This article is from the public number: National Financial Weekly (ID: ENNWEEKLY) , author: “national Financial Weekly” reporter intern Zhuzi Yue Yi Road dream, title figure from: vision China
The embarrassment of birth also gives birth to the disadvantage of gas-to-electric models..
At the Guangzhou Auto Show known as the vane of the auto market, new energy models that have been or will be on the market will be the absolute traffic of various auto companies.
According to statistics, there were 182 new energy vehicles unveiled at this auto show, an increase of more than 30 compared with last year. However, among the new energy vehicles that are “chaotic and gradually charming”, there are a number of models that are more embarrassing-although they are new electric vehicles, they have the face of old fuel vehicles, that is, gasoline-to-electric vehicles.
Most of these models appear in joint-venture brand booths, such as Mercedes-Benz EQC, FAW-Volkswagen’s pure electric versions of Golf and Bora, Beijing Hyundai Fista Pure Electric, etc.
Beijing Hyundai Fista pure tram. Image source: Beijing Hyundai’s official website
Oil-to-electric models are the replacement of the mass-produced fuel vehicle power system by the electric vehicle company with the three-electric system. The automobile company does not need to re-invest in design, development, and construction of a new production line. Capital and time costs.
There is a surge of competition for these models, and there may be rushes to cope with the market and policies, but as the market gradually matures, the disadvantages and low competitiveness of these models will gradually be amplified.
Coping with the “Double Points” policy?
To a certain extent, the change from gasoline to electric vehicles is the result of the “rush” layout of car companies.
Lin Shi, a senior automotive analyst, said that oil-to-electricity products are undertaking multiple tasks of opening up markets, filling vacancies in pure electric models, and alleviating the pressure of “double points” for their respective companies.
According to the requirements of the Measures for the Parallel Management of Average Fuel Consumption and New Energy Vehicle Credits for Passenger Car Companies, in 2019, car companiesJing Tao said.
Transitional products are hard to please
The embarrassment of birth also gives birth to the disadvantage of gas-electric models. Whether comparing fuel versions or newly developed electric models, their market competitiveness is difficult to say.
Take the pure electric version of Golf launched by FAW-Volkswagen as an example. This car is built on the Volkswagen’s fuel car platform MQB platform. Although Volkswagen has repeatedly emphasized the flexibility of this platform, it cannot be denied that Pure Electric The overall weight of the Golf is 330 kilograms heavier than the conventional fuel version, reaching 1.58 tons. Some viewpoints believe that this may have an impact on the steering and other handling characteristics of the vehicle.
A person from an automobile company told reporters that oil-to-electric models cannot take into account the different safety requirements of electric vehicles and fuel vehicles at the beginning of the design, so safety problems are more likely to occur. The battery pack of a fuel-to-electric vehicle is generally made into a special structure according to the chassis of a fuel vehicle. However, the volume of the three-electric power system is much smaller, and theoretically, the structural strength of the engine compartment will be reduced.
In addition to doubts about performance, low cost performance is a common problem of this type of vehicle.
Pure electric Polaris and pure electric golf are launched at the same time. Unlike the performance difference of the two in the traditional fuel version, the motor and battery of the two cars are exactly the same. The NEDC has a range of 270 kilometers and a power consumption of 100 kilometers. 13.6kWh / km, compared with products on the market with a general comprehensive operating range of more than 300 kilometers, the disadvantage is more obvious.
This problem is also apparent in luxury brands. The new Mercedes-Benz EQC pure electric SUV starts at 577,800 yuan and is positioned as a medium-sized pure electric SUV.
From the appearance point of view, Mercedes-Benz EQC and Mercedes-Benz GLC are not much different. Mercedes-Benz officials said that 85% of the Mercedes-Benz EQC’s battery chassis was newly developed, and 15% were shared with GLC fuel-powered vehicles. The industry believes that this is also based on Mercedes-Benz GLC’s fuel-to-electric models.
Benz EQC. Picture source: Mercedes-Benz official website
Battery is the most important part of pure electric vehicles. The battery capacity of Mercedes-Benz EQC is 79.22kWh, and the energy density of the battery system is only 125Wh / kg. At present, the energy density of batteries used in domestic pure electric vehicles exceeds 130 Wh / kg. The Mercedes EQC weighs 2.425 tons and the battery pack accounts for 0.65 tons. The lightweight performance is also not satisfactory.
The battery’s short board hinders Mercedes-Benz EQC’s endurance performance. The Mercedes-Benz EQC’s NEDC has a cruising range of 415 kilometers, which is less than many self-owned brand pure electric models with less than 200,000 yuan.
Benz provides a warranty period of 8 years or 160,000 kilometers for EQC “Sandian” system. Some independent brands carry lifetime warranty for Sandian system under certain conditions.
Low battery life and high price, which has become one of the most popular spots for netizens.
Can you make it in 2020?
In the opinion of Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the National Passenger Car Information Joint Committee, some strong traditional fuel vehicle companies rely on pure electric vehicles to share the pressure of high-emission vehicles in response to the “double credit” policy. Will not work.
At present, joint venture car companies have accelerated the development of pure electric technology and models. For example, Volkswagen and Toyota have launched their own MEB and e-TNGA pure electric platform architectures for production Pure electric vehicle.
Volkswagen plans to launch 70 new electric models in its 12 brands in the next ten years and produce more than 22 million cars based on the electric vehicle platform in 2028. This is more radical than the group’s previously announced launch of 50 models in 10 years, producing 15 million.
Toyota also announced that from 2020, it will launch ten pure electric models including crossovers and SUVs. By 2025, all Toyota’s models will have electric versions (at least hybrid) .
Toyota also signed a joint venture agreement with BYD on the establishment of a research and development company for pure electric vehicles. The new company will be formally established in China in 2020. The new company will carry out design, research and development of pure electric vehicles and the platforms and parts used in the vehicles.
The Chinese market is an important part of the electrification plans of these joint venture car companies. Volkswagen has focused its production capacity on China, and Toyota has put the first batch of models in this round of electrification plans in China.
But can these models that are about to be mass-produced make them return to the scenery of the fuel car era?
For example, Volkswagen ID.3 will provide three mileage models in the European market. Only the long-range version has a mileage of 550km better than the domestic Model 3.
Toyota ’s pure electric versions of the Toyota C-HR and Yize EV will not be put into production until 2020. No specific information is available, but by comparison, the two cars are not very competitive. The two cars are almost identical in appearance, and the two cars are still oil-to-electric models. Products produced on the e-TNGA platform will not be available until 2020.
So is Beijing Hyundai. The Fiesta pure electric models listed in 2020 are still in the oil-to-electricity camp. Even if the “SMART + strategy” of the technology innovation of the sword is released, there is currently no plan to launch a new pure electric model.
Some people in the industry believe that in the transition to the automotive market dominated by end-consumer demand, if the joint venture brand models cannot achieve a balance of practicality and economy, even with the blessing of a pure electric technology platform, it will be difficult. Find a foothold in the Chinese market.