Writing by CH_陈函

The second half of the new car-making era has begun!

After the conclusion of an immersive stage play called “The Light of Life,” a brand new Chinese luxury brand, with a special name “BeyonCa,” made its debut in a unique way, which implies “Go Beyond the Car.” Remember its meaning, and the English name is easy to remember.

As for the Chinese name of BeyonCa, it will not be released until next spring. Along with it, the brand’s first mass-produced model will come, but the production line is expected to be ready only in 2024.

Who is BeyonCa?

A new car brand has appeared surprisingly, and people are definitely curious about it.

In fact, it is not difficult to understand a Chinese car company’s roots – it’s nothing more than understanding the “people,” “money,” and “production qualifications” behind it.

In the era of electrification, we often see people question whether “anyone can make cars” after breaking the constraints of internal combustion engines and gearboxes. However, many people neglect the profound accumulation of technology that the Chinese automobile industry has gained through decades of market-driven innovation and the capital strength on the crest of the wave. With money, talents, and complete industrial chains, there are many new car-making enterprises emerging like mushrooms after rain.BeyonCa is another vivid example. Its founder, Mr. Su Weiming, has served as senior executive at Daimler-Benz, Daimler-Chrysler, Volkswagen Group, and Renault, witnessing the rapid development of the Chinese and Asian automobile markets over the past 30 years.

With decades of experience and network in the automotive industry, Mr. Su Weiming founded BeyonCa in 2021, and its core founding team members include Christian Klingler, former member of the Volkswagen Group global board of directors, and Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler, former technical development director at Audi.

Christian Klingler was in charge of sales and marketing at Volkswagen Group and was named “Person of the Year 2011” by French magazine L’Automobile.

Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler, on the other hand, is a development engineer who has participated in the development of more than 20 models, including Bugatti Chiron, Bentley Bentayga, Mercedes-Benz GT, Lamborghini Urus, Porsche 911, and Audi R8.

With these three industry experts at its core, BeyonCa has established institutions in five cities in three countries, including three R&D centers in China, a design center in Munich, and a Singapore branch that is planning to upgrade to a technology center in the future.

This is the “people” part.

In terms of “money”, in addition to the previously exposed strategic investment of 10 billion yuan from Hubei Changjiang Capital, the investment parties announced this time also include Dongfeng Group and Renault Group.According to previous reports, BeyonCa plans to establish the Hubei New Energy Vehicle Industry Fund in collaboration with Changjiang Capital, and intends to build a passenger car industrial base in Wuhan, including a complete vehicle production line.

Therefore, in terms of “production qualifications”, BeyonCa can have multiple choices, including applying for qualifications, purchasing qualifications, or using Dongfeng Group’s vehicle manufacturing qualification.

Regardless of the chosen path, from the perspective of investment composition, BeyonCa is tied to Dongfeng Group.

In conclusion, we can say that BeyonCa, founded by former Volkswagen executive Su Weiming, is both a startup company and an external extension of Dongfeng Group’s high-end development.

With Dongfeng Group’s relationship, we believe that concerns about whether BeyonCa will land successfully should be reduced.

What does BeyonCa want to do?

After understanding who BeyonCa is, let’s take a look at what they want to do.

Two keywords: “high-end” and “beyond”.

“High-end” refers to brand positioning. BeyonCa is positioned as a “luxury intelligent electric vehicle brand,” targeting international high-end car brands such as Porsche, BBA, and others, such as Mercedes-Benz EQS, Porsche Taycan, etc.

“Beyond” refers to the concept of car-making, which adheres to the core concept of “defining cars with deep scenarios.” BeyonCa uses software as a tool, with a particular focus on health.

About this concept, the official introduction is as follows:

“The company has assembled a team of expert doctors, automotive engineers, software and data engineers to create a Health as a Service (HaaS) ecosystem, dedicated to offering high-quality health management and smart medical solutions for users. This is achieved through the integration of AI technology, intelligent driving and health management services, fostering user happiness and well-being.

BeyonCa has developed an intelligent cabin with a real-time health monitoring system that provides a fully-perceptive, responsive and accessible health solution. In addition, the company has appointed Dr. Xin Guo, a renowned international specialist in cardiovascular disease, as the Chief Health Officer to lead the “cloud doctor” team in researching and developing health scenarios and services inside and outside the vehicle.

In reality, the concept of integrating health monitoring systems into intelligent cabins is not new, as many car manufacturers or suppliers have proposed it in the past. As cars are gradually becoming the third living space outside of home and office, the limited posture and movement of passengers make them more susceptible to illnesses. However, it also provides convenient conditions for health monitoring. Why not have a physical examination while driving?

Therefore, in-car health monitoring is feasible and necessary, yet no enterprise has successfully implemented this concept to provide real value to users. Will BeyonCa make a difference? We wait and see.

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In addition to the elusive concept, BeyonCa also brought a visible but untouchable concept car – Gran Turismo Opus 1 (GT Opus 1) in its debut show.

Positioned as a luxury electric GT sports car, GT Opus 1 showcases its many ingenious ideas in the 2:05 video above, which is highly recommended for everyone to watch.

GT Opus 1 is equipped with the world’s first officially released dynamic logo, which shares the same name as the opening musical – Light of Life.

The logo design of GT Opus 1 is inspired by the diamond-cut facet reflecting sunlight. When the vehicle detects the user approaching, the internal logo will be illuminated, presenting the blue diamond background and DNA double helix, implying that the “Light of Life is ignited”.

This new way of interpreting logos may lead the trend in the future.

Moreover, the body design of GT Opus 1 is unforgettable.

The V-shaped front face design combined with the horizontal row of matrix LED headlights reminds people of Honda’s NSX. The eye-catching “Light of Life” logo also reminds people of Alfa Romeo or Pontiac. However, when combined together, it belongs to itself, and you cannot find a second car that looks so similar.According to official information, the wheelbase of GT Opus 1 will reach 3.2 meters, and the car width will reach 2 meters. With sharp body lines and exaggerated front bumper, side skirts, and rear wing, the entire vehicle creates a luxurious sports car feeling.

As a concept car, GT Opus 1 can of course play imagination to the fullest. Therefore, it not only has no door handles, but also puts two rearview camera on the roof. The rearview camera and roof-mounted laser radar form an X shape. From an aerial view, it looks like a drone ready for battle on the roof.

At the same time, we did not see any boundary between the roof and the windshield, and the A-pillar seems to be hidden under the glass. With current technology, such a large area of integrated curved glass is unlikely to be mass-produced.

Entering the GT Opus 1 interior, we see eye-catching turbo-style clock design, crystal inlay art, large areas of leather wrapping, and exquisite red stitching. Every detail reveals the high price of this vehicle.In terms of interior design, BeyonCa follows the design language of “Sporty Relex”. And the fact proves that if the budget is sufficient, sportiness and comfort can really be obtained together.

Although it is not explicitly stated, GT Opus 1 is most likely the prototype of the mass-produced car that BeyonCa will release next year. As for its performance, the official statement is “0-100 km/h acceleration less than 4 seconds”.

The Second Half of China’s New Car Manufacturing Has Begun!

2024, far away from us and yet so near.

The distance lies in the constantly changing market, and the likes of “the first generation of China’s new car manufacturing” are still struggling to move forward. Who knows how many new car manufacturers will still be alive two years from now?

The proximity is that the trend of electrification of the automobile industry is already set in stone, and the tailwind is still strong. The success or failure of a new car manufacturer will be revealed faster than ever before.

The second half of the new car manufacturing in China has already begun, and the “the second generation of China’s new car manufacturing” and “the third generation” will continue to emerge, and the process of natural selection is accelerating.

Two years from now, there will certainly be new car manufacturers that have survived the storm, they might be Wei, XPeng, LiXiang, or Nio, and BeyonCa or Xiaomi.

In this flourishing era of new Chinese car manufacturers, which one do you think will have a better chance to succeed?

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.