This year's Munich Motor Show (IAA MOBILITY 2023) takes place in Germany from 4 to 10 September。Held every two years, the Munich Motor Show is currently one of the world's largest and most important exhibitions for commercial vehicles and passenger cars.。

                   

A number of Chinese car companies landed in Munich

                  

It is understood that a total of 675 companies participated in the Munich Motor Show, including more than 50 companies from China, covering the fields of vehicles, batteries and smart car electronics and software.。Among them, the vehicle companies include BYD, Avita, Xiaopeng, Sailis, Zero Run, etc.。

In the appearance of the car companies, "car king" BYD can be described as star-studded。BYD brought its SEAL, Song PLUS EV Champion Edition, Yuan PLUS (overseas named BYD ATTO 3), Dolphin, Han and Dengshi D9 models to the Munich Motor Show in Germany, attracting many onlookers。At the show, BYD announced that the seal was officially listed in Europe and offered two versions for 50,990 euros (about 400,000 yuan) and 44,900 euros (about 350,000 yuan).。In addition, the Song PLUS EV Champion Edition also met with European consumers for the first time at the auto show and will be available in Europe soon.。

Shu Youxing, general manager of BYD's European Automotive Sales Division, said that BYD's new energy passenger vehicles have entered 15 European countries in the past year, and together with high-quality local partners, opened more than 140 stores in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and other countries.。He said: "With the acceleration of global electrification, Europe has become an important market for new energy vehicles。BYD continues to deepen the European market and continues to enrich its new energy vehicle matrix to meet the diverse needs of consumers.。"

SAIC unveiled its "New Energy Three Musketeers" at the Munich Motor Show, including the convertible electric sports car MG Cyberster, the pure tram MG4 Electric XPOWER performance version and the electric SUV Marvel R。These three models are the main models for SAIC to expand the European market now and in the future。Among them, MG4 Electric XPOWER performance version of the first seven months of this year in Europe cumulative sales exceeded 40,000, MG Cyberster plans to launch in Europe next year。

SAIC MG sales in Europe reached 13 in January-July this year, SAIC officials said.50,000 vehicles, up 148% year-on-year, ranking among the best in new car sales in developed countries such as the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Ireland.。SAIC expects overseas sales to reach 1.2 million vehicles this year, and Europe will advance to SAIC's first "200,000-class" overseas regional market.。

In terms of new car-building forces, Xiaopeng Motors made its debut at the Munich Motor Show with its luxury pure electric SUV G9 and the international version of the explosive P7i.。Xiaopeng also announced that these two models will be officially launched for the German market in 2024 to expand its European layout。Xiaopeng expects to have 17 stores in Europe and 15 service centers by the end of 2023.。

Gu Hongdi, Vice Chairman and Co-President of Xiaopeng Motors, said: "Today is an important step in our globalization journey, Xiaopeng is entering one of the most competitive automotive markets in the world, where users have the highest quality requirements.。Based on this, we hope to redefine the new generation of smart cars by introducing the most advanced smart technology。Xiaopeng also revealed that the company plans to enter more European markets in 2024, including Germany, the United Kingdom and France.。At present, Xiaopeng has established a sales and service network in Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden in Europe.。

Zero Run held a global strategy conference at the Munich Motor Show, showcasing the latest results of its global self-developed LEAP3.0 architecture, and based on LEAP3.0 to create the first global model C10。

Zhu Jiangming, founder, chairman and CEO of Zero Run, said: "The Munich Motor Show is the starting point of Zero Run's globalization strategy, and Zero Run's globalization will be the globalization of products and technologies.。The follow-up products of Zero Run will be built with global design concepts and global R & D standards.。In the next 2 years, 5 global products will be sold simultaneously in Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, America and other places。"

In addition to vehicle companies, there are more than a dozen power battery companies including Ningde Times, Yiwei Lithium Energy, Xinwanda, and China Innovation Aviation.。

               

Low cost "shock"

           

At a time when Chinese car companies are rushing into the Munich Motor Show with the latest new energy vehicles, German and even European car companies are a little anxious.。For many European car companies, China's competitive price advantage is the main reason for their concerns。

Researchers at Jato Dynamics said that in the first half of 2022, the average cost of electric vehicles in China was less than 32,000 euros, while the average cost in Europe was about 56,000 euros.。

Luca de Meo, CEO of French automaker Renault, said in an interview: "We have to close the cost gap with some Chinese companies that started producing electric cars in the previous generation.。He added that when manufacturing costs fall, so do prices.。

Mayo said: "China is very competitive in the electric vehicle supply chain... We need to catch up quickly.。He revealed that the R5 electric car that Renault will launch next year will be 25 to 30 percent cheaper than its electric Scenic and Megane models.。

Germany's established car companies are also trying to reduce costs.。It is reported that Mercedes-Benz exhibited its CLA compact sedan at this auto show, while BMW demonstrated its Neue Klasse. Both goals are to improve cruising range and efficiency while halving production costs。

Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume said that Volkswagen will reduce battery costs by about 50% through cooperation with China。"I think we have a great chance。Bloom said, "We know how to make high-quality cars.。We have to work on the cost side.。"

But the German auto industry is not only worried about the "attack" of Chinese car companies, but also some companies see opportunities.。

Bosch CEO Stefan Hartung said in an interview: "Chinese manufacturers will gradually adapt their vehicles to the European market through user experience and customer orientation. This is a good way.。He believes this can make the transition natural for vendors.。Harton also added: "We also believe that ultimately this is positive for both competition and consumers.。"

Automotive industry analyst Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer said that China is the "world champion" in battery manufacturing, and battery costs can account for 40% of the cost of electric vehicles.。Dudenhofer added that Chinese battery companies with local factories in Germany are helping to reduce the cost of electric vehicles。

                      

The EU will ban the sale of fuel vehicles in 2023, and the German government is ready to increase investment in electrification.

In February this year, the EU Parliament approved a bill under which the EU will ban the sale of new gasoline / diesel vehicles from 2035.。

In response, Volkswagen CEO Bloom said at the auto show that Volkswagen is ready to respond to the ban and the company will expand its electric car scale。Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Kaellenius also mentioned that Mercedes-Benz's goal is to achieve all-electric sales by 2030 if the market allows it.。He said: "We will be ready... but we will also have tactical flexibility.。He believes customers will ultimately decide what products they want, noting the need for infrastructure to support the transition to electric vehicles.。

Hildegard Mueller, president of the German Automobile Manufacturers Association (VDA), said: "We (Germany) are losing competitiveness.。High prices, limited range and a lack of charging stations, especially in rural areas, have been cited as the main reasons for the lagging sales of electric vehicles.。According to Mueller, the Munich Motor Show shows that the "high pressure of international competition" makes it necessary for Germany to invest more in electrification.。

In order to help domestic companies catch up with electrification, the German government is also doing something。

At the Munich Motor Show, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a new law to expand the number of electric vehicle charging stations.。In the coming weeks, he said, Germany will become the first country in Europe to introduce laws that will require 80 percent of service station operators to offer fast charging options of at least 150 kilowatts for electric vehicles.。He added that the expansion would make the "range anxiety" of electric car owners a thing of the past.。

As Europe's largest economy, Germany currently has only about 90,000 public charging points, but the government's goal is to increase that number to 1 million by 2030 to promote the popularity of electric vehicles.。

Asked about competition from China for electric vehicle production, Scholz said: "Competition should stimulate us, not scare us.。Scholz believes that in the 1980s, there were people who said that Japanese cars would dominate the market.。Twenty years later, it became a Korean-made car, and now it is believed that Chinese electric cars will dominate the market。He played down concerns about the German car market, insisting that German carmakers are becoming more competitive.。

                         

European car market "smoke" gradually

According to the latest data from the Federation of Passengers, China's August comprehensive estimate of wholesale sales of 800,000 new energy passenger car manufacturers, up 27% year-on-year and 9% month-on-month。A total of 5.08 million units have been wholesale this year, up 39% year-on-year.。The Federation predicts that in 2023, China's new energy passenger car sales of 8.5 million, narrow passenger car sales of 23.5 million, the annual new energy vehicle penetration rate is expected to reach 36%。In 2022, the retail penetration rate of new energy vehicles was 27.6%。

Although there is still a lot of room for improvement in the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in China, a large number of car companies have poured into the "track" of new energy vehicles.。In order to compete for market share, these car companies have set off round after round of price wars, gradually pushing the competition to a fever pitch.。In this case, the profit margins of many car companies have been affected。In order to expand the market, "going to sea" has become a way for more and more Chinese car companies to break through.。

At present, many Chinese electric vehicle companies have entered Southeast Asia and South America and achieved good sales there.。Europe is the next battleground they are aiming for.。

Europe as one of the important global automotive market, the penetration rate of electric vehicles is not high, the potential is still great。From January to July 2023, sales of electric vehicles in Europe increased by nearly 55% to about 820,000, but sales of electric vehicles accounted for only about 13% of total vehicle sales.。

Separately, only 8% of new electric vehicles sold in Europe so far this year have been made by Chinese brands, up from 6% last year and 4% in 2021, according to Inovev, an automotive consultancy.。This shows that there is still a lot of room for Chinese car companies to improve in Europe.。

Although China's car companies are menacing, they are also facing new "acclimatization" in the face of new markets.。While Chinese automakers are able to offer competitively priced models, they face multiple challenges in Europe, including regulatory constraints, inadequate electric vehicle infrastructure, and low consumer preferences and brand recognition.。It's also the hard bones they need to "chew down."。

The battle between old and new forces is always brutal, and it is foreseeable that the competition for cars in the European market will become increasingly fierce in the future。Who is the main ups and downs, time will tell us the answer。