Li Auto "Takes Advice": The BMW i8 Has Seen a Disguised Price Cut One Week After Its Launch
This time, Li Auto is very "receptive to advice."
Just one week after the i8 was launched, there was a lightning - fast adjustment to its configuration and price, which is a disguised price cut.
This is a choice Li Auto had to make. Like the MEGA, the i8 has been facing an unexpected public opinion storm recently. Li Auto must take strong measures to reverse the direction of public opinion, so as not to repeat the mistakes of the MEGA.
Disguised Price Cut
On the evening of July 29, the grand press conference for Li Auto's new pure - electric product, the i8, was still fresh in people's minds. At noon yesterday, the company suddenly officially announced an adjustment to the i8's configuration and selling price.
At the press conference a week ago, Li Auto announced three versions of the i8: Pro/Max/Ultra, with prices of 321,800 yuan, 349,800 yuan, and 369,800 yuan respectively. This time, the three versions are cancelled. The Max becomes the standard configuration, and the selling price is lowered to 339,800 yuan, and a platinum sound system worth 10,000 yuan is given as a gift. At the same time, a rear - cabin entertainment screen set is available as an optional extra, priced at 10,000 yuan. That is to say, for 349,800 yuan, you can get the fully - equipped version equivalent to the original Ultra. Users who have chosen the Pro version can choose to cancel their orders or upgrade.
This adjustment of the i8 can be understood as a disguised price cut. For users who have already placed an order or are planning to buy the high - end version of the i8, it is undoubtedly good news.
Why did Li Auto make such a significant adjustment to the price of its new product in such a short period of time?
The company said that since the launch of the i8, 98% of users have chosen the Max and Ultra versions, which far exceeded expectations. At the same time, users have collectively complained that the vehicle versions are a bit complicated and difficult to choose from, and some high - end configurations are not available for optional installation.
Li Xiang, the CEO of Li Auto, said that this adjustment of the i8 is a "receptive to advice" move. Adjusting from three versions to one is to align with the value definition of the Li ONE. "Previously, the i8 continued the version configuration characteristics of the Li L8. We got stuck in inertial thinking."
In fact, before and after the launch of the Li i8, there have been multiple price probes. During the pre - sale period, the rumored price was between 350,000 and 450,000 yuan, which raised users' price acceptance. On the night of the press conference, the prices of the three announced versions were slightly lower than the pre - sale price, but they didn't surprise users enough.
In particular, Li Auto used its iconic "refrigerator, TV, and big sofa" as the differentiators between versions. In today's era when these comfort configurations have become standard for high - end new - energy vehicles, it's not a wise choice.
Currently, Li Auto has not announced the number of pre - orders for the i8. Even so, Li Xiang still shows full confidence in the i8's sales. He said on his personal Weibo, "You can check the data. For pure - electric SUVs with an actual selling price of over 300,000 yuan, who is the current number one and how many units are sold per month? After looking at these data, what do you think is a reasonable number of orders for the i8?"
Since the launch of the i8, the share price of Li Auto - W (02015.HK) has been continuously falling. Yesterday, the company's share price still opened slightly lower, but suddenly turned positive in the afternoon. It closed at HK$102.80 per share for the whole day, up 1.58%.
Reversing Public Opinion
The urgent adjustment of the configuration and price of the Li i8 is not only "receptive to advice," but also, to a large extent, to deal with the public opinion the brand is facing.
In March last year, Li Auto's first pure - electric model, the MEGA, was launched and was engulfed by public opinion, which was one of the important reasons for the product's market failure.
After this experience, Li Auto should have been fully prepared to deal with public opinion for the launch of the i8, but unexpectedly, something still went wrong.
A head - on collision video of an i8 hitting an 8 - ton Chenglong truck has sparked huge controversy on the Internet. Netizens from all walks of life and the Chenglong truck brand have come out to question the authenticity of the collision video.
On July 31, the official of Chenglong truck issued a statement saying that the collision video released by Li Auto constituted infringement and unfair competition. In the following days, Chenglong truck continuously posted statements such as "Safety is not just empty talk about ideals" and "Only when you're alive can you talk about ideals," subtly mocking the i8's collision video.
Recently, the live - streaming rooms of Li Auto have been filled with all kinds of discordant voices. If this continues, it will definitely affect the product's sales.
Li Auto was too slow to react to this sudden public opinion. It wasn't until the evening of August 3 that an explanation was given for the i8's safety collision test. It said, "During the test process, the Dongfeng Liuzhou Automobile Chenglong brand was accidentally involved in the public opinion dispute. It was truly unintentional."
But by this time, a simple written explanation could no longer reverse the public opinion. Li Auto needs a strong measure to guide the direction of public opinion and more effectively win over the target customers of the i8.
Can't Lose Again
Although the executives of Li Auto have publicly stated that they won't overly care about the sales proportion of pure - electric models in the short term, the company absolutely cannot accept a repeat of the tragic failure of the MEGA.
The MEGA, as Li Auto's first pure - electric model, was highly anticipated and can be seen as the pioneer for Li Auto to enter the pure - electric vehicle market from the extended - range segment. Unexpectedly, the MEGA's proud exterior design became the focus of public criticism.
Just as the MEGA failed, the L series also cooled down, and Li Auto plunged into its darkest hour.
During that period, Li Auto was constantly conducting post - mortems and self - reflections. On March 21, 2024, Li Xiang issued an internal letter, admitting the mistakes made by the team: First, they treated the 0 - to - 1 stage of the MEGA as the 1 - to - 10 stage, misjudging the difference between the business verification period and the high - speed development period; second, the whole company was kidnapped by the desire for sales and sacrificed the user value and operating efficiency that they were originally good at.
The failure of the MEGA disrupted Li Auto's new product launch rhythm. The originally planned i8, which was supposed to be launched in 2024, had to be "re - engineered," with significant adjustments made to its positioning and design.
In today's ever - changing new - energy vehicle market, the i8 being more than a year late means a huge change in the competitive environment. Some technologies and configurations that were highly competitive before may have become ordinary.
Just two days after the launch of the Li i8, NIO's LeDao L90 announced its launch. Also a large pure - electric SUV, the LeDao L90 starts at 265,800 yuan, with the highest price not exceeding 300,000 yuan; the battery rental option starts as low as 179,800 yuan, making it highly competitive in terms of price.
Tesla's Model Y L has also officially announced that it will be available in the "Golden Autumn" and will be one of the most powerful contenders in the large six - seat luxury pure - electric SUV market.
WENJIE and Li Auto have always been "rivals." Their products, positioning, and prices are highly similar, and they are always each other's most direct competitors. The pure - electric version of the WENJIE M8 will also be launched in August. In the 300,000 - yuan pure - electric SUV market, the Li i8 will face another strong competitor.
The i8 is another test of Li Auto's pure - electric vehicle strategy, and Li Auto cannot accept another failure. During this period, Li Auto must strive to improve public opinion to create a good external environment for the i6, which is planned to be launched in September.
This article is from the WeChat official account “Banma Consumption” (ID: banmaxiaofei). Author: Fan Jian. Republished by 36Kr with permission.