Auto & Transportation

The history of joint ventures in the domestic automobile industry began with American brands. Beijing Jeep, established in January 1984, was the first Sino-foreign joint venture in China. It was jointly established by BAIC and AMC (American Motors Corporation). Today, AMC no longer exists. Jeep's sales in the Chinese market have also declined year after year. The American auto brands that have successively entered the Chinese market have also experienced ups and downs. The peak sales of American cars in the Chinese market (Shanghai Insurance) is 3.04 million, and the peak market share is 15%. This is also a history. Nowadays, everyone’s general impression of American cars is that it’s not what it used to be, and it’s not a big deal anymore.

Don't worry about the conclusion whether it works, let's use the data to speak. In particular, use the development eye to click on the product lineup of each brand, and put aside complex non-market factors, to see what these brands' Jinniu products and thin dog products are bringing. In the turbulent market environment, who has more opportunities for American brands?

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Note: The sales data mentioned in this article are all data on compulsory motor vehicle traffic insurance, not wholesale sales.

In 2013 and 2014, the share of American cars in the Chinese market was close to 15%. After that, it began to decline all the way. In 2019, it fell to a historical low of 8.9%. In 2020, there will be a slight increase, reaching 9.37%. Who is the one who made great achievements? It's Tesla. In terms of sales, the sales of American cars reached a peak of 3.04 million vehicles in 2017, and they have fallen all the way thereafter, reaching only 1.88 million vehicles by 2020.

However, judging from the momentum of the last two years, American cars are working hard to recover from the decline. In the first four months of this year, its cumulative year-on-year growth rate was the highest among the five major national car lines, reaching 63.74%, 11 percentage points higher than the overall auto market in the same period. Of course, the high growth rate is related to the low base. The sales volume is low, and everyone has seen that it is no longer in the same order of magnitude as the Sino-German-Japanese car series. In the first 4 months of this year, the market share of American cars was 9.29%, which is still far from the peak period. . The annual sales volume is expected to reach 2 million vehicles.

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Among the existing U.S. brands, Buick has “one as four”, thanks to Yinglang (parameter|inquiry) and Buick GL8, the Buick brand has also gone out of an uptrend higher than the overall market this year. The sales of Chevrolet, Tesla, Cadillac and Ford are comparable, but the growth momentum is quite different: Tesla is a new entrant, mainly because Model Y new cars are launched this year, out of a high growth rate of 251% year-on-year; the rest Of the three, Cadillac performed best, while Chevrolet and Ford were far weaker than the whole. And Jeep, which once brought the first joint venture product Cherokee, is already weak in volume.

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Buick, the No. 1 American brand, can only rank 15th among all the brand echelons. The market appeal of American cars is declining. The reason is more complicated. Below we only take stock of the product lineup of each brand from the market performance. .

Buick: Business needs to be younger and younger

In 1998, Buick's first domestically produced model "Buick New Century" rolled off the assembly line, opening up the mid-to-high-end consumer market. Its new Regal, which has been derived from several generations, can still maintain a monthly sales of 10,000 units. Buick’s peak annual sales were 1.2 million in 2016 and only 860,000 in 2020.

At present, Buick has two star products in the same market, Yinglang and GL8, and naturally it has taken the top spot in the US. For LaCrosse and Angke Banner, Buick has spent a lot of effort to publicize, but the market response has been mediocre. In the face of Accord and Highlander, they have little strength to fight back. The Weilang Pro released at this year's Shanghai Auto Show has also been replaced with a four-cylinder engine. It remains to be seen whether the market outlook can "return to life" like Yinglang.

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After the full implementation of the three-cylinder engine in 2018, the sales volume of Yinglang has almost been cut. After learning from the pain, in 2020 Yinglang will switch back to the four-cylinder engine and return to the growth channel. Its ranking in the compact car market has gradually moved forward. It is currently Buick's. Taurus products. Another Taurus product is the Buick GL8, which has no rivals. As soon as the three-child policy comes out, the Buick GL8 may usher in another wave of consumer dividends (if the "old users" of childbirth are willing to continue to have children).

Buick has won the MPV market, but has made limited achievements in the continuously profitable SUV market. In recent years, Buick has begun to pay attention to the launch of SUVs, but SUV products currently only account for more than 20% of its sales. At present, Buick has 5 SUV models. The best-selling one is the Ankewei, which is equipped with "10% more". However, the sales volume of this year has fallen below 6000 vehicles. The Ankeqi barely exceeds the level of 2000 vehicles, and the remaining 3 The monthly sales of the models are around 1,000.

SAIC-GM Buick Enkewei 2020 28T 4WD Elite

"Oncoway 2020 28T 4WD Elite"

At the end of 2019, Buick released its long-awaited flagship product-the medium and large 7-seat Angke Qi SUV, and labelled it "Naturally Luxury". However, from its launch in November 2019 to April this year, in a year and a half, Angkeqi sold a total of 33,000 vehicles, with a monthly sales volume of around 2,000 vehicles. The benchmark product in the medium and large SUV market, Volkswagen Tuon, was sold separately. Monthly sales are at the level of 5000-6000 vehicles.

On May 25, Buick officially announced the power configuration information of its latest SUV, Envision Plus. The new car is expected to be launched within this year, and Envision’s "familyization" has already started. Envision Plus offers two seat layouts of 5 seats and 7 seats, as well as two products of standard version and Aivia version. Users have a wider choice. Can the new car be combined with Envision and Envision S in a medium-sized SUV? The market has made some achievements, at least on the Top 10 list, we will wait and see.

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With the rejuvenation of automobile consumption, the commercial luxury label that Buick was once proud of has been declining in attractiveness to young consumers. Buick had to face the renewal of its brand image. How to get the recognition of the young and new middle class determines the height of Buick's future sales.

Chevrolet: It's hard to get expensive if cheap

At its peak, Chevrolet’s annual sales were close to 700,000, but currently it is less than 300,000. In 2005, Chevrolet's first domestically-made small car, the New Sail, was launched, and the lowest price dropped below 60,000. In the same year, Chevrolet also launched the medium-sized car Jingcheng and the small cars Lecheng and Lefeng. Chevrolet used to be the “stroke lever” of the domestic small car market, with only one Sail vehicle capable of selling more than 200,000 vehicles per year. However, the long-term overdraft of the brand by too many low-end models has caused almost irreversible damage to Chevrolet's brand image.

Today's Chevrolet continues to sink, and if it weren't for Tesla's recent fleeting disadvantages, it would have to move back in the American Legion. At present, only the Cruze brand of Chevrolet can occasionally sell more than 10,000 a month, which is regarded as its Taurus product. The second is the Malibu XL, which is known as one of the "Three Treasures of Diaosi". Malibu is a good car, but due to its brand image, the Malibu XL has not gained a market commensurate with its comprehensive product strength. Sales. Chevrolet's "golden age" has long passed, and people can't see the turning point.

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Chevrolet is unfavorable in the SUV market. The medium-sized SUV Explorer has monthly sales of 2000-3000 units, and the medium- and large-sized SUV Trailblazer sells three-digit monthly sales. In the first four months of this year, it has sold 2,231 units, creating a cool 4 months. Cumulative sales are exactly 1,000, and the world is less than 1,000, only 919. It's terrible.

Perhaps Chevrolet’s “economically applicable” route in the early years limited its consumer awareness in the Chinese market to an ordinary family car of less than 100,000 yuan. Everyone thinks it’s incredible to spend more than 200,000 to buy a Chevrolet. After all, you can get BBA with more. This may be the fundamental reason why the best-selling Explorer in the United States has not been able to sell in China. It has nothing to do with product strength. American Chevrolet and Chinese Chevrolet are no longer the same Chevrolet.

If there are regret medicines to buy, Chevrolet may want to buy these 3 doses: regret that the discontinued Buick Sail should be re-produced under the Chevrolet Logo; regret that they should not launch low-priced small and micro models such as Lefeng, Lecheng and Lechi; regret Shouldn't be imported into the Korean cars in rumors such as Epica and Capaci...

SAIC-GM Chevrolet Explorer 2021 550T RS four-wheel drive smart extension version

"Explorer 2021 550T RS four-wheel drive intelligent extension version"

The player behind Chevrolet is Tesla. Well, let's go past it (too much talk) and talk about the American luxury brand Cadillac.

Cadillac: If you don't buy the right one and only buy the expensive one, how can you break it?

Cadillac was one of the most sought-after luxury car brands in the 1990s. The eyeball effect brought by Frettewood and Diwei back then was no less than the current top luxury cars. Cadillac began localization in 2005. Unlike other American brands, Cadillac’s sales have increased year by year, but its status as a “second-line luxury leader” has been taken away by Lexus, which is “really expensive, really fragrant, and really sought-after”. , Its market share in the luxury camp dropped from the highest 7.15% to the current 5.8%.

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At present, Cadillac's product lineup has three SUVs and three cars on sale. The sales ratio of SUVs to cars is 6:4. Cadillac XT4, CT5 and XT6 are evenly matched, accounting for 23%, 23% and 21% respectively. In terms of performance this year, the Cadillac CT5, which competes with BBA products in the body size data and power configuration, has the strongest trend, and regional data also shows that the sales volume in the first-tier cities has the highest proportion. The average age of Cadillac's Chinese users is 32 years old. An inexpensive but violent CT5 is in line with the consumption power of young people. The Cadillac CT4 launched by Tian Ji's horse racing strategy is younger and more athletic. Currently, the monthly sales volume is only about 1,500.

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Whether Cadillac can break through 6% or even 7% in the luxury brand camp this year depends mainly on the performance of Cadillac CT5. However, in such a fiercely competitive market for mid-size cars, the Cadillac CT5 is under greater pressure. Facing German challenges, the monthly sales are less than 10,000, so I just talked about it. The highest-selling Cadillac XT4 has no sense of existence in the compact SUV market. In this segment, a car cannot enter the top 10 without selling 10,000 units in a month, and the XT4 is only around 5,000 units.

SAIC-GM Cadillac Cadillac CT5 2021 facelift 28T luxury

"Cadillac CT52021 facelift 28T luxury"

Cadillac has begun to work hard on marketing in the past two years, "no rear-drive, not luxurious", emphasizes sports control performance, and has obvious motives to attract young consumers. However, in addition to the "second-tier luxury", Cadillac has two labels, one is "price cuts do not hold value quickly", and the other is "big health care" posted by someone who doesn't know which goddamn it, which makes the configuration one level higher than that of BBA. , Cadillac, whose price is half lower than the BBA, is hurt. Everyone who is willing to pay for the high premium of the brand has a strong brand preference. Cadillac once said that in 2020, the proportion of the luxury car camp will reach 10%. Facts have proved that it is too difficult to grab food.

Ford: It's not too late to know when you're lost

Aw, Ford... Ford's most eye-catching thing these days is not the product, but the frequent high-level personnel changes. If Ford's products can be upgraded frequently, it may not fall into the immediate world. In 2016, Ford sold 980,000 vehicles a year in China, only half a step away from the million-car club, and then fell into an endless vortex. By 2020, there were only 240,000 vehicles. This is considered an "ankle cut." "Again.

Fox once had a bright moment with monthly sales of 20,000 or 30,000 vehicles. Although it is now the second-selling car series of the Ford brand, it is no longer the same in terms of volume. The new Forex, which went on the market not long ago, is still persistently insisting on using a three-cylinder engine. Ford's sales have clearly told Ford that consumers shun three-cylinders like a snake. This kind of feedback is not to buy, can Ford not see it?

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The mid-to-large SUV launched this year, Lingyu, sold only 220 in April, and the monthly sales of Lingjie fell to 1,004. The monthly sales level of Explorer less than 3,000 does not have a high sense of existence in the mid-size SUV market.

The lack of support for explosive models and the loss of product strength are the root causes of Ford's loss in China. Today, Ford does not have a model with a monthly sales of more than 10,000, and it can't even reach 5,000. What’s more unfortunate is that Ford’s products have been in a deep quality crisis in recent years. For a long time, Ford has “topped out” on various quality complaint websites, but Ford’s lack of sincerity in facing these problems has caused the gearbox to become rusty and rusty. Being exposed at this year's CCTV "315 Gala", it is really a leak in the night. The accumulation of negative word-of-mouth to a certain extent triggered an avalanche of sales and even a brand crisis.

Changan Ford Explorer 2020 EcoBoost 285 4WD Titanium Edition 7 Seats

"Explorer 2020 EcoBoost 285 4WD Titanium Edition 7 Seats"

Fortunately, the "Ford China 2.0" plan has been launched. In the future, continuous improvement of product quality, reconstruction of user confidence, and re-establishment of brand image will be the only way for Ford to recover from the defeat in the Chinese market. On April 13 this year, Ford’s electric car Mustang Mach-E went on sale in China. As soon as the new car was released, its conscientious pricing, sharp appearance, and high configuration aroused a “really fragrant” sigh. Will the Mustang Mach-E be a success for Ford in the century The first shot of the Jedi counterattack in the Chinese market will soon be clear.

Lincoln: I'm really more than a wedding car

Lincoln, a second-tier luxury brand that entered the Chinese market three times and once came home. Among imported cars in the 1990s, Lincoln City is also one of the representatives of American luxury cars. However, compared with other brands, Lincoln is a bit colder. First, it has been entering China through Ford’s import channels, and the identity and price of imported cars have restricted the market capacity; second, it has lost the status of a courtesy car, and everyone is more often. I saw it in the wedding caravan, especially the extended Lincoln. Ordinary civilian consumption is not high.

Lincoln started domestically in the real sense in 2020, and first made efforts in the SUV market, and successively launched three domestically-produced models of adventurer, pilot, and navigator. In 2020, the brand sold 62,500 vehicles. The Adventurer is the first car launched by Lincoln after launching its localization strategy in 2020. It aims at the hottest compact SUV segment. Since its launch in March 2020, its sales have been steadily increasing. The monthly sales volume has exceeded 4,000, almost Saved the entire brand on its own.

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At present, all Lincoln products on sale are SUVs. In April, 1549 Voyager sales and 1,010 Aeronauts were sold. The medium and large SUV market has limited capacity and it is unrealistic to rely on it. The medium-sized SUV market is a bit flooded and difficult to enter, so take the risk. The home will always be Lincoln's sales responsibility. If the adventurer is stable, Lincoln will most likely be stable. However, although Lincoln withdrew from the car market in the United States, the next generation of Lincoln MKZ will be produced in the Chinese market, which is the Lincoln ZEPHYR Reflection concept car released at the Shanghai Auto Show.

Changan Lincoln Adventurer 2021 2.0T 4WD Zunya Edition

"Adventurer 2021 2.0T 4WD Zunya Edition"

After more than a year of localization, the launch and hot sales of the "Lincoln SUV Three Musketeers" can be regarded as a good start for Lincoln. At least everyone's perception of this brand has changed, except for the "market outlook".

There is something else for Lincoln. Lincoln only started to establish an independent dealer network in 2014. With the further development of the Lincoln dealer network system, the brand's reputation is well managed, and its sales volume is still worth looking forward to.

Edit summary:

It seems that Cadillac and Lincoln’s upturn has stepped on the node of this wave of consumption upgrades, but the competition in the luxury market is already a red sea, and BBA has been entrenched. Cadillac and Lincoln’s primary issue is how to continue to rise in the second-line luxury camp. , And the next step is to continue to move forward. After all, if the first-line luxury camp is always BBA, it is not necessarily a good thing for consumers. As for Ford, Chevrolet and other brands that entered the Chinese market earlier and have had a good history, we hope that they can still be reborn on the spot. The improvement of any brand is welcomed by the industry and consumers, including the current one. Tesla is on the cusp. More choices are always good, especially more high-quality choices.