Five years ago, Zhang Chi set a record-breaking result at Bayingbrook, but was not officially certified due to the loss of the seal. In the four years that followed, the track record was repeatedly broken by the hybrid car, and it was broken by more than a dozen seconds every year.
It is impossible for a relaxed car to win a hybrid car. It is undeniable that when a car is "plugged in", due to the essential characteristics of the battery and motor, the acceleration performance is much stronger than that of fuel vehicles of the same level. In particular, electric vehicles with two or more motors can easily produce a few hundred horsepower.
Therefore, it is said that with the continuous advancement of electrification, the first important significance is the realization of "performance parity".
But again, these new energy models also have their drawbacks, and the weight of the battery is currently the most headache. These plug-in hybrid and pure electric vehicles with large batteries will also have a heavier curb weight than fuel vehicles of the same level and size, and the handling and driving performance should also be re-examined, especially the driving performance, which often gives people a feeling of "flying bricks vigorously".
Based on this, many petrolhead have scoffed at new energy vehicles, and these fanatical fans of fuel vehicles believe that the driving experience of new energy vehicles, especially pure electric vehicles, is simply difficult to compare with traditional fuel vehicles. However, the real-world data seems more convincing.
The market has really changed
In 2023, China's automobile production and sales will exceed 30 million for the first time, completing 301610,000 and 300940,000 units, up 11. y/y6% and 12%. In the passenger car market, the wholesale sales of passenger cars in the narrow sense were 2,55310,000 units, up 10% year-on-year2%；The retail sales volume was 216990,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 56%。
Among them, the growth rate of the new energy market is even more amazing. According to the data of the Passenger Association, the total output of new energy vehicles in 2023 will be 8.92 million units, a year-on-year increase of 337%；The retail sales volume was 77360,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 362%。
The continuous upward trend of the overall market is a reflection of the rising sales of major new energy vehicle companies in China. Among the 16 major car companies that occupy more than seventy percent of China's new energy market, except for Nezha, most of their sales have ushered in varying degrees of growth, and some car companies have even doubled.
This is a clear signal. At the end of 2022, when the 13-year-long national new energy subsidy officially withdrew from the historical stage, there is no doubt that the domestic new energy market will achieve a transformation from policy-oriented to market-oriented in 2023, so this year's data is also more convincing.
With the rapid growth of sales, the number of new energy vehicles in the country is also expanding rapidly. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Public Security, by the end of 2023, the number of new energy vehicles in the country will reach 20.41 million, accounting for 607%。In a more attractive city like Shanghai, the number of new energy vehicles has exceeded one million, reaching 12880,000 units, ranking first among cities in the world.
I thought that the rapid penetration of new energy vehicles would only be in large and medium-sized cities in the south such as Shanghai and Guangzhou, where the policy tendency is more obvious and the economic development is more prominent. But in the north, consumers are also more willing to choose a new energy vehicle, and I was shocked by the observation when I went home for the New Year.
My hometown is Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, in the middle of the Guanzhong Plain. Unlike southern cities, the temperature in Xi'an in winter still has a great impact on the battery life, and compared with Shanghai, the charging facilities here are still improving, and the density is not so high.
But intuitively, there are more new energy vehicles. On the street, green cars can be seen everywhere, among which plug-in hybrids are represented by Ideal and BYD, and pure electric vehicles are mostly Geely, Aion and other brands. In large supermarkets, the stores of various new energy brands have begun to occupy the core position, and the exclusive charging areas of many new energy brands can also be seen in the underground parking lot.
The numbers don't lie. In 2023, a total of 22460,000 new energy vehicles, with a penetration rate of 3394%, ranking 10th among the 31 provincial-level administrative regions in the country, and the penetration rate of plug-in hybrids ranks first, reaching 133%。
The growth of new energy vehicles in Xi'an is also very fast. In 2023, Xi'an will account for 40The 1% new energy penetration rate ranked 28th in the country, and a total of 16030,000 units. It can be seen that new energy vehicles have become very popular here.
You can say "really fragrant".
As early as the end of 2021, the "Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the High-quality Development of the New Energy Vehicle Industry" issued by Xi'an City has mentioned that it will promote the full electrification of vehicles in the public sector, encourage the electrification of muck trucks and sanitation vehicles, and increase the penetration rate of new energy vehicles for heavy-duty trucks and engineering vehicles.
Under such a plan, relevant enterprises in Xi'an have also continued to purchase a large number of pure electric buses and taxis into operation, setting an example for promoting the development of new energy vehicles. However, it can be clearly found that outside the public domain, private users do not seem to be "cold" to new energy vehicles, and many people are still in a wait-and-see state.
In the past two years, with the continuous expansion of the domestic new energy vehicle market, a variety of new models have emerged in an endless stream, and the first pure electric vehicles are gradually declining, and the product configuration is gradually improving, which has been favored by many consumers. In order to further promote the popularization of new energy vehicles, Xi'an has also launched relevant policies such as unlimited driving of new energy vehicles and purchase subsidies to attract the attention of more buyers.
In my case, many of my friends are also considering buying a new energy vehicle. Three years ago, there were only two or three green cars in the basement of our community, and when I went home during the Spring Festival, I found that more than one-tenth of the parking spaces in the basement of the community have been installed with charging piles, and the number of new energy vehicles has been more than a dozen, and our home is also one of them.
During the New Year's Day holiday this year, our family purchased a pure electric car, and I also had a good experience of using this car during this Spring Festival holiday. As a petrolhead, I used to say that if I wanted to drive a pure electric car to go out, then I would definitely be cynical, but after a few days of contact, not only did I feel extremely surprised, but even repeatedly shouted "really fragrant".
First of all, our pure electric vehicle, although it adopts a single motor layout, the motor power is relatively small, but thanks to the fast response characteristics of the motor, it is still relatively "jumpy" when stepping on the accelerator lightly. In particular, the acceleration performance of 0-50 kilometers per hour will definitely be able to kill fuel vehicles of the same level, and whether it is starting or overtaking when driving on urban roads, there is a very strong confidence.
Secondly, because pure electric vehicles do not have an engine, they can have the largest wheelbase with the same length, and the axle-to-length ratio is very high, so the interior space is wider than that of fuel vehicles of the same level. Although our pure electric car is positioned as a compact class, the rear space is comparable to those B-class sedans with standard axle versions, and it also has a better experience in terms of ride comfort.
Finally, and most importantly, the cost of using a pure electric vehicle is really low. In our family's case, for example, after installing a personal charging pile in a parking space, the electricity bill per kilowatt-hour is only 0 per kilowatt-hour when charging during the valley price period every night38 yuan, referring to the average energy consumption of 15 kilowatt-hours per 100 kilometers, the cost of each kilometer is only 6 cents.
In addition, with the improvement of energy replenishment facilities, it is also very convenient to find a fast charging station when you need to charge outside, if you don't need to travel hundreds or thousands of kilometers temporarily, you don't have to worry about battery life at all. And if you only commute in the city, pure electric vehicles are a good choice.
After getting along for a period of time, you can find that those slots and pain points in the past have long existed in the current new energy models. If you really have a little concern about the endurance performance of pure electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid models are also a good choice.
In particular, the pure electric range of the PHEV model can reach 200 kilometers or more under the CLTC working condition, which is enough to cope with a week's urban commute, and has become a pure electric vehicle without range anxiety. In an instant, I can also understand the logic behind Li Bin's sentence "I don't understand that there are still people who buy oil cars".
Of course, new energy vehicles, including pure electric vehicles, also have some inherent disadvantages. For example, the handling still cannot achieve the ultimate fun like a fuel car, and for these consumers who have a high pursuit of driving, they may still be difficult to reach the level of a fuel car.
In addition, due to the cost of battery raw materials, pure electric vehicles using ternary lithium batteries do not have an advantage in terms of price, and the trend of the market has not yet stabilized. However, this does not prevent them from being good products.
Actually, I'm not advocating electric vehicles or disparaging gasoline vehicles. When the development of the world today, a variety of new technologies continue to emerge, we may not create a traditional fuel vehicle and new energy vehicles of the opposite mood.
Whether it's a black cat or a white cat, the one that can catch a mouse is a good cat. Undoubtedly, we can't guarantee that everyone has an obsession with cars, for most people, cars may just be a means of transportation for commuting needs, no matter what type of energy, as long as it is suitable for them, it is the best.
What is certain is that when the industry rolls forward, the impact of electrification on consumers must outweigh the disadvantages, and with the continuous change of technology, the good side will become more and more apparent. For this, even the most fanatical Petrolhead should admit that times have changed.