Xpeng Motors has become the latest "entrant" in the "** war" of the domestic auto market at the end of 2023.
On December 8th, the brand suddenly announced in the name of "XNGP Kaesong limited-time benefits": Xpeng P7i full range of supreme discount 260,000 yuan, the MAX version of the model is priced at only 22From 490,000 yuan.
You know, the P7 series has been called the "sales responsibility" of Xpeng Motors in the past few years, but the market performance in recent months has been declining - it can be said that Xpeng chose it as the "knife" object this time, which not only shows the "sincerity" to consumers in a sense, but also is an inevitable choice to increase the overall sales of the brand as much as possible.
Before Xiaopeng, there have been many brands competing to "rush" in this expected year-end domestic auto market "** war".
Just entered the first day of December, FAW Toyota couldn't wait to announce: the purchase of some models can enjoy a "time-limited purchase tax direct supplement of 5,000 yuan". In addition, brands such as BYD and Leap have also launched their own "year-end limited-time discounts" in various ways; As for Jiyue, which has only been on the market for a month, it is even more simply "a direct drop of 30,000 yuan for the whole system".
Among the many "entrants" of the year-end "** war", FAW Toyota is undoubtedly more eye-catching.
Although the brand's "purchase tax direct subsidy" of 5,000 yuan is inevitably suspected of "lack of sincerity", as a "big factory" that seems to have been "high" in the minds of consumers for many years and has never "disdained to increase sales through the 'first war'", the Japanese joint venture car company's price reduction itself is undoubtedly more important than the specific reduction.
So, what is the reason that FAW Toyota, which has been "not worried about selling" for many years and even often shows "arrogance" in the face of the market and consumers, finally has to put down its "figure"? ...Whether it is "guaranteeing the task" or "rushing the index", where will this "** war" of the auto market at the end of 2023 go next? ......
Today, all of us in "Car Power" are trying to talk to you about this-
Chinese brands did just that this year: to seize the "pricing power"!
——Vehicle power|Liu Jie
From "overtaking in corners" to "capturing the market" - it can be said that Chinese brands have completed the subversion of the world's largest automobile market in a very short time.
At this time, looking at the domestic auto market throughout 2023, the almost continuous "** war" also provides evidence for it from the most intuitive perspective.
Once upon a time, Chinese brands were likely to have to refer to the pricing of the same class of the joint venture brand before releasing a new car, and then reduce the price to compete with them.
Today, the inherent ** system that the latter has painstakingly operated for many years has obviously collapsed - whether it is the "defensive" sedan market, or the SUV market that was "conquered" by Chinese brands earlier, the pricing power has changed hands.
In the final analysis, the proliferation of NEVs under Chinese brands has succeeded in breaking consumers' "brand dependence" on joint ventures and even luxury manufacturers – and naturally, the latter's premium power has also been lost, and pricing power has been gradually reduced.
In the face of the ** system that has been completely subverted, the only strategy they can choose, and what seems to be the most straightforward, is undoubtedly to reduce prices.
Of course, for the large enough volume of China's auto market, its inclusiveness is still much greater than that of mature markets such as Europe and the United States, especially in the northern cities and Xinjiang, ** and other vast regions that are somewhat "unsuitable" for new energy vehicles, and the market position of joint venture brand traditional fuel vehicles is still relatively stable for the time being.
Therefore, the current price cuts of a number of joint venture car companies and even luxury manufacturers are undoubtedly an inevitable process of being continuously "forced" by Chinese brands. Although we don't know how long this process will last, we can now be sure that the vast majority of car consumers in China will no longer have to pay for the "car mark premium".
The dilemma of joint venture car companies is far from being solved by simply reducing prices
——Vehicle power|Big-mouthed Peng
Even at the end of 2023, the "price reduction tide" of joint venture brands is still spreading. The reason for this situation is undoubtedly due to the strong pressure brought about by the rise of Chinese brands.
Once upon a time, if a Chinese brand wanted to "wrestle with a joint venture car company", it seemed that it would never be able to avoid the trick of "low price and high allocation" in order to make up for the lack of its own brand power. However, after taking advantage of the "new energy trend", Chinese brands have gradually narrowed the gap with their rivals, and even faintly formed a trend of overtaking.
At the same time, the change in the consumption concept of many users in the domestic market has also contributed to the fact that Chinese brands are gradually becoming the darlings of the market, and the pressure felt by joint venture car companies is directly "full".
It is worth noting that since the joint venture car companies began to cut prices frequently in March this year, it seems that they have not found other more effective methods. In the short term, the "* war" may be able to stimulate sales to a certain extent, but it cannot fundamentally solve the problem - after all, if the competitiveness of the product itself is insufficient, it is obviously difficult to reverse the decline by relying solely on low prices.
With the passage of time, Chinese car companies have undoubtedly become more aware of what domestic users need most and what they are focusing on, and the models they launch are also "prescribe the right medicine" - focusing on user needs", which is obviously far more popular than "allowing users to adapt to products". Therefore, the future journey of domestic joint venture car companies may only be more difficult than now.