According to the data of the new vehicle compulsory insurance, the terminal coverage of passenger cars in the domestic market was 21.182 million in 2021, an increase of 6.2% YoY. Although the amount seems good at first glance, the growth of only about 6% simply brings the quantity back to the level similar to the previous year’s overall data.
In contrast, the annual coverage of new energy vehicles totaled 2.923 million vehicles, showing a 156% YoY increase, and the annual market penetration rate in the narrow passenger car sector has risen to 13.8%, nearly double the growth compared to 2020.
The increase in market penetration fully demonstrates that more and more users are choosing to buy new energy vehicles, which is the best proof of the positive development trend of the industry under the adverse effects of the global pandemic and chip shortage.
Hong Guang MINIEV with nearly 400,000 coverage dominates the market
It is believed that the Hong Guang MINIEV, known as the “National Deity”, speaks for itself. Since it first topped the sales volume in October 2020, it has always dominated the market. Unlike many other new energy brands in China with a large B2B unit demand, Hong Guang MINIEV has a personal user ratio of over 96%, which belongs to the true “people’s vehicle”.
The hot sales of Hong Guang MINIEV have to some extent boosted the entire micro-car market. More and more automakers have also joined in this micro-car trend, such as Chang’an Benni EV also on the list and Chery QQ ice cream, delivering over ten thousand units in the first month of listing.
To further expand its leading advantage, Wuling is also about to launch the upgraded Hong Guang MINIEV with a silver label, which will take the boutique route and increase the cruising range to over 300km. However, facing the “encirclement and suppression” by many competitors, can Silver Label Hong Guang MINIEV continue its glory after losing the huge advantage of ultra-low price?
BYD emerges as the annual champion of auto companies with a multi-pronged strategyDifferent from SAIC-GM Wuling, which relies solely on the MINIEV model to support its sales, BYD’s performance in 2021 was very balanced and comprehensive.
The Qin family, with over 160,000 insurance policies, was successful in both B-end and C-end compact car markets. The high-end model BYD Han, with an insurance policy of over 100,000, was on par with BBA in the mid-to-large-sized sedan market. Its insurance policies in December totaled 11,884, surpassing models such as BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, and Audi A6L, and winning the championship for mid-to-large-sized sedan insurance policies, making it an undisputed pride of Chinese brands.
In the SUV segment, BYD Song PLUS DM-i also had outstanding performance, but it did not make it on the top 10 list. Although DM-i’s delivery was not satisfactory in the early stage due to production capacity limitations, BYD rose up with determination after the factory completed upgrading and renovation. Eventually, the Song PLUS DM-i ranked 11th with 61,949 units, becoming the annual insurance policy champion in the national A-level plug-in hybrid SUV market.
In addition, there are many strong models such as the Tang, the Song Pro, the Yuan PLUS, and the Dolphin, and with the upcoming new Ocean and warship series models, BYD has covered all popular models from A0-level cars to mid-size SUVs, and can also carry two core technologies of EV pure electric and DM-i super hybrid, fully meeting the needs of most different consumers. It is not difficult to predict that BYD’s sales will continue to lead in 2022 while breaking through further.
Top 3 emerging automakers all surpass 90,000 units
The overall trend of sales growth for emerging automakers this year is good. The top 3 “XPeng Motors”, “Li Auto”, and “NIO” have already reached nearly 100,000 units online, and with the launch and delivery of various new models in 2022 (XPeng G9, Li X01, NIO ET7, ET5), breaking through 100,000 units in insurance policies should still be relatively easy.
The NETA Auto, Leapmotor, and WM Motor following closely behind are also in a state of continuous growth, setting a new record of 64,773, 43,960, and 35,647 new car insurance purchases respectively, confirming the optimistic development trend and gradually expanding market share of these new forces in the automotive industry.
In addition, the high-end HiPhi X, which only started delivering in May 2021, also achieved 4,237 insurance purchases in just 7 months. This is a super high-end vehicle that starts at a price of over 6 million RMB, which fully demonstrates that new energy vehicle enterprises have gradually been accepted and recognized by consumers, and also proves the success of their sales model.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, new energy has gradually become the main theme of the current automotive market. According to the predictions of the China Passenger Car Association, electric vehicle sales in 2022 will reach 5.5 million units. By then, hardware capability, intelligent software, brand services, product iteration, and innovative concepts may become some of the factors leading to industry reshuffling. For Chinese brands, this is an excellent opportunity to overtake competitors in the industry.
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.