Leapmotor, Xiaomi, and AITO have all become popular. Who will take the spotlight in the second half of the year?

In the first half of 2025, the Chinese automobile market underwent an unprecedented reshuffle and reorganization.

On one hand, the sales of traditional fuel - powered vehicles continued to decline, and the market share of joint - venture brands in multiple price segments was constantly eroded. On the other hand, domestic new - energy brands such as BYD, Leapmotor, Xiaomi, and AITO were making inroads from the entry - level to the luxury - level markets.

Interestingly, when we analyze the sales data of the first half of 2025 by price segments, we will find that each segment presents different competition logics and development trends.

In the market below 150,000 yuan, Geely Xingyuan, BYD Seagull, and Wuling Hongguang MINIEV ranked among the top three in sales. In this price segment, domestic brands (BYD, Geely, SAIC - GM - Wuling, Chery, Changan) have achieved absolute dominance. Among the 40 best - selling models (TOP 20 below 100,000 yuan and TOP 20 between 100,000 and 150,000 yuan), only 6 were joint - venture vehicles (GAC Toyota, SAIC Volkswagen, Dongfeng Nissan), and XPeng MONA M03 was the only new - energy vehicle brand model on the list.

In the market between 150,000 and 350,000 yuan, domestic brands, new - energy vehicle brands, and joint - venture brands stand in a tripartite confrontation. Among them, the phenomenal performance of Xiaomi SU7 and the breakthrough of Li L6 in the extended - range market show us the unique advantages of new - energy vehicle brands in technological innovation and user experience.

In the market above 350,000 yuan, it is a contest between the upward breakthrough of new - energy vehicle brands and the defense of traditional luxury brands. The luxurious breakthrough of AITO M9 and the dominance of Denza D9 in the MPV market are microcosms of the rise of Chinese automobile brands in the high - end market. However, Mercedes - Benz, BMW, and Audi still occupy most of the seats in the high - end market through terminal price cuts.

The patterns in these three price segments outline the full picture of the Chinese automobile market in 2025: from the competition for cost - effectiveness below 100,000 yuan, to the technological innovation competition between 150,000 and 350,000 yuan, and then to the brand power contest above 350,000 yuan. Domestic brands are breaking through from the bottom up, while new - energy vehicle brands are starting from the mid - end market where user demand changes the most.

For the second half of 2025, the latest research report from GF Securities gives a judgment of "stable volume and slow price decline" - automobile sales will maintain a small positive growth, and the smoke of the price war is beginning to disperse. When price is no longer the only competitive weapon, the real competition is just beginning.

Which cars are most likely to become blockbusters in the second half of 2025? The answer lies in the competition logics of the three different price segments.

Below 150,000 yuan: XPeng and Leapmotor enter the main battlefields of BYD and Geely

If you have a budget of less than 150,000 yuan and want to buy a car, what do you value most?

The answer changed in the first half of 2025: Cost - effectiveness, but not just cost - effectiveness.

One of the biggest changes in the first half of 2025 was that Geely Xingyuan surpassed BYD Seagull and Wuling Hongguang MINIEV to become the sales champion in the market below 100,000 yuan. With sales of 205,000 units, Xingyuan also became the overall sales champion.

The rise of Xingyuan shows a trend: consumers' demand for pure - electric small cars has upgraded from "just being able to drive" to "being easy to drive and use".

Feng Xue, an industry insider close to Geely, analyzed that this car hit the market pain points in its product definition: it not only maintains the economy of pure - electric small cars but also improves in terms of space and configuration. Beyond the product, a crucial point is that Geely's accumulation in channel construction and brand marketing allows Xingyuan to quickly reach the target user group.

From the overall pattern, the market below 150,000 yuan has become the main battlefield for BYD and Geely. Among the top 40 best - selling models, BYD has 14 and Geely has 9.

BYD and Geely represent two strategies.

In Feng Xue's view, compared with its competitors, Geely pays more attention to market response and differentiated positioning, that is, with similar prices, it attracts consumers through higher configuration and cost - effectiveness.

And BYD, with the advantage of its product matrix, the maturity of its DM - i technology, and cost - control ability, has a strong performance in multiple niche markets: Seagull ranks among the top three in the market below 100,000 yuan, and BYD Qin PLUS continues to lead in the price segment between 100,000 and 150,000 yuan.

In this price segment dominated by traditional automakers, it is not easy for new - energy vehicle brands to break through. XPeng and Leapmotor are two representatives.

XPeng MONA M03 was the sales champion of pure - electric vehicles between 100,000 and 200,000 yuan in the first two months of this year and ranked 14th in the overall list between 100,000 and 150,000 yuan in the first half of the year. The success of this car lies in finding a neglected niche market: the pure - electric sedan market between 100,000 and 200,000 yuan was mainly occupied by BYD Qin EV and GAC Aion S. There were not many pure - electric sedans similar to traditional family sedans, and the market competition was insufficient.

More importantly, compared with BYD Qin EV, M03 has a lower price and obvious differences in the intelligent section. "This also shows that the demand of young consumers for intelligence has rapidly sunk from the mid - to high - end market to the entry - level market," said Wu Xiang, a practitioner of a new - energy vehicle brand.

"Different from XPeng, Leapmotor's strategy is to do subtraction." Wu Xiang explained that it controls costs by reducing configuration and simplifying functions, thus forming an advantage in price. Judging from the performance of Leapmotor T03, which ranked ninth in the sales list of micro and small sedans in the first half of this year, this strategy has indeed helped Leapmotor gain a foothold in the entry - level market.

From the sales list, the market below 150,000 yuan is actually a contest between two strategies: one is the "more for the same price" strategy, represented by Geely Xingyuan and XPeng MONA M03; the other is the "low - price and simplified configuration" strategy, represented by Leapmotor T03.

No matter which strategy is adopted, enterprises with advantages in technological accumulation, cost control, and product definition will be more competitive. Among them, cost - reduction ability is already recognized as the top priority.

In the second half of this year, the competition in the market below 150,000 yuan will inevitably be more intense. Traditional automakers such as Changan, Chery, and Great Wall will all launch important models targeting the entry - level market; XPeng and Leapmotor, the former provides differentiated value through technological innovation, and the latter achieves extreme cost - effectiveness through cost control. Both will continue to look for breakthroughs. Of course, the competition between BYD and Geely will still affect the final pattern of this market.

Between 150,000 and 350,000 yuan: A three - way battle among new - energy vehicle brands, domestic brands, and joint - venture automakers

Different from the market below 150,000 yuan, which is dominated by domestic brands, the pattern of the market between 150,000 and 350,000 yuan is much more complex.

Here, consumers not only focus on price but also value technological content, intelligence level, and brand tonality. Therefore, this is the most active battlefield for new - energy vehicle brands and the most intense competition area between them and traditional automakers and joint - venture brands.

It is worth mentioning that although Tesla Model Y still ranked first in the price segment between 250,000 and 350,000 yuan with sales of 171,500 units, the nearly 20% year - on - year decline reflects that the rise of domestic new - energy vehicle brands has begun to weaken Tesla's technological advantages and brand halo.

Judging from the listed models, domestic brands account for half of the seats, and new - energy vehicle brands and joint - venture brands each account for about a quarter, forming a tripartite confrontation pattern.

Xiaomi SU7 entered the top three with sales of 155,700 units, undoubtedly being the biggest dark horse among new - energy vehicle brands.

The success of this car is not only at the product level (eye - catching appearance + good performance + relatively reasonable price), but also due to the integration advantage of the "smart home - car ecosystem" and the accumulated reputation and marketing of the Xiaomi brand itself.

According to Wu Xiang's observation, the successive appearance of two blockbusters from Xiaomi has forced the entire industry to re - examine the importance of product definition, ecosystem integration, and marketing promotion. However, Xiaomi still needs time to accumulate traditional advantages in automobile manufacturing.

After in - depth analysis of the model composition in the two price segments of 150,000 - 250,000 yuan and 250,000 - 350,000 yuan, a significant trend emerged: in the 150,000 - 250,000 yuan price segment, sedans and SUVs basically split the market evenly; but in the 250,000 - 350,000 yuan price segment, the advantage of SUVs is very obvious - accounting for more than 60%.

This means that when consumers have more budget, they are more willing to choose SUV models with larger space and better passability. Li Li, a channel insider, analyzed that this trend affects the product strategies of automakers. Both traditional automakers and new - energy vehicle brands are increasing their investment in SUV products.

Among them, Li L6 became the sales champion in the mid - to large - size SUV market with sales of 96,400 units. However, its success is not entirely due to the SUV product itself, but also because it seized the critical period when the competition in the extended - range market was not yet intense.

According to a research report from Soochow Securities, the penetration rate of extended - range electric vehicles in the 200,000 - 300,000 yuan price segment reached 10% - 15%, and this figure was only about 5% in 2024.

"Consumers in this price segment want to enjoy a driving experience close to that of a pure - electric vehicle, but do not want to bear the range anxiety of a pure - electric vehicle. Extended - range technology solves this contradiction." Cheng Lin, an investor who has long paid attention to Li Auto, added.

There are three key factors for the success of L6. According to the analysis of Xiangcai Securities: first, the product positioning is accurate, filling the gap in Li Auto's product matrix in the market above 200,000 yuan; second, the timing is well - grasped. When Li MEGA encountered setbacks, it timely supported the sales volume and concentrated resources on L6; finally, the differentiated advantages are obvious, with configuration advantages and first - mover advantages compared with other new - energy vehicle brands.

However, with the rapid development of pure - electric technology and the improvement of charging infrastructure, the window period of the advantages of extended - range technology is shortening. This also explains why Li Auto started to focus on the pure - electric track in the second half of this year.

Although Xiaomi SU7 and Li L6 have stolen the limelight, it cannot be ignored that BYD Qin PLUS continues to lead in this price segment, and Geely Xingyue L (146,200 units) has outstanding performance in the compact SUV market. This reflects the accuracy of BYD's product line planning and Geely's ability in product definition and market grasp.

Li Li analyzed that although traditional automakers may be inferior to new - energy vehicle brands in intelligent technology, they still have strong advantages in manufacturing processes, quality control, and service networks.

Compared with the fierce competition between domestic brands and new - energy vehicle brands, joint - venture brands face more severe challenges in the 150,000 - 350,000 yuan price segment.

Joint - venture brands represented by Volkswagen, Toyota, and Honda have launched some new - energy models, but the intelligent experience, new - energy technology, and personalized design that consumers pay more attention to are exactly their short - comings. The advantages of joint - venture brands, such as brand power and manufacturing processes, are becoming less important in this price segment.

In the 150,000 - 350,000 yuan price segment, we also see the differentiation of three major technological routes, pure - electric, plug - in hybrid, and extended - range.

Pure - electric vehicles, represented by Xiaomi SU7, mainly have the advantages of good driving experience and low usage cost; plug - in hybrid models, represented by BYD Qin PLUS and BYD Han DM, mainly have the advantages of both economy and no range anxiety; extended - range models, represented by Li L6 and AITO M7, mainly have the advantages of strong range ability and convenient energy replenishment, and have strong appeal to specific user groups.

Next, the market between 150,000 and 350,000 yuan will inevitably be the most fiercely competitive battlefield: domestic brands need to consolidate their advantages and accelerate investment in new - energy and intelligent aspects; joint - venture brands need to defend their positions; new - energy vehicle brands need to expand their achievements in niche markets. The success of brands such as