"I believe that the sales of our new energy products will soon enter the top 3 in the industry, making good on what we boasted last year. This year, we will 'not be shy' about new energy." At the Star Era ET launch conference on May 15, Yin Tongyue, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of Chery Holding Group, said "you're welcome" for the second time.
It has been less than seven months since he said "You're welcome" for the last time. In these seven months, Chery has gone from "we are a little late in the new energy field" as Yin Tongyue said, to "about to enter the top three in the industry."
Yin Tongyue is not bragging. During this period, Chery launched a rich and powerful hybrid and pure electric product lineup including Fengyun A8/T9, Exploration 06 C-DM, Star Era ET, ES, Jetour Shanhai T2, L9, iCAR 03/V23/V25, etc., covering multiple sub-brands and product lines.
This Chinese automaker, headquartered in Wuhu, Anhui, has delivered the latest new energy answer to the market and users at the "Chery speed".
Under Chery's aggressive new energy offensive, its market performance has also been rising steadily.
In April this year, Chery Group's cumulative sales volume reached 182,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 43.7%. This is also the second time this year that the group's monthly sales volume has exceeded 180,000 units after March. It is worth noting that the growth rate of new energy vehicles in April was rapid, with a year-on-year increase of 165.2%, and sales volume reached 32,995 units. As the main selling brand of Chery Group, Chery brand sales volume in April reached 117,726 units.
Chery is no longer polite in seizing the new electric hybrid track
At present, the global market's enthusiasm for pure electric vehicles has cooled, and it has also tended to adopt diversified new energy routes including HEV, PHEV, and REV.
In fact, in recent years, Chery has been making efforts in both fuel and new energy through the product strategy of oil-electric synergy. It can be said that for Chery, the two technical routes of oil and electricity are not either-or, but complement each other; not a strategic detour, but a strategic deepening; not using the profits of oil vehicles to feed back the new energy business, but oil-electric synergy to achieve a market performance of 1+1>2.
On the one hand, Chery's strong technological accumulation in the field of traditional internal combustion engines provides a good performance foundation for its hybrid system; on the other hand, through the empowerment of technologies such as the Mars architecture super hybrid platform and Kunpeng super hybrid C-DM, Chery can also unleash greater potential in the engine technology it originally excels in.
Kunpeng Super Hybrid C-DM consists of Chery's fifth-generation ACTECO 1.5TGDI high-efficiency hybrid engine, three-speed super electric hybrid DHT, stepless super electric hybrid DHT and hybrid-specific battery and battery management system.
Kunpeng Super Hybrid C-DM
Among them, the engine achieved a thermal efficiency of 44.5% through intelligent supercharging, combustion, thermal management and other systems, which is almost the ceiling of the industry, and the powered fuel consumption is only 4.2 liters per 100 kilometers.
The three-speed super hybrid DHT is different from the motor that uses the same speed under any working conditions. Through three speed ratio changes, the engine and motor can always operate in the high-efficiency range.
In terms of hybrid system battery safety, safety and reliability are ensured through high-strength structural protection and intelligent software detection and protection functions.
Relying on these advanced underlying technology architectures, Chery's Fengyun series will become the main starting point for the brand's large-scale transformation to new energy. In the field of mainstream new energy vehicle technology dominated by electric hybrids, with the support of Chery's Mars architecture super hybrid platform and Kunpeng super hybrid C-DM, its electric hybrid models are industry leaders in terms of performance, energy saving, safety, reliability and other dimensions.
For example, in the long-term test, the Chery Fengyun A8 achieved a range of 1935+km with a full tank of fuel, which is much higher than the 1400km advertised, which is definitely a false claim. The A8 Yuanhang version ran continuously in the high-speed test for one hour, completing the challenge at an average speed of 180km/h, with a maximum speed of 205km/h, showing its stable performance under continuous high-intensity conditions.
Fengyun A8
For example, recently, the FY T9 launched the first side impact fall challenge in China, where a 4.5-ton truck hit the FY T9 from the side and made it fall into an 8-meter-deep pit, simulating extreme accidents that may occur in daily travel. This actual test challenge not only tests the all-round protection capabilities of the FY T9, but also verifies its safety performance in complex and extreme accidents. Under the appraisal of experts from China Automotive Research Institute, the safety of the FY T9 has been widely recognized.
Fengyun T9
Chery Fengyun, from Chery's first car to the pioneer of Chery's new energy transformation. In 4 months, Chery Fengyun series has realized an increasingly complete product matrix, from A8 to A8 Yuanhang version, and then to A9, gradually seizing the mainstream market of electric hybrid sedans; from sedans to SUVs, Fengyun T9 will also open a new chapter for Fengyun hybrid SUVs.
In two years, the Fengyun series will launch 11 new models, covering the hybrid, extended-range and pure electric markets, from A0 to C-class, covering SUV, SD, MPV and other categories. It can be said that the ever-changing situation has opened a new chapter, and Chery's transformation is unstoppable.
Under the oil-electric synergy strategy, the Chery brand hopes to continue to leverage its existing advantages in the field of fuel vehicles and create popular models in the segment. Its Tiggo series, Arrizo series, and Exploration series are constantly iterating.
For example, the Chery brand's important sales-leading Tiggo series, with its excellent product strength and market performance, won the global sales champion of Chinese brand fuel SUV in 2023. The recently launched new Tiggo 8 adopts a brand-new design, and its champion quality is even more competitive.
As the name suggests, the Exploration Series was created to meet the diverse needs of contemporary users for urban, wild, modified, oil-powered and electric vehicles. The Exploration 06 Secret Knight Edition launched at the Beijing Auto Show is the first official modified four-wheel drive "square box" with traction qualifications in the 150,000-level class, giving users more choices in usage scenarios. The Exploration 06 C-DM once again took advantage of the energy-saving advantages of the hybrid system and achieved the challenge of "2,000 kilometers" on a tank of fuel.
Exploration 06 Secret Knight Edition
Not only go out, but also go up
The current automotive industry is facing both internal and external challenges.
The domestic market is becoming saturated, and the intensity of competition is rising exponentially; the road to going overseas is still a long way to go. Judging from market performance, Chery has also maintained a strong momentum in its overseas business. Data shows that Chery Group's exports in April reached 89,377 vehicles, an increase of 18.3% year-on-year, and its exports continue to rank first in China's automobile industry. As Yin Tongyue said, "Without internal instability, there is no strength without external forces." How to accurately grasp the market demand in various regions, balance the business focus of domestic and foreign markets, and formulate appropriate product strategies and technical breakthrough directions are all compulsory courses for a car company committed to gaining a leading position in the world.
In fact, as one of the earliest Chinese automakers to go overseas, Chery's products have been exported to more than 80 countries and regions, and it has been ranked first in Chinese brand passenger car exports for 21 consecutive years. As of now, Chery Group has more than 13.8 million global car users, of which nearly 3.7 million are overseas users.
Foreign guests gathered at Chery's booth at the Beijing Auto Show
At the recent Beijing Auto Show, Chery's exhibition area was one of the most "Western" exhibition areas. It is reported that Chery invited 3,000 overseas friends, including diplomats from ten countries including Spain, Australia and South Africa, to participate in the event, and also invited more than 2,000 overseas partners to take a special high-speed train to visit Chery's Wuhu headquarters.
For Chery, going global is not just about selling cars. To better integrate into the global market, it is not only about increasing sales, but also about maintaining quality and service. Chery's philosophy is "In somewhere, for somewhere". In Yin Tongyue's words, "before entering an overseas market, we should first think about what we can bring to the local market and what value we can create."
Currently, Chery has formed a relatively complete product R&D system from R&D to trial production and testing for traditional cars, new energy cars, intelligent connected cars, driverless cars, etc. It has built more than ten production and KD bases at home and abroad, and has also laid out a global R&D system including the establishment of 8 major R&D centers in Wuhu, Shanghai, North America, South America, Europe, and Central Asia.
With the help of intelligent track and supply chain integration capabilities gained through competition in the domestic market, Chinese automakers are changing the previous situation of introducing overseas technology. Foreign parties will also introduce our technology, brand, management and culture to achieve "reverse export". Chery is also seizing this opportunity to explore the localized business model of "created in China, manufactured overseas, and sold overseas" to achieve business entanglement and sharing of results.
According to official data, Chery ranked first in the automobile category in the "2023 Kantar BrandZ Top 50 Chinese Global Brands" and won the "Top 20 Chinese Enterprises with the Best Overseas Image" selected by the State Council Information Office for five consecutive times. Chery's unique overseas market management model also won the first prize of the National Enterprise Management Modernization Innovation Achievement in 2022.
In the overseas expansion trend of Chinese car companies represented by Chery, the label of "Made in China" is being transformed into "Created in China" through the joint efforts of many domestic car companies.
