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

Chapter 211 You think advertising laws don't exist? (5k)

"Uh, you mean you want us, JAC, to manufacture cars for your Xingchen company?"

"It's not OEM manufacturing; it's a full-stack solution for new energy vehicle technology, the XI model unique to our Xingchen system..."

"Isn't that still OEM manufacturing?!"

...

An Jinhui's eyes widened slightly.

My thoughts went blank for a second.

We were just weighing the pros and cons of collaborating with European automakers.

But then the tone suddenly changed, and we fell into a new trap?

“The OEM model is at best a case of borrowing a chicken to lay eggs. Even if the car comes from JAC’s factory, it cannot be considered a JAC brand. Even if it is a joint venture to jointly establish a brand, the other party is usually in charge.”

Xu Yi said with a smile, "The XI model turns car companies into the golden rooster, allowing the brand to control product definition, quality control, supply chain and sales and after-sales service. Xingchen, as a technology supplier, provides solutions such as electric drive, intelligent driving and cockpit. If it is successful, the brand will also belong to JAC."

An Jinhui remained silent, listening slowly.

--hiss.

Upon closer examination, there is indeed a fundamental difference.

Turn the Jianghuai region into a golden rooster?

This sounds much more constructive than borrowing a hen to lay eggs.

Who doesn't dream of making something big and powerful?
"Mr. Xu, you just mentioned intelligent driving? Xingchen Motors has experience in this area as well?" An Jinhui asked in surprise.

He knew that Xingchen's electrical, electronic, and electronic technologies were very advanced.

Polestar Battery's position in the domestic lithium iron phosphate market is beyond doubt. Currently, half of the new energy vehicles in China use ternary lithium batteries, while the other half use lithium iron phosphate batteries. Everyone has different supplier options and considerations.

However, there is no doubt that the cost of lithium iron phosphate batteries is relatively low, while the cost of ternary lithium batteries will naturally be factored into the vehicle price and passed on to consumers.

It can be said that since the Starry Sky S7 came out, the position of the industry's number one in three-electric technology has suddenly become controversial.

But JAC has also studied this car.

The car's infotainment system is intelligent and smooth, but it doesn't have any advanced intelligent driving functions.

It’s normal to think about it.

The overall cost of new energy vehicles is very high. Even domestic gasoline vehicles are reluctant to include automatic parking and ACC solutions, so it would be even more expensive to force them onto new energy vehicles.

"We have established an autonomous driving R&D center to develop our own L2-level assisted driving algorithms and L2+ level functions on the new intelligent driving platform."

Xu Yi smiled slightly: "In addition, the cost of domestically produced L2 hardware is constantly decreasing. In the future, in addition to fuel efficiency, intelligent and advanced driver assistance functions will be one of the core selling points of new energy vehicles."

If he had said this 15 years ago, it would have been considered a bit ahead of his time.

This year, breakthroughs have been made in domestic supply chains for multi-view cameras and millimeter-wave radar. StarCenter has also connected with manufacturers specializing in cameras and millimeter-wave radar, such as Sunny Optical and Huayu Automotive, and reserved a portion of their production capacity for use in next year's StarCenter S7.

Once the domestic solution is available next year, the cost will be at least 20% lower than that of foreign solutions. With further cost sharing during mass production, it is quite normal for the cost to drop to 40%-50%.

An Jinhui was shocked.

I saw in the news before that Xingchen Motors poached a lot of people from Baidu, and now they've already reached the point of integrating their self-developed algorithms?
Calculate it this way.

The other party's technological breakthroughs in the field of new energy far exceeded their expectations.

In comparison, Volkswagen's performance in the new energy vehicle sector is probably not as good as that of Xingchen.

No.

It should be said that it is far inferior to the stars.

After all, the design for their first joint venture car has already been finalized.

It is expected to be produced and launched next year.

what?
You ask why it's so fast?

That's because this car is just a rebadged version.

Volkswagen's collaboration with JAC this time actually stemmed from the implementation of the dual-credit policy.

China will officially implement corporate average fuel consumption credit system by the end of the year.

Volkswagen only offers gasoline-powered cars in China, and does not offer new energy vehicles.

Given its massive sales volume and emissions, it might have to spend huge sums of money to buy credits to offset the negative credits caused by gasoline vehicles.

It's definitely too late to start designing and developing a pure electric vehicle from scratch right now.

So I got anxious.

To put it bluntly, going to JAC is just about rebadging. They'll put together a pure electric car, change the appearance, and sell it casually.

The carbon credit gap has been filled.

The extent of investment in the second model and whether it can be successfully developed depend on the situation and future developments.

Both sides are testing the waters on the new track.

But they still can't bear to spend more than a few dollars.

JAC Motors didn't just bet on Volkswagen; last year, it also had several contacts with Li Bin of NIO, and after negotiations, the two parties jointly signed a contract manufacturing cooperation agreement, leasing its car manufacturing qualifications to NIO.

Having interacted with Xingchen Motors, I can't help but have a strange feeling.

Volkswagen on the left, NIO on the right.

Are we going to insert a Star Car now?
Wouldn't that mean three surnames...?

cough.

It feels really weird.

How come JAC Motors is going down the wrong path in OEM manufacturing?
"Level 2 driver assistance systems are typically found only in high-end vehicles, so the fact that domestic manufacturers have managed to achieve this is truly a boon to the industry."

An Jinhui could only nod and say it rather conservatively.

He still has a vague understanding of the concept of "autonomous driving". JAC Motors has been slower to shift from commercial to passenger vehicles than other traditional car companies, and its understanding of the passenger car market is not particularly sharp.

"President Xu, President An... what are you talking about?"

Zhang Zhanyun spotted the two from afar. After they chatted for a while, he casually walked over and asked with a smile.

"Boss, we're discussing the future transformation of new energy vehicles and the development of domestically produced L2+ level advanced driver assistance systems."

Xu Yi replied.

"Oh? Level 2+ advanced driver assistance? Does that refer to highway cruise control and following other features?"

Zhang Zhanyun became interested.

He has some knowledge of cars, just not in great depth, but he knows about the intelligent functions of ordinary ACC and cruise control.

Xu Yi: "It includes ACC and LCC adaptive cruise control, and will also develop into automatic lane changing in the future. In the past, these functions all relied on imported software and hardware solutions, but now our domestic manufacturers are gradually able to make them. Cars are becoming more and more intelligent, just like mobile phones, and in the future, they will greatly alleviate people's driving fatigue."

Zhang Zhanyun: "Mr. Xu, do you really think the future will be safe and reliable if we hand over the driving initiative to machines?"

...

"Advanced driver assistance systems also include a combination of active and passive safety features, such as automatic braking and avoidance when encountering danger."

Emergency braking and blind spot detection features save hundreds of thousands of lives from driving accidents every year worldwide.

I believe technology will expand the boundaries of security and raise the upper limit of security.

As long as advertising avoids blind exaggeration that could mislead consumers and cause them to blindly follow trends, there will be no additional risks.

Xu Yi briefly explained his point of view.

If we must talk about safety, then walking is definitely the safest option.

Technological development arose in pursuit of efficiency.

The birth and application of technology are often very pure.

However, in pursuit of profit, this process has become distorted.

Take the Gatling gun, for example. Who would have thought that this thing was originally produced with the intention of stopping war?

Zhang Zhanyun nodded in agreement, but then sighed.

"The boundaries of propaganda are hard to define..."

The definition of advertising law in China has always been a difficult problem.

Xu Yi smiled and responded with a blunt yet philosophical remark: "False advertising isn't all bad in the car manufacturing industry. It's like a loan; you always have to pay it back eventually. The sooner consumers can recognize it, the fewer competitors we'll have."

The elimination system in the car manufacturing industry is extremely brutal, and in the future, not many brands will be able to survive in China.

Other industries that engage in false advertising or low-quality production can simply go bankrupt and rebrand.

However, if the domestic car manufacturing industry continues to be turbulent for a while, any company that dares to make a mistake will either suffer a severe blow or be forced to exit the market altogether.

Even if they later obtained the necessary qualifications to manufacture cars, they wouldn't meet the requirements and wouldn't be able to sell any cars.

"Everything has two sides to its development," Zhang Zhanyun remarked, then asked, "Mr. Xu, your new car should be coming soon, right?"

Xu Yi chuckled: "Well, we didn't bring a test vehicle this time. If you have time, you're welcome to visit the factory. If President An has time, you can also take some time to come and sit down. I'll definitely give you a surprise then."

"Okay, it's a deal then. I'd also like to see the high-end SUV that you've been working on for so long."

Zhang Zhanyun was aware of Xingchen's plans for the next model and was very concerned about its success.

If we can really sell a lot, then all the investment in Luzhou will be worth it!

"Mr. Xu, we will definitely pay you a visit."

An Jinhui agreed, and when he heard the words "high-end SUV", his heart skipped a beat.

Is Xingchen Auto really going to move into the high-end market?!

The three chatted for a short while.

Xu Yi felt a little thirsty, so he went to pour himself a glass of water. However, on his way back, he was "intercepted" by reporters at the scene.

"Mr. Xu, will Xingchen Automotive release any new cars in the second half of the year?"

Taking advantage of this brief interview window, the reporter immediately asked the most crucial question.

The sales figures for Xingchen Motors have been reported several times, so the public is no longer surprised by them, but is curious about Xingchen Motors' next move.

Now that Xingchen Motors has settled in Luzhou, it must be planning something big.

When asked in response to the interview, Xu Yi simply replied, "There will be a new car." "Would you mind revealing the price, positioning, and model?"

The reporter's eyes lit up.

"The positioning will be slightly higher than the previous two models. We cannot disclose other details at this time, as the product is still in the research and development stage. We will let everyone know when it is officially launched."

Xu Yi smiled.

"Mr. Xu, could you reveal a little more?"

"Mr. Xu, what are your thoughts on CATL's release of the 811 battery? Is it true that the density of lithium iron phosphate batteries is approaching the physical limit, as rumored online?"

Two more reporters surrounded them.

……

the other side.

"President An, Xingchen Motors has taken too big a step compared to other emerging forces, even a bit too recklessly."

Vice President Pan Ruilin couldn't resist coming closer.

He had been listening the whole time.

Not only is Xingchen Motors positioning its next model at a high level, but it also wants to bring other companies on board.

It's even more outrageous than the joint venture OEM model and NIO's battery swapping model.

Isn't this like being both the referee and the player?
Not only did he want them to purchase batteries, but he also wanted them to purchase electronic control, intelligent driving, and intelligent software. While this might not be considered borrowing money to make money, he saw it as a form of soul possession...

Following this exaggerated pattern.

Even if it succeeds, people will only recognize the stars.

What does the Jianghuai region even matter?

Thinking about it carefully, it's absolutely outrageous!!
“Xingchen Motors has the capital to be arrogant. If you had its new energy vehicle sales, you would be even more arrogant than it.”

An Jinhui glanced at him.

In the past, while Xingchen Motors' sales were good, they weren't exactly something to be admired.

But now we are in an era of new energy transformation, and we also have the special advantages of carbon credits and the Chinese server environment.

Xingchen Automotive's pure electric vehicle sales have already reached the top position in the new energy vehicle market, and can drive the trend of the industry.

"Should we consider this kind of cooperation? I'm afraid it's extremely risky to be both the referee and the player. If Xingchen weren't a car manufacturer, there would be some guarantee," Pan Ruilin said, expressing his thoughts and concerns.

Just like how people wouldn't choose BYD when purchasing batteries, if they actually enter the car manufacturing industry, they'll become competitors. How can you compete if your lifeline is in the hands of your peers?
"I'm also thinking about this..."

An Jinhui's tone became more frank: "But after thinking about it carefully, I feel it doesn't matter. What does it matter if we outsource or not?"

The situation is already like this. Even if your lifeline isn't in someone else's hands, what can you do?

—Oh, this.

Pan Ruilin was stunned.

Also.

JAC now operates through joint ventures on one hand and contract manufacturing on the other.

To be honest, we had no other options to begin with!
Sales are almost gone, what's the point of worrying about our lifeline!

Quality issues, ineffective R&D... Despite the fact that a round of senior management has left and been transferred, there are still significant internal problems. Everyone is only concerned with their own interests, making it extremely difficult to get everyone to work together to innovate and achieve breakthroughs.

We still need to rely on external forces.

Pan Ruilin looked expectant: "So you mean we should bet on Xingchen Motors?"

An Jinhui said bluntly, "No rush. Let's see how Xingchen's next car is. If it's a success, we'll follow suit; if not, that's another story."

Selling cars worth tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of yuan successfully only means establishing a foothold in the car manufacturing market.

Many traditional car companies in China have had such glorious moments.

However, very few people have achieved such success in the high-end market.

If you want to pay homage to a powerful figure, you need to find a good elder brother.

……

……

this day.

Yunfei returned to his dormitory.

He is a digital enthusiast who enjoys tinkering with computers and electronic products in his spare time.

Out of interest, I previously created a channel with a friend called "Geek Bay" and also updated a few videos in the Bilibili technology section.

Unexpectedly, it garnered a very good number of views and gained followers very quickly.

This was the first time he had such a novel experience that he decided to keep making hardcore review videos.

After this period of development, the account has become quite successful, and a studio has been established.

They are currently selecting backend business partners and considering how to monetize their videos.

After all, the early filming equipment and computer products used for evaluation, such as graphics cards, were all created out of passion, and the expenses were substantial over time.

So he accepted some business orders and had them send over some samples.

Among them are mobile phone accessories and electronic products.

Several delivery boxes were piled up at the entrance.

It took Yunfei a while to finish organizing.

"Wow, these orders are ridiculously overrated and of such low quality."

Yunfei spent half a day unpacking the packages.

He underestimated the lower limit of commercial orders.

After opening the products, he was shocked to find two electronic products from small, unknown brands.

Although he had communicated with the other party before sending it and was somewhat prepared, he found that it was not worth evaluating at all when he saw the actual product.

"Forget it, even though the money is a lot, let's return this kind of commercial order. Blindly reading and updating it according to the script would be an insult to my account and the intelligence of the audience."

Yunfei sighed.

I gradually lost interest in the two remaining unopened delivery boxes.

"However... since we've already started demolishing this far, let's finish demolishing it before making a decision."

Yunfei thought for a moment and decided to continue, as he opened the next package.

After disassembly.

A brand new power bank box appeared before my eyes.

The packaging box is completely sealed in plastic, and the cover and logo are very well made.

Yunfei glanced at it; this order was from a brand he had never dealt with before, called Xingchen Automotive.

Weird.

Why are car manufacturers making power banks these days?
[Card-style magnetic ultra-thin wireless power bank, domestic 3C standard, does not catch fire when punctured or squeezed, 800-cycle lifespan, does not overheat when charging]

The selling points are clearly written at the bottom of the packaging box.

Bragging!

This is extremely exaggerated boasting!
With just one glance, Yunfei made his judgment.

This ultra-thin power bank looks like it has a soft-pack battery cell inside. How could it withstand being punctured or squeezed without catching fire?

There is no such power bank in the industry.

It does not get hot while charging.

That's even more absurd.

For filming, he used more than five or six power banks, from various major brands.

Even if you made these merchants kneel down, they wouldn't dare say that the device doesn't get hot while charging.

He also believes that the 3C standard is fake.

Since CCTV exposed the spontaneous combustion incident of power banks in 14, the State Administration for Standardization, together with multiple departments, has launched the work of formulating relevant standards.

It wasn't until 17 that the 3C standard for power banks was officially implemented. Only a few mainstream companies in the market completed the registration before the certification took effect. He had no recollection of Polestar power banks, so they were probably not among them. These days, there are too many merchants who try to circumvent regulations and take advantage of the situation, especially when the national standard was first implemented. They claim to have passed 3C certification and put the label on the casing, but in reality, they have not registered at all.

...

What is the stated lifespan of the battery cells?
Eight hundred times?

How can you possibly promote that?
That's incredibly audacious!!

The best mobile phone battery cells currently available in the industry can only cycle up to four or five hundred times.

You've shattered the industry's ceiling right from the start, haven't you?

Do they really think advertising laws don't exist?!

"The fraudulent practices in the power bank industry are far too serious. This is not just an insult to the audience's intelligence; it's an attack on my cerebellum."

Yunfei sighed inwardly.

This industry not only involves falsifying capacity and safety, but some even use substandard battery cells from outdated batches. Using defective battery cells to make power banks is something that small factories can do.

He was about to pack the box up and return it the way he came, but because he was so speechless, he inexplicably took out his phone and scrolled through it, finding the chat messages he had previously exchanged with the brand in the backend.

and many more.

Priced at 299??
They dare to set such high prices despite such blatant false advertising.

Yunfei suddenly had the urge to break it down and make a video about it.

Not surprisingly.

This episode is going to be fun.

……

　The next chapter will be released before 12 o'clock.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)