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

Chapter 226 A Thrilling Test Drive!

Unlike mobile phone launch events.

Even if a car launch event is a huge success on its first day of sales, the accumulation of online orders is only temporary. The sheer volume of emotionally driven orders is truly astounding.

Even if most people are very interested in a car, they will still consider taking it for a test drive at a dealership first.

Only after seeing the actual car can you make a comprehensive decision and place an order.

After all, this is a car priced at 300,000 yuan.

Life is alive.

How many transactions exceeding 300,000 yuan are possible?
Most people are extremely cautious about this.

Not only does it have to be to your liking, but your wife might also have to like it...

When it comes to providing financial assistance to the family, the opinions of the older parents must also be sought.

This explains why BBA (BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi) and traditional luxury brands have performed so strongly in the domestic market.

The advertising effect over several decades.

Traditional middle-aged and elderly people have long had a fixed perception of brand image.

Moreover, Xingchen Automotive is still a "newcomer" in the high-end market in terms of brand strength.

Only through dissemination and diffusion, and the passage of time, can it be truly understood.

……

Offline stores in various regions have increased their staff in advance.

Sales at the front lines were still extremely brisk, with long queues at car viewing areas.

The production pressure on the Starry Night L7 is still visibly intense, but it is much more well-prepared and organized than when the S7 was launched, so the production team can take charge.

After listening to the feedback and customer traffic data from the regional managers via remote video call in the morning, Xu Yi had the idea of ​​personally inspecting the area in the afternoon.

Seeing the store in person and listening to what consumers are saying is more intuitive than simply looking at data or traffic figures.

Qingdao (Piano Island)

A directly operated store in MixC Mall, located in a high-traffic area of ​​the core business district.

The popular Starry Sky brand experience store attracts the attention of most passersby.

Upon entering, you'll see that a large exhibition area has already been cleared out in the center of the store, with the original Star Mini and Star S7 display cars placed in the back of the exhibition area.

The most eye-catching position.

Two Starry Night L7s of different colors were displayed.

The Starry Night L7 will be available in four colors: Pearl White, Midnight Black, Dawn Gold, and Starlight Gray.

The two units displayed in the store are in Dawn Gold and Midnight Black color schemes.

These two color combinations have a sophisticated feel.

In particular, the Dawn Gold metallic paint color scheme is specially formulated, using a balance of warm and cool tones. Under warm light, it presents a gentle and elegant precious metal texture, while under cool light, it is close to silver, avoiding a tacky feel.

As the debut color of the Starry Night L7, it is featured as the main model on the official website, making a strong visual impact at first glance. Combined with the rounded front and the streamlined, flat side body, it exudes a subtle sense of luxury.

Placed at the entrance of the store, it will immediately catch people's eye.

The exhibition layout is even bolder.

All four doors were fully open.

All the large screens inside the car were lit up, including the entertainment TV in the second row and the half-pulled-out car refrigerator, which was filled with iced cola, cold drinks, and mineral water for passengers to take as they boarded to try out the car.

The store is already quite busy.

Because the test drive slots for the first day were all booked up, the crowd around the display cars was mainly there to look at the cars statically.

Xu Yi, wearing a hat, entered the store discreetly with his assistant.

"Mr. Xu..."

The store manager and regional head immediately came to greet him.

"You guys go about your business, I'll just take a look around." Xu Yi waved his hand, indicating that they didn't need to make a fuss.

Of course.

The store was noisy, and everyone's attention was focused on the display vehicles, so they hardly noticed them.

……

can be seen.

Even when viewing cars statically, most people still look at them with great interest.

My eyes seemed to be drawn to the large screen inside the car!

This is the first time the "refrigerator, color TV, and large sofa" strategy has demonstrated its power in the market.

A salesperson was there to explain it to you.

"Our Xingchen L7 boasts the highest level of comfort features in its class on the market. It is a family SUV that combines luxury and comfort, with ventilated and heated seats in both the front and rear rows, as well as full-point massage function."

The rear seats are equipped with an entertainment TV, allowing your family to relax and watch TV comfortably while traveling.

When traveling or camping, you can open the refrigerator and have an ice-cold Coke.

Enjoy a comfortable and pleasant journey.

......"

Speaking of it.

A saleswoman from the store leaned into the car, took out cans of cold drinks from the car refrigerator, and handed them to the customers who were standing around looking at the car with a friendly smile.

This very practical sense of temperature is conveyed to these potential users.

Most of the onlookers were amazed.

He took the drink and exclaimed with genuine gratitude.

"Modern cars are so advanced, they can even watch TV and have refrigerators..."

"This screen looks so cool. I've been driving for so many years and I've never seen one this big."

……

"Watching TV while driving can cause motion sickness, right?"

At this point, some people at the scene raised different objections.

"Of course, our suggestion is to turn on the entertainment screen as needed, or watch it while parking; TV is just one of the options," the salesperson replied with a smile.

The man added, "And the front screen is so big too. It's too distracting while driving. In case of a collision, won't this screen interfere with the deployment of the airbags?"

"No, sir, our front row is designed with mature safety features in mind..." the salesperson explained regarding this issue.

"What's the basis for this? This landscape screen is so big, it clearly conflicts with the placement of a regular car airbag. Won't I get blown up in the face?"

This guy clearly isn't interested in "big screens".

Not only do they not like it, they even discriminate against it.

Objections were raised regarding security issues.

The salesperson was momentarily speechless.

"The front airbags of the Xingchen L7 deploy differently from other cars. They are special remote airbags that deploy higher than the floating screen. Therefore, the floating screen will not block the deployment of the airbags in the event of a car accident. This car company has passed the safety review of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and also has a special patent application."

Just then, a voice interrupted.

"How did you know?" The man was slightly taken aback, realizing that the speaker was not a salesperson, but a tourist whose face was half-covered by a baseball cap.

"There is a faint printed pattern on the front passenger side airbag, which is visible to the naked eye."

The "enthusiastic tourist" then pointed to the interior details of the front cabin: "Not only that, the Xingchen L7 is also equipped with 12 airbags throughout the vehicle, providing all-round coverage for the front and rear rows. There is also a separate airbag deployment point between the driver and front passenger seats, which can ensure that the driver and front passenger will not collide with each other in the event of an accident. This special airbag deployment configuration was previously only found in BBA models priced above 500,000 yuan and high-end Volvo cars."

"12? Impossible!!" The argumentative man clearly didn't believe it.

"This is clearly stated in the official configuration list. Open the vehicle details page, and it's all listed at the bottom under the safety features section," Xu Yi explained frankly.

The other tourists who were also interested in looking at the cars couldn't help but brighten up.

"Well, I didn't expect this domestic car company to be so conscientious." The argumentative man shrugged.

Xu Yi found it a bit funny and took the opportunity to strike up a conversation: "Brother, do you have some misunderstanding about domestic car companies?"

Theoretically speaking, the Xingchen L7, at its price point, offers features like CDC (Central Damping System) and air suspension, and with government subsidies, it's clearly better than other cars in its class.

"That's not necessarily true; domestic car manufacturers aren't that honest."

"Not so honest, what do you mean?"

"You obviously don't know much about cars. You're the kind of person who's easily fooled by superficial spec lists." The argumentative man was a bit smug, sporting the expression of a seasoned veteran driver.

Over the years, having driven so many cars, the only truth I've learned is that you get what you pay for. The idea that you can buy a superior experience with money is completely misleading to novices.

Xu Yi looked at him: "I'd like to hear the details."

The argumentative man continued, "Take air suspension for example. It is indeed quite luxurious, but if this car company is really sincere, it should choose to import it instead of developing it domestically. This thing has been made abroad for so many years, and it has just been produced in China. Who knows if there will be any quality problems, or whether the comfort and actual chassis quality can keep up?"

These are all details that require skill. For example, why are only Continental and Wibac air suspensions well-known abroad? In fact, some small foreign manufacturers can also produce them, but no one wants to cooperate with them because the quality and actual driving feel are too poor. Tuning parameters is a skill that only large manufacturers possess.

I think these so-called "self-developed" technologies from domestic car manufacturers might just be a publicity stunt by buying a small factory production line and installing it elsewhere.

Xu Yi pondered for a moment: "Your perspective is quite insightful."

"Right?" Seeing everyone's attention focused on him, the argumentative man was quite smug.

I was secretly pleased!

As a frequent internet user and a self-proclaimed "car expert," knowledge about air suspension and car chassis is quite advanced!
Especially the situation of large foreign suppliers, how would ordinary people know about this?

Today I finally found a chance to show off.

“But as far as I know, the Xingchen L7’s air suspension was indeed built from the ground up. It took Konghui Technology in China a long time to overcome this challenge, so it’s not what you’re saying,” Xu Yi added.

"I don't believe it, and how do you know?" the argumentative man retorted.

“I can provide complete bench data for this air suspension from the first prototype to the final version. Whether it’s the bladder pressure durability test, or the lifting speed, ECU control precision, etc., it’s all benchmarked against the flagship air suspension performance of major international manufacturers. We only allow it to go off the production line after the tests are passed. Otherwise, it would be difficult to control the failure rate under the ten-year warranty.” Xu Yi said with a bit of a laugh.

A brief explanation.

The argumentative man was momentarily stunned!
"Bug skin test, ECU control precision... these terms keep popping up, they're even more professional than what he just said?"
"Are you an industry insider?" he asked suspiciously.

Xu Yi took off his baseball cap. "I am the person in charge of this car from project initiation and research and development to production."

"..."

The argumentative man's mind went blank, and he froze on the spot!

My face flushed instantly.

Blood rushed straight to the cerebellum.

It's the feeling of collapse that comes from trying to be cool and then accidentally kicking a steel plate.

No, he...

I……

-

The scene suddenly became noisy.

It was already quite lively, with crowds of people.

However, things have become even more turbulent now.

"President Xu...you're President Xu!!"

"Holy crap, Mr. Xu personally came to inspect the store?!"

Many people came to the store after watching the press conference, and when they recognized Xu Yi, their eyes widened in shock!

Even some people who didn't watch the press conference.

They also came across car reviewers' videos and clips of past Star Auto videos.

His expression was one of utter surprise!
"Please don't get excited, everyone. If you have any questions about the new car today, or any pre-purchase inquiries, I'd be happy to answer them. The launch event was short, so we didn't cover many details. We've actually put a lot of effort into it... Now I can answer your questions." Xu Yi said with a friendly smile, indicating that he was willing to provide purchase advice to the first batch of customers who ordered and viewed the car.

have to say.

The issues mentioned earlier regarding the details also objectively exist.

Firstly, press conferences have limited space, so more detailed explanations and dissemination rely on offline stores.

Secondly, as the man just said.

Experienced consumers often have an inexplicable confidence in "international brands" and "major manufacturers," while remaining unaware of and unfamiliar with domestically manufactured products.

This includes the "cost of trust".

It is also the foundation for building brand power and a lasting impression.

Only by truly navigating these challenges can we gradually conquer the market.

"You're Mr. Xu, can you really guarantee that the air suspension on this car will provide the exact same experience as the air suspension on imported luxury cars?" the man who had spoken earlier asked earnestly.

He stared intently at the car in the store; if it really was that kind of car, he couldn't help but be tempted.

"Frankly, we cannot guarantee this, because each car has a different tuning style, and the driving experience will naturally be different."
But I can say with certainty that the air suspension installed on the Xingchen L7 today is at the top level in China and can also rival the top international manufacturers. Imported air suspension is often too expensive due to tax rates and semi-monopoly reasons.

The saying "you get what you pay for" is not entirely accurate. In the consumer market, it's often more like "you get what you pay for."

The domestically produced air suspension simply broke the monopoly on certain aspects, allowing it to return to its original value and profit margins. There was no cutting corners in the process, and in fact, we retained a considerable profit margin.

Xu Yi's words had an inexplicable power to move people.

He responded to the matter in a way that went from simple to complex.

Everyone present could understand what he was trying to say.

Break the monopoly and restore normal values!

What simple yet touching words.

It feels incredibly real!

"Mr. Xu, I trust you, I'll place the order right now!!" The man who had been arguing the whole time was completely convinced when he met Xu Yi's "sincere" eyes. He immediately took out his phone and paid a deposit of five thousand yuan for the car.

The crowd at the scene became even more excited.

"I want to place an order too!"

"Mr. Xu, I'd also like to order a car, but I'm having some trouble deciding on the interior color and options. Could you give me some professional advice?"

"Mr. Xu, I don't care about the configuration, but could you tell me which configuration and color will get me the fastest? I'd like to get my car as soon as possible!"

someone shouted.

"Ah...okay, those who want to lock in their orders and inquire about options, come one by one, don't rush!" Xu Yi hurriedly asked his assistant to help him form a queue for those who wanted to lock in their orders and inquire about options. Unexpectedly, more and more people joined in.

So enthusiastic.

Now he was completely surrounded, with no room to move.

……

The store sales staff standing behind, and the young saleswoman who introduced the car at the beginning.

Completely at a loss, utterly bewildered.

good news.

The new car sold out on its very first day of release!

bad news.

All of these orders were personally promoted by the CEO.

Can it still be counted as performance-based commission?
……

(End of this chapter)