Text/Qian Jiaqing
Mercedes-Benz and BYD, perhaps very few people will associate these two brands. After all, the former is the world's best luxury car brand, while the latter is the best new energy brand in China. Although they are among the best in the industry, because of the brand positioning relationship, there is no overlapping consumer group between the two.
However, the relationship between Mercedes-Benz and BYD has actually begun as early as 2010, and the link between the two is called "Denza".
As the earliest focus on the field of new energy, or even pure electric vehicles, it can be said that it smelled the breath of the new era early. In 2012, when Denza unveiled its first concept car at the Beijing Auto Show, the prototype of Tesla's original Model S had just been made public.
Two years later, in 2014, Denza's first model was officially launched. At that time, Tesla Model S officially entered the Chinese market, and the two new power brands of Weilai and Xiaopeng had just been established.
Therefore, in the field of pure electric vehicles, Denza is the first batch of "crab eaters".
Denza X may be delisted
From the first model listing, the Denza brand sold a total of 12,000 Denza and 9,000 Denza X units in 7 years, with a cumulative loss of 4.39 billion yuan, an average loss of 210,000 per car sold.
And after 2 years of listing on denza X, it seems to have encountered problems.
After visiting two Mercedes-Benz 4S stores in Shanghai, their reply to me was this:
The first is a large dealership, and there are currently two existing cars in the store, with a preferential margin of 80,000. If there is a replacement with the same brand (BYD) model, the discount can reach more than 90,000. The follow-up maintenance service of the vehicle will be carried out in the Mercedes-Benz store, but no subsequent models of Denza will be sold in the Mercedes-Benz store.
The response from another smaller dealer was simpler because they no longer sold the Denza X.
Therefore, for the Denza X model, the current Mercedes-Benz dealer should be in the inventory clearance stage, which also means that the model listed at the end of 2019 may come to the end of its life.
Of course, the sales staff in the store is also very responsible, and I was a "car buyer" who introduced the current situation of the Denza brand in detail. Including the relationship between Denza X and BYD Tang; the current change in the proportion of Shares of Mercedes-Benz and BYD in the Denza brand; and the future planning of the Denza brand.
The car can't work, how to sell?
So why doesn't Denza work?
I think everyone should be able to understand: "The car can't work, how to sell?" ”
Let's talk about my impression of the first generation of Denza, the most profound picture may be the most prosperous streets in Shanghai, a well-dressed, white gloved full-time drivers, driving a black Denza car.
It looked quite honorable, and I remember that there was an exclusive gold logo on the body. However, the driver's experience is estimated to be not good, after all, Denza's NEDC is only 253 kilometers and 352 kilometers, and the actual performance may be between 150 and 250 kilometers, and the endurance is too poor.
Of course, I also test-drove the 2018 denza, although compared with the 17 models, the pricing is not only 100,000 lower, but also the endurance has increased by nearly 100 kilometers. But my feeling is still: "Who would spend 300,000 yuan on such a thing?" ”
Putting aside the interior design and configuration, the appearance of Denza alone is the hardest hit area that everyone complains about.
Denza, which is from the team of Mercedes-Benz design master Oliver Bray, does not have the aura and elegance of Mercedes-Benz models, and the appearance of the whole car can only be described in one word, that is, weird. It's even hard to define the car, is it an SUV, a sedan, or an MPV?
As for the Denza X, which is still on sale, many people know that this is an "official reform" model of Tang DM or EV, and Mercedes-Benz has redesigned the exterior and interior.
But just the design changes cost 40,000 or 50,000 more, which is really unnecessary. And because the follow-up maintenance will be carried out in the Mercedes-Benz store, the material and labor costs may be higher than BYD, and this account is not easy to calculate.
However, according to the current momentum of 80,000 discounts, under the same configuration, the price of Denza X seems to be lower than that of BYD Tang DM, which seems to be a good opportunity to bottom out.
Is denza's future high-end?
Although the current momentum is not good, it does not mean that the future momentum is not good.
Since the end of last year, BYD's equity in Denza increased to 90%, and the Mercedes-Benz Group fell to 10%, dentist's future seems to be clearer, that is, to be BYD's high-end brand.
Although this news has not been fully confirmed, it should be inseparable from ten or nine. ATD will unveil two high-end models, an SUV and an MPV, at the Beijing Auto Show in April, which will be under the Denza brand.
And on February 14, BYD also established Denza Sales Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of 50 million yuan. This also seems to indicate that the future Denza brand will adopt the direct sales model like many new power brands now.
Instead of struggling to survive under two large trees, stand on the canopy and shine. Denza in 2022 has chosen a completely new path and has chosen to start over.
So, do you think Denza's high-end road can be successful?