has found himself in an awkward situation. His once resounding promises seem to have fallen on deaf ears in the latest developments of NETA Auto.
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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.