Guangqi Honda, once a leader in the fuel vehicle market, is now in deep trouble. Judging from the data released by Honda China, the cumulative sales of Guangqi Honda in 2023 will be 62050,000 units, down 137%, the third consecutive year of sales decline. Behind this figure, there is an embarrassing reality that Guangqi Honda has lost both the fuel vehicle market and the new energy market. I have to say that since Li Jin became the number one leader in Guangqi Honda for more than a year, his results have been really disappointing.
The sales of fuel vehicles fell off a cliff, and the terminal was out of control
Guangqi Honda's fuel vehicles were once a popular choice in the market, Accord has been at the top of the mid-level car sales list all year round, Fit is the representative of the value of small cars, small SUV Binzhi has sold more than 20,000 units a month, and the medium-sized family MPV is none other than Odyssey, but unfortunately time has passed, these have long been a thing of the past, how to stop the decline in sales for 3 consecutive years, has become the top priority of Guangqi Honda in 2024.
Taking Accord as an example, although the replacement has been completed, the market performance is not ideal. In order to boost sales, Accord offered a discount of up to 40,000 yuan in the terminal market, which was undoubtedly a major blow to its brand image. However, even with such a big offer, it still fails to attract enough consumers.
The loss of control of the terminal ** is not only a car of the Accord, but a major problem faced by the entire Guangqi Honda. In order to clear the inventory, the ** of some models continues to decline, which not only damages the brand image, but also hits the enthusiasm of dealers. Against the backdrop of the increasingly saturated gasoline vehicle market and increasingly fierce competition, the Chinese executives of Guangben, led by Li Jin, may have realized that the wave of electrification in China has had a huge impact on the joint venture, but Guangqi Honda's response was too casual, resulting in a continuous decline in sales.
The new energy transformation has been blocked, and the products lack sincerity
In the face of the rise of the new energy market, Guangqi Honda is also trying to respond to market changes by launching new energy models. Li Jin has said that the introduction of the e:PHEV plug-in hybrid system for the first time in the Accord is one of Guangqi Honda's measures to accelerate electrification. However, the market performance of projects that are launched in a hurry is difficult to be satisfactory.
Guangqi Honda lacks sincerity in the process of new energy transformation. In the process of switching from hybrid to plug-in hybrid and pure electric, Guangqi Honda has not been able to launch a truly competitive new energy model. Take the plug-in hybrid version of the Accord as an example, not to mention fast charging, the fuel consumption of the feed is 5The 5L is taller than the electric hybrid version equipped with the old i-MMD technology, not to mention that the trunk is encroached on by the battery and other equipment into an irregular small space, which is undoubtedly a kind of neglect of consumer demand.
Taking the Pole 1 as an example, this model claimed by Honda to be based on pure electric architecture is almost exactly the same as fuel vehicles in various data, making it hard to believe that this is not a "oil to electric" model. The most excessive is that the high price of Extreme 1 is seriously inconsistent with its product strength, resulting in extremely low market acceptance.
If the purely technical reasons may be acceptable, but the products created are not competitive, and there is a lack of sincerity, this is another level of problems, indicating that Guangqi Honda under the management of Li Jin does not put consumers first.
The management system is rigid, and the game between China and Japan has intensified
As a Sino-Japanese joint venture, Guangqi Honda's management system has been affected by the game between China and Japan to a certain extent. In joint ventures, there are differences and differences between China and Japan in terms of corporate culture, management philosophy and business strategy. As a result, Guangqi Honda often faces games and disputes between the two sides in the decision-making and execution process.
The rigidity of the management system makes it difficult for Guangqi Honda to respond and adjust quickly in the face of market changes and competitive pressure. At the same time, the game between China and Japan has also exacerbated the instability within Guangqi Honda and affected the overall development and competitiveness of the company.
Brand image is damaged and consumer trust is declining
Guangqi Honda's poor performance in the market in recent years has led to a certain degree of damage to the brand image. Consumer trust in Guangqi Honda has declined, raising questions about the quality and performance of its products. This crisis of confidence has further exacerbated Guangqi Honda's predicament in the market. In order to rebuild the brand image and consumer trust, Guangqi Honda needs to increase investment in product quality and after-sales service to improve consumer satisfaction and loyalty.
As the helmsman of Guangqi Honda, Li Jin is under tremendous pressure. He needs to promote the implementation of the new energy transformation plan while stabilizing the fuel vehicle market. However, judging from the current situation, the challenge facing Li Jin is not an easy one. First of all, he needs to increase investment in product research and development to launch more competitive new energy models. However, Guangqi Honda's technical reserves and R&D capabilities in the field of new energy are relatively weak, which will be a major problem for it.
Secondly, Li Jin also needs to adjust his market strategy to better respond to market changes and competitive pressures. However, as the downward trend of Guangqi Honda in the fuel vehicle market has been difficult to reverse, how to find a breakthrough in the new energy market and regain the trust and support of consumers will be a major challenge.
In addition, Li Jin also had to face the instability of the dealer team and the challenges of internal business policies. Due to Guangqi Honda's poor performance in the market, dealers' profit margins have been squeezed, resulting in some dealers withdrawing from the network. How to stabilize the dealer team and formulate reasonable business policies to safeguard the interests of both parties will be an important problem that Li Jin needs to solve.
Automotive perspective:
Overall, Guangqi Honda is currently facing an unprecedented dilemma. Problems such as the precipitous decline of the fuel vehicle market, the obstacles to the transition of new energy and the drawbacks of the joint venture system need to be solved urgently. As the head of the business, Li Jin needs to take a series of strong measures to meet these challenges. He needs to carry out comprehensive upgrades and improvements in product research and development, market strategy, new energy transformation, and joint venture system reform.
Only in this way will Guangqi Honda have the possibility to turn around the current predicament and regain its former glory. However, it all takes time and effort to make it happen. It remains to be seen whether Guangqi Honda will be able to successfully transform and re-emerge in the future.