Gasgoo Daily: Li Auto becomes first Chinese automaker to join LWG

With Gasgoo Daily, we will offer daily important automotive news in China. For those we have reported, the title of the piece will include a hyperlink, which will provide detailed information.

Li Auto becomes first Chinese automaker to join LWG

China’s new energy vehicle startup Li Auto officially joined the Leather Working Group (LWG), becoming the third auto brand in the world to be recognized by the group, after Bently and BMW, and also the first Chinese automaker to obtain the authentication.

Photo credit: Li Auto

Joyson’s PREH to build automotive electronics R&D center in Mexico

On May 25th, Joyson Electronics announced that its subsidiary, PREH, has inked a deal with authorities in Mexico to set up a high-end engineering R&D center in Yucatán, Mexico. The center will be dedicated to products and designs involving AI and automotive electronics. The project will create 300 jobs for high-tech engineers and software/hardware developers.

MG sells 135,000 vehicles in Q1 worldwide

SAIC Motor’s MG brand sold 135,000 vehicles in the Jan.-Mar. period this year, claiming a spot in the top10 list in 18 countries regarding sales volume. The brand sold 26,000 vehicles in Europe, almost quadrupled year over year.

Aiways to ship 80 U5 vehicles to Israel

During Aiways’ second anniversary of foraying into the overseas market, the company plans to ship 80 U5 vehicles to Israel. The automaker has already exported 14 batches of vehicles to Europe and Israel this year, totaling roughly a thousand vehicles. Aiways aims to sell a five-digit volume in Europe this year. 

HUAWEI plans to sell AVATR 11 model in offline stores

HUAWEI has allocated over 1,000 intelligent driving talents to work with AVATR’s engineers in Chongqing for the development of AVATR’s first production model, the AVATR 11, Changan Automobile disclosed in a conference call. 

JIDU’s first model ROBO 01 enters pre-mass production phase

Baidu-backed auto startup JIDU initiated the preparation process for mass production of its first model, the ROBO 01, which will make its debut at the ROBODAY to be hosted on June 8th, JIDU's CEO said on Twitter-like Weibo.

CATL to supply European bus maker Solaris with CTP-enabled LFP batteries

CATL announced on May 25 it has formed cooperation with Solaris, a European leading bus manufacturer, to jointly boost the electrification transition for European urban transport.

Baidu’s driverless vehicles greenlighted for open road test in Chongqing

On May 25th, Baidu announced that it has become the first company to receive driverless autonomous driving road test licenses (with an empty driver’s seat, and a safety driver on the passenger seat) in Chongqing.

BMW, Huayou Recycling team up on closed-loop recycling of power battery raw materials

BMW Group on May 25 announced that it has forged a partnership with Zhejiang Huayou Recycling Technology Co., Ltd. (“Huayou Recycling”) to co-develop innovative cooperation model on closed-loop recycling and cascade utilization of power battery raw materials.

Bosch cooperates with WeRide for L2-L3 autonomous driving development

On May 25th, China’s leading L4 autonomous driving developer WeRide announced that it has received a strategic investment from Bosch and both parties established strategic cooperation to jointly develop autonomous driving software.

Lotus Eletre all-electric SUV to make China debut on June 1

The Eletre, the high-performance full-electric SUV under the Geely-owned upscale brand Lotus, will make its China debut on June 1, 2022, according to a post on Lotus' WeChat account.