Weekly Index
Weekly Highlights
IM LS6 Hits the Market and Delivers Right Away, with Over 8,000 Units Preordered on the Day of Launch
IM LS6 was officially launched on October 12, introducing a limited-time preferential price, only available until 24:00 on November 12 for those who place their order and pay within this year.
The price details are as follows:
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Max High Performance version, with a range of 702 km, has a launch preferential price of CNY 276,900.- Max Ultra Long Range Edition, with a range of 760 km, market rights price 258,900 yuan;
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Max Long Range Edition, with a range of 680 km, market rights price 234,900 yuan;
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Max Standard Edition, with a range of 560 km, market rights price 214,900 yuan.
Specific configurations include:
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Both the Max Ultra Long Range Edition and Max Ultra Performance Edition are equipped with a platform labeled by IM as “Near 900 V”, with an actual maximum working voltage of 875 V, peak power 396 kW, and 200 km of energy can be replenished in 5 minutes of charging;
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The Max Long Range Edition and Max Standard Edition are “Near 500 V” models, with 220 km of energy replenished in 15 minutes of charging;
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The Max Ultra Performance Edition is calibrated for a top speed of 252 km/h, and officially tested to reach up to 305 km/h under extreme conditions;
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All models come standard with the high-computing power Orin-X chip and lidar;
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Equipped with IM’s generative large model, capable of idle chatter, image generation, and understanding more complex user intentions, etc.
Over 8,000 reservations for the IM LS6 on the day of its launch, with cumulative orders exceeding 38,000 on the second day.
Quick Comment:
Judging from the rights price and configuration, the launch of the IM LS6 indicates a spirited bid in the increasingly fierce market competition. The IM brand has been established for three years, but its IM L7 and LS7 models have not made a splash in the market. Even with the backing of SAIC Group, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech, and Alibaba, the situation is not optimistic. The number of reservations for the IM LS6 on the second day of its launch has already exceeded 38,000. Whether IM can stand tall hinges on the market performance of the IM LS6.
HESAI Technology Wins HOZON Designation for Mass Production
HOZON’s new model will be equipped with Hesai Technology’s ultra-high-resolution long-range lidar AT128, expected to roll out in the first half of 2025.
The AT128 is a production-level, long-range lidar launched by Hesai Technology for vehicles equipped with Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS). It offers an ultra-high global resolution of 1,200 x 128, outputs massive amounts of real-time three-dimensional data at an ultra-high point frequency of 1.53 million per second, and performs ultra-long range measurement of 200 m (@10% reflectivity), claiming to capture rich and complete object details.
HOZON co-founder and CEO Zhang Yong said that in this designated collaboration, the Hesai AT128 will play a key role in the perception module of the NETA PILOT Advanced Intelligent Driving System, helping to upgrade the intelligent travel experience of HOZON’s new generation of vehicles.
Quick Comment:
HOZON Auto recently launched NNP Nezha High-Speed Navigator Assist on their Nezha S models. The cooperation between HOZON Auto and He Sai Technology implies that HOZON Auto will continue to invest in intelligent driving technologies, aiming at urban navigation assisted driving. Now, we have another player in the field of urban navigation assisted driving.
Xpeng Auto Responds to “Several Employees Cooperated with Investigation”
According to Caixin, Xpeng Auto announced the suspension of the head of the procurement department and the cooperation of several employees with the investigation. The incident reportedly started from an internal anti-corruption effort involving multiple levels, with police intervention.
The official response to the news is: the company’s actions are normal anti-corruption and honesty advocacy behavior.
Quick Comment:
Xpeng Auto previously claimed to adjust the supply chain business department to strengthen cost control. In addition, Xpeng Auto will improve cash flow by reducing expenses and increasing sales. At the second quarter financial meeting this year, Xpeng Auto’s cost reduction and efficiency improvement goal was to reduce costs by 25% by the end of 2024. This “several employees cooperate with the investigation” is also a kind of “bone scraping treatment”.
Avatr “Smart Driving Mount Everest Challenge” Successfully Concluded
In the Avatr smart driving mission to Mount Everest, with a total mileage of over 3,376 kilometers and an altitude difference of 5,000 meters in a nine-day journey, the Avatr team drove Avatr 11 Hongmeng version over six 4,000-meter high mountain passes, breaking through complex terrain barriers.
Specific performance:
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Smart driving mileage reached 3,072 km, accounting for 91%, with an average speed of 62 km/h;
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In terms of energy consumption, the electric drive consumption per 100 kilometers was 14.69 kWh under high temperature differences and high altitude terrain conditions;
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Under complex and changing road conditions and weather conditions, Avatr achieved 100% automatic evasion, effectively avoiding static and dynamic obstacles such as wildlife, cyclists, rockfall earth piles, traffic signs, and ice cream cones;
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At a speed of 100 km/h, the altitude climbed to 2,437 meters, the Avatr 11 Hongmeng version drove 535 km with “one box of electricity”, with a high-speed endurance completion rate of 76%.- Employing IM’s smart drive to navigate the ‘Nujiang Seventy-two Turn’ which encompasses extreme road conditions including cliffside paths, sharp U-turns, narrow meeting roads, and steep climbs;
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In a 3-kilometer pitch-black construction tunnel, faced with blocked construction areas, sudden light changes, lack of lane lines, and slippery roads, avatr’s Hongmeng 11 edition achieved autonomous steering and simultaneously accomplished thrice active lane change avoidance and overtaking;
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This time, smart driving did averagely 201 km of intervention once, achieving a lane change success rate of 98.9%, and a successful rate of access and egress at ramp of 99%.
Quick Review:
This journey to Everest by avatr’s smart drive was also the first time that autonomous driving challenged the Everest route, facing complex and extremely challenging road and weather conditions throughout the journey, demonstrating avatr’s autonomous driving capabilities, solid endurance level, and the reliability and safety of the driving experience.
LI Auto stated its target to sell more than 3 million vehicles by 2028
According to the report by “36 Kr”, at LI Auto’s Autumn Strategic Meeting, LI Auto discussed its strategic direction for the next 5-10 years, covering topics such as how to deal with Huawei’s offensive, expansion of smart driving, updates and iterations of products, and its overseas strategy.
To be specific:
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In face of Huawei’s offensive, LI Auto opted to continue to emphasize its family user tag;
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It will speed up investment in smart driving;
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It is expected to introduce a whole new generation of technology platform by 2026, by which time its products will possess fully autonomous driving capability;
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Its family user strategy does not cater to most overseas markets, so it will consider going overseas only after 2028.
Additionally, LI Auto believes that by 2028, the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in China can reach up to 90%. If only four to five companies survive by then, BYD, Tesla, and Huawei will be included among them. For LI Auto to have a seat at the table, it should sell no fewer than 3 million vehicles by 2028.
Quick Review:
Some participants summarized this autumn strategy meeting as “Turning the over 70 billion in cash into continuous competitive strength”. Although LI Auto boasts strong advantages in aspects of sales, traffic, and profits, such as setting their ambitious October target to 40,000 deliveries, a great sense of crisis can nonetheless be sensed from them. This sense of crisis arises partly from their fierce and rolling competitors, and partly because LI Auto does not have the edge under the current trends of intelligence and overseas expansion.
This article is a translation by AI of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.