Guangzhou Auto Show: Eve of Great Changes in Auto Market

Guangzhou Auto Show is the time for annual inventory and  also marks the opening of the new year. Different from previous shows, Guangzhou Auto Show sends a very clear signal: Chinese auto market is experiencing great changes.

The first change: Chinese automobile industry is standing at a new crossroads. How to define themselves: a manufacturer or the provider of travel services? Didi became hot search words on the show. Many companies show their intention of transition. Volkswagen is going to cooperate with Didi and Shouqi to form joint ventures. Lincoln is also considering to cooperate with Didi.

The second change: the new energy vehicle is an inevitable topic. Favorable policies seem to continue. So we could see Audi's first domestic plug-in hybrid model,Volkswagen I.D. concept model, Jaguar's first pure electric SUV and so on. However, in fact, policy has changed from the past simple financial subsidies to the double integral system. Double integration system has two years of transition. We are here to see how many companies will still stand there after two years.

The third change: the rankings of luxury brands are delicate. No matter it is ABB, belonging to the first camp, or Jaguar, Lexus, Cadillac, and Volvo, belonging to the second camp, or any other low-ranking brands, they are likely to experience changes in their rankings because of a slightest mistake. Before the release of Volvo domestic S90L pre-sale price, even Volvo's own faculty have said that if the price keeps rising, we will not be able to sell it. Obviously, the price is still quite vital for the second tier luxury brands. 

The fourth change: SUV is still popular. On the eve show (16th November ), 5 activities were all about the SUV. They were Dongfeng Peugeot 4008, Changan CS95, Jeep Compass, W01, W02 of WEY , and Kodiaq. This was just a prelude, and there were more on the official show. It is foreseeable that joint venture brands are mostly focused on the medium and large SUV, which is bound to cause another round of fierce collision against the growing independent brands.

The fifth change: the independent brands and joint ventures are experiencing violent collision. Geely, GAC trumpchi, or the Changan and WEY of the Great Wall , all showed a strong desire to grow stronger. Besides, the 4 companies have something in common. Namely, the recent market performance is good, but it is more important that they are doing down-to-earth R&D in recent years. The difference is that the development of Changan and Geely is more balanced than GAC trumpchi and the Great Wall. However, there are still two concerns about the prospects of WEY: the sustainable ability of R&D and the corporate culture of the Great Wall.

Of course, many factors affect the auto market, and these factors affect each other mutually. Any attempt to try to see the whole picture of the market through a Guangzhou Auto Show is absurd. However, it is certain that the travel habits of consumers is undergoing fundamental change under the impact of the Internet. How to adapt to this change is what auto companies must take into consideration.