The "price war" has been fought to this day, and most of the car companies associated with it have a bit of a "can't help themselves" flavor.
Participate? Or exit? It's not up to you to decide.
On July 22, Gasgoo noticed that in response to the recent news circulating in the industry that "GAC Toyota will follow up on the strategy of BMW and other luxury fuel brands to withdraw from the price war and no longer reduce prices", GAC Toyota replied to relevant media and said: "The official has never said that it will withdraw from the price war." ”
The person also said that the accident was involved in the BMW incident, and GAC Toyota models will still have preferential prices, but the preferential prices tend to be stable.
In fact, as to whether a large number of joint venture car companies will choose to completely withdraw from the "price war", judging from the current situation, the answer may be more negative.
When BYD merges the two "battlefields" of fuel and new energy to "fight", and shows the momentum of "one against one hundred" at low prices in the two major markets of A-class and B-class cars, it is no longer possible for car companies to "retreat" from the "price war" if they choose not to "play together".
Pushed to "move forward", the joint venture is "in a dilemma"
However, it is worth noting that in mid-July, BBA has successively lined up in order, and has successively revealed the clues of withdrawing from the "price war".
Earlier, a blogger revealed on social media platforms that due to the price war, the store suffered serious losses, and BMW plans to stabilize prices by reducing sales from July to ease the operating pressure of the store.
In this regard, on July 12, BMW China said in response to rumors of withdrawal from the price war that in the second half of the year, BMW will focus on business quality in the Chinese market and support dealers to develop steadily. Subsequently, Mercedes-Benz and Audi were also revealed to be withdrawing from the price war.
Source: BMW China
So, if BBA can be withdrawn, does it mean that all joint venture car companies can also be withdrawn? Can joint ventures avoid a blow by unilaterally withdrawing from the price war?
From the brand perspective of BBA, its positioning is high-end, brand accumulation and corporate reputation are important dimensions for the survival of these car companies, and "volume" is not the first priority.
There is a view that BBA price control is conducive to the restoration of brand value, and the price of new cars will reduce consumers' yearning for the brand, which is not conducive to long-term development.
In addition, judging from the sales data, BBA, which has participated in the "price war", found that the effect of price reduction and quantity assurance is not obvious, which is by no means a good policy.
According to official data, BMW's cumulative global sales in the first half of the year were 1.096 million units, a year-on-year increase of 2.3%, but in the Chinese market, it fell 4.2% year-on-year to 375,900 units.
Coincidentally, Mercedes-Benz's total global sales in the first half of the year fell 6% to 960,000 units, and more than 352,600 units were delivered in the Chinese market, a year-on-year decrease of nearly 6%.
This may be one of the important reasons why BBA has decided not to be deeply involved in the "price war".
Judging from the news, recently, with BBA firing the first shot of the "anti-price war", Volkswagen, Toyota, Honda, Volvo and other brands have decided to adjust the terminal policy from July, reduce the terminal discount, or no further price reduction.
It should be mentioned that most of the above-mentioned foreign-funded joint venture car brands in China are positioned in the middle and low end, focusing on cost performance, and winning by "volume".
As the analysis of industry insiders said: "Although the second half of the competition of automobile brands starts with a 'price war', it will eventually be won by a technical war and a value war." ”
However, in the Chinese auto market, from the perspective of electrification and intelligence, the above-mentioned car companies do not seem to reflect differentiated competitiveness.
The price war is over, who has the final say?
Some of these factors are naturally known to joint venture automakers.
Taking GAC Toyota as an example, some dealers revealed that GAC Toyota's promotional activities are usually carried out in the second half of each month, and this month is no exception.
A number of models, including the 9th-generation Camry, Fenglander and Veranda, are participating in the limited-time promotion in July, and consumers can enjoy a replacement subsidy of up to 20,000 yuan and a new car subsidy of 5,000 yuan when purchasing a designated 2024 new car. In addition, dealers will also provide an additional terminal subsidy of 5,000 to 7,000 yuan depending on the model.
In fact, whether it is positioned as a high-end BBA, or positioned in the low-end of some foreign-funded and joint venture car companies, now, whether to withdraw from the "price war" is not able to decide for themselves, in this "war" without gunpowder, whether fuel or new energy vehicle companies, whether foreign-owned, joint ventures or independent, are "pushed" away.
Pushed by whom?
The first is that fuel vehicles are being pushed by new energy electric vehicles.
In June this year, the domestic retail sales of new energy vehicles were 856,000 units, and the wholesale sales volume was 982,000 units, and the penetration rates of new energy reached 48.4% and 45.3% respectively, both setting new records.
In the first half of this year, the retail and wholesale sales of new energy vehicles were 4.111 million and 4.620 million respectively, with a market share of 41.8% and 39.3%, an increase of nearly 10 percentage points year-on-year.
In addition, the "2024 New Energy Vehicle Consumption Insight Report" released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers predicts that the penetration rate of new energy vehicles (including passenger cars and commercial vehicles) in China will be close to 40% in 2024, and the users who intend to buy new energy vehicles are already on a par with fuel vehicles.
Secondly, most car companies are pushed by BYD.
Although in the domestic auto market, the price war was initially set off by Tesla at the end of 2022, the car company is positioned in the middle and high-end, and it is hovering in the price war, coming and going freely between price increases and price reductions several times, and rarely has a great impact on most car companies.
In the end, the "price war" was pushed to a climax, or BYD, which started from the low-end.
Source: BYD
Nowadays, even in the face of the "verbal criticism" of many car companies, BYD has no intention of ending the "price war".
At the 2024 China Auto Forum, Li Yunfei, General Manager of BYD's Brand and Public Relations Department, said in his speech: "Only by fully competing and forcing the industry to innovate independently can we provide a steady stream of high-quality services to the market and customers, and allow Chinese brands to extend to the world." ”
He also emphasized: BYD's understanding of "volume" is summarized as follows: Chinese cars are getting stronger and stronger and better the more they are rolled.
In other words, today, when the "price war" intensifies, if BYD does not call for a stop, few car companies can "leave the table without authorization" in an elegant manner.