PART 1 Weekly Index

PART 2 Weekly News

① Domestic long-range Model 3 prices announced

Tesla’s official website announced the subsidized prices of the domestic long-range rear-wheel drive version of the Model 3, which is 339,050 yuan, with a range of 668 km under the NEDC standard.

In addition, the pre-subsidized price of the domestic Model 3 Performance high-performance version was also announced, at 419,800 yuan, with a WLTP range of 530 km and a 0-100 km/h acceleration time of 3.4 seconds.

The current price of the domestically-sold standard range upgrade version of the Model 3 remains unchanged, with a two-year interest-free policy.

Editorial Comment: For Tesla, the imported long-range rear-wheel drive version of the Model 3 was priced at 421,000 yuan just 9 months ago, which means that domestic purchasers can save 82,000 yuan for the same model. Seeing the subsidized price of 339,050 yuan, this is a landmark day for fans of the company. It should be noted that the Performance version currently has an announced pre-subsidy price, but it is expected to sell for less than 400,000 yuan after subsidies.

For other domestic new energy vehicle brands, the current price range of Tesla’s long-range models is undoubtedly a heavy blow to them. However, dialectically speaking, Tesla, as the leader in the field, can promote industry changes more quickly, make more people aware of electric vehicles, promote the “metabolism” of the entire industry, and this may well be a good thing.

② NIO Pilot to be updated soon

NIO Pilot will soon add two heavyweight features, “NoP automatic assisted navigation driving” and “S-APA F visual fusion automatic parking”.When using the “Automatic Assistant Navigation Driving” function, the car can automatically cruise and travel according to the navigation-planned path after setting the navigation path on the car’s system and turning on NIO Pilot. The current NIO Pilot covers most highways and ramps, and can automatically execute turn signal and lane-changing operations when needed (overtaking slow vehicles, switching from A highway to B highway). Another “S-APA F Visual Fusion Fully Automatic Parking” can perceive multiple parking spaces on both sides of the vehicle (up to 8 spaces) at the same time by combining panoramic cameras and ultrasonic radars. After the driver selects the target parking space on the car screen, the vehicle can automatically park in the space. The implementation of the NoP function means that the whole set of NIO’s assisted driving system has reached a relatively high level. However, when Tesla first introduced NoA, there was a situation in which the vehicle speed exceeded 100 km/h when exiting the ramp. It is still unknown what level NIO Pilot will achieve when it is first launched. However, it is important to note that Tesla records and uploads road conditions during user use to train NoA for rapid growth, and it is unclear what approach NIO will take in the future. In addition, NIO has renamed “NIO Pilot Complete Function” to “NIO Pilot Full Package”, and the optional price is still 39,000 RMB. At the same time, a new “NIO Pilot Select Package” was stripped out, which does not include NoP, turn signal automatic lane-changing functionality, and other features, only retaining basic functions such as ACC and LKA, and the price was reduced to 15,000 RMB. The “Select Package” seems difficult to experience the essence of NIO Pilot, so let’s look forward to the early launch of the two functions, “NoP Automatic Assistant Navigation Driving” and “S-APA F Visual Fusion Fully Automatic Parking”. Tesla released its first-quarter financial results in 2020. It produced a total of 102,672 vehicles, including 15,390 Model S/Xs and 87,282 Model 3/Ys, and delivered 88,400 vehicles, including 12,200 Model S/Xs and 76,200 Model 3/Ys.The delivery volume of Tesla was 88,400 vehicles, a 21% decline from the 112,000 vehicles of the last quarter. However, compared with the Q1 of previous years, this is the best Q1 in Tesla’s history, especially under the influence of the epidemic.

Quick Comment: According to the statistics of the CPCA, Tesla delivered 10,160 vehicles in March in China, which is impressive considering the epidemic. Now that domestically-produced long-range and Performance Model 3s are officially on the market, I wonder if the sales in April will break records again.

Tesla’s delivery target for 2020 is 500,000 vehicles, a 36% increase from 2019. The growth rate has been significant if we compare Q1 this year with previous years. If the epidemic didn’t happen, it is extremely likely that Tesla would exceed the 500,000 delivery target.

Looking at the development of the epidemic, production and life in China have gradually resumed, but the situation overseas has just started. If the epidemic in the United States cannot be effectively controlled and the resumption of work is indefinite, Tesla will likely face a situation of having no cars to deliver in the near future.

At present, for Tesla, the Chinese market is the only market outside of the United States with both demand and production capacity, and it is the most hopeful market in the coming period.

④ The subsidy for purchasing new energy vehicles and the policy of exempting purchase tax were extended for two years

The State Council executive meeting pointed out that the subsidy for purchasing new energy vehicles and the policy of exempting the purchase tax will be extended for two years. Secondly, the central finance will use awards to replace subsidies and support the elimination of diesel trucks that meet only the National III or lower emissions standards in key areas such as Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei.

In addition, from May 1 to the end of 2023, when the second-hand car dealership sells old cars, a value-added tax of 0.5% will be levied based on the sales amount.

Quick Comment: The government has released a signal to continue new energy subsidies, but the specific new plan has not yet been introduced. Bloomberg previously reported that China’s electric car subsidies will be reduced by 10% in the second half of this year.In addition, the subsidy may only be limited to domestically produced car models with a sale price of 30 million yuan or less. For car models priced above 300,000 yuan, if they support battery swapping, they may not be subject to price restrictions and can also enjoy subsidies, such as NIO’s car models.

Finally, the minimum range for subsidies has been raised from 250 km to 300 km, which means that the threshold for subsidies has been further increased. So, do you think Bloomberg’s statement is reliable?

⑤ Guangqi NIO’s Low-Profile Launch of “HYCAN 007”

Guangqi NIO has launched its first car model, the HYCAN 007, with a wheelbase of 2919 mm and a subsidized price of 262,600-400,000 yuan, which can achieve OTA. There are a total of five versions available, equipped with 73 kWh and 93 kWh batteries, and has a longest range of 643 km under the NEDC standard.

In addition, the entire series is equipped with an L2-level ADAS system, including full-speed adaptive cruise control ACC, active braking AEB, forward collision warning FCW, lane keeping assist LKA, lane departure warning LDW, blind spot monitoring BSD, lane change assist LCA, rear cross traffic alert RCTA, and other configurations.

Quick Comment: This is the first car model co-produced by Guangqi and NIO. There is still some resemblance to NIO’s ES6 in terms of the vehicle’s design, and even the robot inside is somewhat the same as NIO’s. But who makes this a collaboration between the two companies? However, the pricing looks a bit awkward.

The HYCAN 007 is priced between 262,600 and 400,000 yuan, which overlaps with the price range of Guangqi’s own Aion LX and NIO’s ES6. It has just been launched, and it is uncertain if there will be terminal discounts in the future. Do you like this “collaboration model”?

⑥ Li Xiang from Li Auto Officially Offers to Help You “Free of Charge” to Replace Your Seats

Li Xiang has announced on the Li Auto app that there is now a plan to replace the hard seats of early Li ONE models free of charge.

As a new brand, there have been many problems with the early delivery of the Li ONE, and while software problems can be solved through OTA iterations, hardware problems cannot let old car owners suffer losses, so a replacement plan has been launched.* For example, regarding the issue of seats, the seat of the Ideal ONE was originally a tough German style, but due to capacity ramp-up problems with some suppliers and Ideal, a few suppliers did not control the hardness issue well, resulting in the phenomenon of over-hard seats. However, there have been no problems with seats delivered in recent months.
For users whose seat hardness is not up to standard, Ideal will replace them with brand new seats for free.
The systematic work will start successively at the end of April.

Quick comment: Regarding seat replacement, it seems that only owners who enjoy lifetime quality assurance can enjoy it, but currently the vast majority should be owners who enjoy lifetime quality assurance. It is best to consult Ideal to see if you qualify for the “free replacement” program. What if you miss it!

By the way, a few days ago, Li Xiang also mentioned: “Ideal Car’s cash reserves are sufficient to last for 36 months in the worst-case scenario“. It has to be said that another test has come for domestic new forces to make cars!

Author: Changhao Lewis