On February 15, the Passenger Federation released the latest sales results, among which the new energy segment performed well. Although it was affected by the centralized delivery of vehicles at the end of 2021, the retail sales of new energy passenger vehicles in January still reached 347,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 132.0%, and the domestic market penetration rate reached 16.6%, an increase of 10 percentage points from the January 2021 penetration rate of 6.8%.
It can also be seen from the segmentation data of various car companies that the new energy sector has entered a period of rapid growth, and most brands’ sales in January have exceeded the same period in 2021. Among them, the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in self-owned brands is 31.4%, the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in luxury cars is 10.2%, and the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in mainstream joint venture brands is only 2.5%.
BYD has become a well-deserved “leader”, with sales of nearly 93,000 units in January, three times that of the second-ranked SAIC-GM-Wuling. Pure electric and plug-in hybrid dual-drive consolidate the leading position of its own brand in new energy. And SAIC, GAC, Geely and other self-owned brands also performed well. Geely’s year-on-year growth rate reached 489.4%, making it the fastest growing company. Tesla’s domestic sales in January were 19,346 vehicles, ranking fourth in the new energy list.
From the perspective of the general environment, high-end electric vehicles are still growing strongly, but the dumbbell-shaped structure of the pure electric vehicle market has improved, and mid-end products are gradually gaining momentum. According to the data from the Passenger Federation, the wholesale sales of A00-class vehicles are 105,000, accounting for 32% of the pure electric; A0-class wholesale sales are 51,000, accounting for 15% of the pure electric; Class electric vehicles reached 101,000, accounting for 30% of the pure electric share.
Among the top 15 sales list, 12 are self-owned car companies. The increase in the market share of mid-to-low-end models also shows that more and more independent brands have launched competitive products, especially in the range of 50,000-200,000 yuan, which can truly compete with gasoline vehicles. Among them, the most noteworthy is BYD, whose sales in January were the best, with sales of pure electric and PHEV exceeding 46,000 units, an increase of 220.72% and 760.58% respectively.
Different from the single-line development of other brands, BYD takes into account both pure electric and hybrid, especially the DM-i system, which was launched on a large scale last year, and has become BYD’s new “hands-on”. In terms of models, the Qin and Song families both sold more than 20,000 vehicles, and Ocean Network’s first car, the Dolphin, also exceeded the 10,000-unit mark. In the follow-up, BYD will also launch the seal, destroyer 05, cruiser 07, etc., to further strengthen BYD’s product matrix. In 2022, BYD’s new energy vehicles will hit the target of 1.2 million vehicles.
The second-ranked SAIC-GM-Wuling sold 29,723 vehicles in January, of which Hongguang MINIEV accounted for nearly 90%. The car has a first-mover advantage in the 30,000-50,000-yuan market, resulting in its high sales performance. However, in 2022, the continuous entry of Chery QQ ice cream, Fengguang MINEV and other products will gradually occupy the market share of Hongguang MINIEV. At that time, SAIC-GM-Wuling will face greater challenges.
Among other car companies, Geely has the strongest growth momentum, but its sales base is only 16,592 units, and it includes Geely, Geometry, Extreme Krypton, and Ruilan. There is still no relatively strong brand. Chery Automobile, relying on the hot sales of QQ ice cream, is about to reach 20,000 units in a single month, a year-on-year increase of 185.2%. Traditional car companies such as GAC Aian, Great Wall Motor, and SAIC Passenger Car are also on the list.
[·New forces shuffle Xiaopeng into a leader]
The performance of the new car-making forces in January is still eye-catching, but the ranking of “Wei Xiaoli” has changed before. The new power brand with the highest sales in January is Xiaopeng, which has delivered more than 10,000 products for five consecutive months. As of the end of January 2022, the cumulative historical delivery of Xpeng Motors has exceeded 150,000. At present, Xpeng Motors mainly sells three models: G3, P5 and P7. Among them, the P7 is the main sales force, with 6,707 units delivered in January, and 4,029 units of the Xpeng P5, which was launched soon.
In the SUV segment, sales of the Xpeng G3 have been relatively sluggish, with only 2,186 units sold in January. It can be seen from the Xiaopeng APP that the delivery cycle of Xiaopeng’s main products is about 12 weeks, and the delivery cycle is long, which affects its final results to a certain extent. With the commissioning of Xpeng’s Wuhan plant and the launch of the new Xpeng G9 SUV, it is bound to boost Xpeng’s sales again.
The second place is Li Auto, which delivered 12,268 units in January, a year-on-year increase of 128.1%. Since November last year, Li Li ONE’s monthly sales have exceeded 10,000 units. Ideal is the representative of “one car, one brand”. Compared with other manufacturers’ car sea tactics, Ideal only has one product, Ideal ONE, but its sales volume can lead the new car-making force, mainly because it has cut into the blank market segment and grasped the the current consumer demand.
The third place is no longer NIO, but Nezha Auto, which delivered 11,000 vehicles in January, a year-on-year increase of 401.5%, and delivered more than 10,000 vehicles for three consecutive months. However, compared to Xiaopeng and Ideal, Nezha’s average bicycle price is lower, and it focuses on the mid-to-low-end market. Nezha V is the source of rapid growth in brand sales. In the second half of the year, Nezha will also launch a new sedan, Nezha S, to improve the layout of sedan + SUV, focusing on the market of 200,000 yuan and below.
It finally came to Weilai, ranking fourth among the new power brands with 9,652 sales. Although the ranking has dropped, NIO’s sales data has been relatively stable, and the average price of bicycles has exceeded 400,000, which is more expensive than BBA, and the initial high-end brand construction has been completed. At the same time, NIO’s initial dividend in the high-end car market has been exhausted, and the ET7 and ET5 sedans have not yet been delivered, and NIO’s sales will not see much growth in the short term.
However, the ET5 has great potential. The lower price and the similar design and configuration of the ET7 have allowed the car to obtain a large number of orders. It is reported that more than 200,000 vehicles have been lined up. In addition, Weilai will also release the new SUV ES7 in April, and is expected to release the low-end brand “Alps” in the second half of the year. With multiple advantages, Weilai may re-emerge in 2023.
The last new force on the list is Leap Motor, which delivered 8,085 vehicles in January, a year-on-year increase of 434%, and a year-on-year increase of more than 200% for 10 consecutive months. Leapmotor currently has three models of Leapmotor T03, Leapmotor C11, and Leapmotor S01. Among them, Leapmotor T03 has taken the lead in sales, and C11 is gradually increasing. Generally speaking, after the outbreak of the first two years, the new power brands have begun to develop steadily, and the transformation of traditional independent brands is also seizing their market share, and the competition among the new powers will be more intense in 2022.
[·Tesla’s momentum is stable and only Volkswagen is on the list]
Tesla’s performance is still as strong as ever. Although it only sold 19,346 vehicles in China and ranked fourth in the sales list, Tesla China’s January sales data reached 59,845 vehicles, and more than 40,000 new vehicles were exported. Tesla’s Shanghai plant mainly produces two models, Model 3 and Model Y, which are not only responsible for delivery in China, but also export to the world. At present, the existing production capacity of the plant is only 450,000 vehicles, which is obviously limited by production capacity.
It is reported that in order to increase the scale of production capacity, Tesla’s Shanghai factory is being expanded. Although Tesla will not launch new models in China in 2022, but with the hot sales of Model 3 and Model Y, as well as the increase in production capacity, it is believed that Tesla will set a new high in sales this year.
However, other foreign brands do not have such dazzling achievements as Tesla, and there is basically no voice in the new energy market. Among the top 15 lists, only SAIC Volkswagen and FAW-Volkswagen are on the list, with sales of 6,855 and 5,505 vehicles respectively, only accounting for to 3-5% of brand sales. Volkswagen’s main new energy products in China are all under the ID series. SAIC and FAW have respectively put into production “sister” products of the same car. Currently, the main layout is in the market of 200,000-300,000 yuan.
As the first company to mass-produce pure electric platform electric vehicles in China, Volkswagen also has a certain first-mover advantage. When Honda, Toyota, and GM were still in “oil-to-electricity”, they were the first to launch a new generation of products. In terms of experience, there are still many advantages compared to joint ventures. Volkswagen’s ID series new cars in the past two years have been launched in 2021. This year, the main purpose is to do a good job in marketing and update the intelligent network connection system, and get out of the market running-in period.
Except for Volkswagen, there are no joint venture brands in the top 15. Japanese companies Honda and Toyota are in the preparation period for launching new pure electric vehicles. Toyota BZ4X and Honda e:NS1/e:NP1 will be launched in the first half of this year. The GM BEV3 platform will also be introduced to the market starting with the Cadillac LYRIQ.
In terms of luxury brands, the BMW iX3 performed the best, with sales of 1,914 units in January, according to the relevant insurance coverage data. Mercedes-Benz’s newly launched EQA and EQB sales in January this year were both around 200, and the EQC sales reached a maximum of 459, but there was a 43.26% decline compared to January last year. Audi has the lowest sales of the three brands, with less than 100 domestic e-trons sold.
Beginning in 2022, traditional luxury brands will also accelerate their layout in the new energy field. BMW plans to launch a pure electric 3 Series and name it i3, which will become a strong competitor to Model 3. Mercedes-Benz will also introduce EQE series products on the basis of existing products, which will impact NIO ES6, ES8 and other products.
According to the China Passenger Transport Association, new energy vehicle companies face certain cost pressures, but the market price of new energy vehicles is not expected to rise significantly. Car companies should be able to defuse the pressure and continue to maintain the rapid growth of new energy vehicles in 2022. In 2022, the cumulative sales volume will reach 5 million units, maintaining a growth rate of more than 70%. Judging from market feedback, users also have a certain degree of consensus and expectation on the price changes after the decline of new energy.Return to Sohu, see more