From knock-off old-man's electric vehicles to industrial giant

Chapter 144 The Starry Sky Old Man's Happy Journey to the Sea!

With the addition of a professional hybrid team.

The development of the first-generation range extender system at Xingchen Automotive can be described as having been greatly enhanced.

Once they joined the company, the two quickly integrated with Wang Jingming and the original R&D team.

Toyota's core technical personnel clearly have unique experience and understanding in the areas of engine thermal efficiency and NVH control.

Fortunately.

All of these can now be used by Xingchen Motors!

Seeing the harmonious atmosphere within the R&D team, Xu Yi smiled with satisfaction.

At this stage, these joint venture giants are still behemoths, and their technology is far ahead!
Even the technical talent that has been revealed can greatly benefit domestic car manufacturers.

and.

Currently, many joint ventures believe that domestically produced cars can only ever be low-end.

After all, the barriers and patents related to engines and transmissions are like insurmountable barriers, blocking the way.

However, they had no idea.

The era of electrification has arrived so quickly, and the speed of version updates is astonishing!

……

……

the other side.

Luzhou.

Xingchen Old Man's Car Factory.

Last year, the popularity of "old man's car" (a type of electric vehicle) was quite high.

The sudden emergence of the Xingchen old man's car, in particular, stirred up a storm in the entire industry, marking the beginning of the "sinful start" of high-imitation old man's cars, various modified old man's cars, and ghost fire old man's cars!

Not only did it achieve phenomenal sales, but it also became a popular and enduring meme online.

however.

This year, the popularity of "old man's car" vehicles has somewhat disappeared.

On the one hand, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's sanctions on improving road regulations have prompted major cities to take action, almost completely blocking the development space of elderly-friendly vehicles in large cities. The remaining manufacturers can only compete in cities, urban-rural fringe areas, and rural areas where regulations are not yet in place. As time goes by, this market share will continue to shrink.

On the other hand, the emergence of the Star Mini and many other pure electric minis has completely robbed the "kingly halo" of the old man's car as a "low-speed mobility vehicle," not only in terms of sales, but also in terms of market share and public opinion.

In some cities with special subsidies for new energy vehicles, plus subsidies for scrapping old cars, you can get a Star Mini for as little as 30,000 yuan.

There are also several pure electric Mini models that are willing to lower their prices voluntarily. Even an average person could tell which one to choose with their eyes closed!

"Factory manager, the sales figures for last month are in. The Star 02 sold over 3,000 units, the Star 01 sold over 2,400 units, the Star 01 Youth Edition sold over 8,000 units... totaling 13,461 units."

Inside the office.

The senior management team at Starcraft Factory is having a meeting.

Factory director Liu Shengjun listened to the marketing department's report.

As a veteran of Xingchen Automobile Factory, he was promoted by Xu Yi.

A large number of capable employees went to Xingchen Automotive's headquarters, while a group of veteran employees remained to be responsible for the daily production and sales operations of Xingchen Laotoule Automotive Factory.

Liu Shengjun feels nothing but gratitude for this position!
of course.

If it weren't for General Manager Xu personally appointing him, he would still just be a conscientious workshop director.

How could I ever be managing such a large factory and receiving such treatment?!
"Sales are getting worse every month..."

Liu Shengjun frowned and couldn't help but sigh.

In the beginning, their Star Car Factory had such a brilliant performance that it became the main company's cash cow!
I still vividly remember the scene when monthly sales exceeded 30,000 to 40,000 units, and the entire factory was working day and night in a frenzy.

And now.

If the factory produces even a little more, it will all become unsold inventory.

"Yes, starting six months ago, the market share of the 'Old Man's Joy' four-wheeled vehicle has been gradually shrinking, and it has been shrinking for seven consecutive months now. Our sales have also dropped from more than 20,000 to less than 14,000 this month."

However, other manufacturers' market share is also not optimistic, and with the rampant presence of counterfeit manufacturers, even if our sales have halved, we are still considered to be at the top level in the industry.

Marketing Manager Zhang Fuguo then added.

can be seen.

The higher-priced Star 02 is now not selling well, while the Star 01 Youth Edition has become the best-selling model. In fact, they reduced costs and responded to market competition by lowering the price of each model by 2,000 yuan, but it still couldn't overcome the decline in sales.

Zhang Fuguo: "Factory director, don't frown. General Manager Xu instructed us to just let things take their course. Four-wheeled vehicles are, after all, a transitional product of the market. Even if they really can't be sold in the future, this factory area will still have other uses. We can also develop in the main factory."

"That's what they say, but, sigh..."

Liu Shengjun was having a hard time keeping his composure.

although.

With sales of over 10,000 units, that's a considerable amount of revenue.

But even that couldn't stop the anxiety from the continuous decline.

What's more.

How could he not take it to heart?

This feeling is like the Starcraft Factory slowly declining under his leadership!
It seems that without Mr. Xu and the original company team, these old guys can no longer achieve anything worthwhile.

How could he possibly be rational?!

How can I live up to the trust that General Manager Xu placed in me when he entrusted the factory to his management?!
"Our Xingchen pickup truck and Xingchen tricycle will also be launched this month. Let's see the market feedback in the middle of the month." Liu Shengjun paused slightly.

He had originally made a phone call.

I applied to Mr. Xu to request a major expansion of the Xingchen elderly care vehicle lineup.

Because there are just too many counterfeit and heavily modified old-age electric vehicles on the market.

Lamborghini, Maserati, BMW, Bentley... In short, there's nothing other manufacturers can't copy, only things you haven't seen before.

So many new-styled electric vehicles for seniors are flooding the market.

However, Xingchen, the originator of high-imitation old man's cars, only has two different models on sale.

As the originator of high-quality counterfeits, he was ironically labeled as a "conservative."

Who could stand this??

If their Xingchen brand electric vehicles for the elderly could also produce high-quality imitations of these on the market, their sales would definitely see another surge, thanks to their superior quality and reputation in lower-tier markets.

But I didn't expect it.

However, Mr. Xu rejected the idea.

The reason given is that there's no need to go through so much trouble.

The market for recreational vehicles for the elderly is already in this state; further development would only lead to meaningless competition.

Besides, Xingchen Automotive's main brand has already established itself in the car manufacturing industry. For a third-party manufacturer to engage in high-quality imitations of other brands is likely to attract resentment and damage its market image. It's better to operate normally and honestly. There's no other way.

Since it cannot be a high-quality replica.

Liu Shengjun later proposed developing the "Old Man's Joy" pickup truck and the "Old Man's Joy" enclosed tricycle.

The prices of these two cars will be further reduced to 8,000 yuan and 12,000 yuan respectively.

This time, Xu Yi agreed.

After all, in the price range of 30,000 to 40,000 yuan, pure electric mini cars will become increasingly popular, and if elderly people want to survive, they can only target the lower end of the market.

"We also need to pay attention to online shopping channels, as they now account for almost one-fifth of our sales," Liu Shengjun added.

The factory has expanded its sales channels to include offline channels, resulting in a significant reduction in their original offline distribution.

But remote logistics and online shopping have flourished.

He wanted to make low-priced tricycles for the elderly, aiming to reduce overall costs and distribute them to more places through logistics.

"Factory manager, don't worry about that. We've listed it on every online shopping platform that's allowed, and we've also opened it up on every available channel."

"Well, let's see how the market reacts. Hopefully, we can boost the sales volume."

……

at this time.

Far away in Texas.

A middle-aged man with black hair and blue eyes is staring blankly at his garage studio.

can be seen.

This is a garage workshop filled with car wash and regular car repair tools. In Europe and America, many adult men who love cars and are willing to wash and repair their cars themselves own such garages.

Jason is a freelance car enthusiast from the United States.

He is also a senior editor at the YouTube car review blog "Jalopnik," where his daily work includes reviewing various car models and writing related articles.

Recently, he encountered a creative block.

On YouTube, his channel has 200,000 subscribers and is popular with fans for reviewing various car models.

He has conducted detailed reviews of everything from large-displacement gasoline sports cars and new off-road vehicles to mid-sized motorhomes.

There is one type of car model that receives considerable attention on his channel.

Those are some old classic cars, such as models that are 15 or 20 years old. These cars are carefully restored, and people often like to see them tested for fuel consumption and various functions.

Some fans even use the car models he prepares in his videos as a guide for buying used cars.

Then Jason understood.

What people really want to see are cars that are closely related to their lives, preferably affordable, and fun and interesting enough!

but.

After making several videos, he discovered...

There are many old cars, but most of them are the same type. If you keep doing the same thing, it will not only be easy to get tired of them, but it is also not his style.

and so.

Are there any more affordable and accessible models than these classic cars?

Jason fell into deep thought.

Out of sheer boredom, he opened the Baba shopping website on his phone. It was a cross-border trade platform connecting Chinese suppliers and global buyers, and its name in China seemed to be "Alibaba".

In recent years, many Europeans and Americans have been willing to shop across borders on it.

Many Chinese goods are quite cheap, even with tariffs, and their industrial quality is not low.

The key is that many things are both cheap and comprehensive, and the cost-effectiveness of bulk purchases is extremely high compared to local prices, which is why it is called a magical cross-border trade platform.

Last time, Jason purchased a batch of hardware tools from the Huaxia brand on this platform.

Oh my god… he didn’t even know how to describe the perfect quality of these tools!
A screwdriver that costs less than a fraction of what you'd find in a local store can offer almost the same quality.

Not only hand tools, but also inexpensive power tools are selling very well.

Many people have already praised it highly.

After all, in Europe and America, a market that is enthusiastic about DIY, the demand for various electric and hand tools and auto repair tools is very large every year.

joke.

Whether it's repairing a house or fixing a car, I try to do it myself whenever I can.

Is it because people in Europe and America are hardworking and love DIY?
No.

It's because the damn labor costs are too high.

I'm completely out of ideas!!
Jason decided to search for car repair tools on the platform to complete his personal equipment library.

But at this moment.

On the webpage, a product listing appeared that he had never seen before.

"Outdoor electric vehicles..."

"Three-wheeled vehicles, four-wheeled vehicles, rural vehicles, off-road vehicles..."

Jason was stunned!
The enclosed electric tricycle featured on the product page looks very much like a "golf cart," and is even slightly larger than a regular "golf cart."

But that wasn't what shocked him the most.

This is an outrageous price listed below this product!

This three-wheeled electric vehicle, which looks like a golf cart, is priced at only $1200, and even with shipping and customs fees, it only costs $1600.

Oh my God!

This is an absolutely outrageous price!

This is only one-sixth of the average price of a basic golf cart in the local market!

Let's take a look at the range information for this car.

Jason almost fainted!

The basic golf cart has a range of only 60 kilometers, while this Huaxia three-wheeled electric vehicle, which costs just one-sixth of that, boasts a powerful range of 100 kilometers.

Its range is comparable to many high-performance golf carts that cost twice as much.

"I need to think about this... Are there really such cheap small cars in the world?"

Jason stared intently at the product page, pondering it carefully.

He felt a strange sense of unreality.

I knew that the goods on the Huaxia platform were cheap, but I didn't expect that you could even buy "small cars" online, and at such a low price?
Could this be a new type of cross-border e-commerce scam?
You should know that if you buy such a large item and are not satisfied after receiving it, returning it is a very troublesome process, with extremely high shipping costs, which is almost equivalent to not being able to return it at all.

……

(End of this chapter)