The Chengdu Auto Show has its own "way of life".

The Chengdu Auto Show is about to kick off. However, where has the past excitement gone?

More than half of the 2025 auto market has already passed. Suddenly, it is found that car - making enterprises are gradually showing signs of fatigue when facing auto shows. After the price war and public opinion war have raged on, the auto market has lost its vitality, especially in the context of the sluggish general environment. With the involution - style development of the entire industry breaking too many industrial balances, even giants like Volkswagen and Toyota seem to have slowed down.

It is true that in the remaining time of this year, among Chinese brands, BYD will continue to strive towards the goal of selling 5 million vehicles annually, and Geely and Chery will also follow closely. However, judging from the current situation, it seems that all car - making enterprises are pinning their hopes on the Guangzhou Auto Show at the end of the year. To put it bluntly, when competition becomes the norm, car - making enterprises clearly care more about competing desperately in the terminal market than participating in auto shows.

Based on the currently known information, this year's Chengdu Auto Show has increasingly become the main battlefield for regional car sales or simply a stage for newly - launched cars to make a collective appearance. Compared with the past, the lack of a large number of new models and the collective absence of niche brands, regardless of their positioning, all serve as evidence of this trend.

From high - end brands like Lotus, Bentley, Lamborghini, and Porsche to mainstream luxury brands like Genesis, Jaguar, and Land Rover, they have all abandoned the Chengdu Auto Show. This is an inevitable choice considering the tight pockets of consumers. The departure of brands like Nezha, Jiyue, Chevrolet, and Feifan is due to their own internal problems.

When Dongfeng Honda, Anhui Volkswagen, Beijing Hyundai, and Yueda Kia are also reluctant to spend the budget to participate in the exhibition, it is obvious that the current situation is quite different from the past.

In other words, when leading car - making enterprises dominate the market and consumers are not willing to pay for individuality and face, the Chengdu Auto Show may become a preview of the Chinese auto market entering the stage where the winner takes all.

Nothing is more important than survival

Since 2025, the general situation of the Chinese auto market is more or less obvious to the outside world. On the surface, the impact of the price war has filled the auto market with hostility. So - called business rivals have long become thorns in each other's sides. If conditions permit, they would even like to trample each other underfoot. Some have even resorted to underhanded tactics in the public opinion war.

Why has the Chinese auto market become like this? It is difficult for anyone to give a clear answer to this question. However, there is a consensus that with the increasingly serious consumption downgrade, Chinese consumers' way of seeking emotional value has undergone a qualitative change.

The rise of pragmatism will not completely eliminate individuality. However, when pure family cars start to gain popularity in the previously diverse auto market and cars gradually take on the characteristics of consumer electronics, the definition of a good car must have undergone a radical change.

Looking at the sales list of the first half of the year, it is obvious how many cars have become popular because they can meet multiple demands. Even though there are still cars like the Xiaomi YU7 that showcase individuality, they cannot hide the current consumption trend of pursuing "big and comprehensive" products.

In view of this situation, isn't it quite normal that more than 20 car - making enterprises that participated in the Chengdu Auto Show last year are absent this year?

Except for brands like Jiyue, Nezha, and Yuanhang that have been eliminated from the market, other brands either feel unable to cope with the current consumption situation or have selectively abandoned the Chengdu Auto Show. After all, they don't expect to make any breakthroughs in brand promotion.

Without surprise, compared with last year, all car - making enterprises are now focused on "how to survive". Therefore, it is normal for them to weaken the position of the Chengdu Auto Show in their strategic plans. At this time approaching the end of the year, nothing is more important than selling more cars.

Although in the southwest auto market of Sichuan and Chongqing, which has relatively good economic vitality, we can still see the emergence of some new models, such as the Voyah Zhuiguang L and the smart #5 PHEV. However, generally speaking, compared with auto shows in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, the stage of the Chengdu Auto Show has inevitably slipped into the category of "regional auto shows" in this era.

Moreover, after summarizing the results of previous years, for car - making enterprises, it is undoubtedly more ideal in terms of input - output ratio to maximize the time gap before and after the auto show.

Since August, from the launch of new models such as the Audi A5L from North and South Audi to the pre - sales of models like the IM Motors LS6T, the new NIO ES8, and the Roewe D7, all these actions related to new car launches are intended to stagger the release of their latest news. Even during the auto show, it is believed that many enterprises will choose to hold their launch press conferences on non - media days.

Of course, in terms of market performance, especially in terms of the ownership of new energy vehicles, Chengdu and the entire Sichuan - Chongqing region still play a significant role in driving automobile consumption.

On the other hand, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in July, the production and sales of automobiles reached 2.591 million and 2.593 million respectively. Although there was a month - on - month decline compared with June, there was a year - on - year increase of 13.3% and 14.7% respectively. The cumulative production and sales from January to July also showed double - digit year - on - year growth, maintaining a good overall development trend.

It can be said that regardless of whether the freshness of the Chengdu Auto Show will be reduced due to the positioning of car - making enterprises, with the continuous promotion of relevant policies and the concentrated promotions of major car - making enterprises, there will still be market vitality in the fourth quarter with the Chengdu Auto Show as a new starting point.

However, as the launch of new models becomes more and more scattered and car - buying festivals are frequently held to stimulate automobile consumption, it is unrealistic to expect to see the past grand occasion of a wide variety of models at the Chengdu Auto Show again.

Mediocrity has become the prerequisite for popularity

There is only one quarter left this year. Compared with the past year, the intensity of market competition has obviously increased, and the duration of the price war has also become longer. However, as consumer concepts are no longer mainly focused on pursuing innovation, there are still some differences from the past.

First of all, as of now in 2025, the number of speculators has dropped sharply. In the first half of this year, with the collapse of Nezha, only "NIO, XPeng, Li Auto, and Leapmotor" among the new - energy vehicle startups are still standing. Among traditional car - making enterprises, BYD, Geely, Chery, Great Wall, and Changan have almost become the absolute representatives of Chinese brands.

In view of the continued trend of this differentiation, other car - making enterprises are becoming more and more conservative in their operations.

There is an endless stream of large - capacity SUVs, and the power combination of range - extender + large battery has become the primary condition for potential users when buying a car. This has made late - comers like the Geely Galaxy M9 and the GAC Trumpchi Xiangwang S9 extremely excited.

However, it is worth noting that before this year, the product boundaries in the entire auto market were quite broad. Unusual models like the Zeekr MIX and the Changan Qiyuan E07 have appeared, and together with somewhat - strange new models like the Li MEGA and the XPeng X9, they have added a colorful touch to the competition among Chinese car - making enterprises.

But now, take a look. Not to mention the Geely Galaxy M9, a price - slashing model launched on August 23. For almost half a year, in my impression, all car - making enterprises have been focusing on large - sized SUVs. In an era when the birth rate is so low that the government has to offer birth subsidies, one has to wonder where all these users who need to travel with their families come from to consume such products?

For a while, dozens of six - or seven - seat mid - to - large - sized new - energy SUVs have flooded the market. Don't car - making enterprises even consider the real market capacity in order to play it safe? The decline in innovation seems to be a correction of past product planning, but it doesn't mean that only "low - priced large cars" are the way out.

I blindly guess that after the launch of the new AITO M7, at least more than half of the similar SUVs appearing at the Chengdu Auto Show will become marginal models in the near future.

On one hand, Chinese car - making enterprises are blindly following the trend of popular new cars. On the other hand, from the Shanghai Auto Show in the first half of the year to the upcoming Chengdu Auto Show, the entire joint - venture segment has quite unanimously changed its old - fashioned thinking.

For them, since the market has given products like the Toyota bZ3X and the Nissan N7 an unexpected opportunity, there is no reason to be stubborn.

This time, seeing Dongfeng Honda, which has hit a wall in the transformation to electric vehicles, choose to abandon the exhibition, there is nothing more to say about other joint - venture enterprises in the process of adapting to the Chinese auto market. In other words, although the market has been noisy this year and the leading enterprises are in a tense situation, generally speaking, the auto market has gradually sorted out a clear development path for all joint - venture manufacturers.

Soon, the Nissan N6 range - extender sedan and another new - energy SUV will be launched. At least three new models with Chinese characteristics from the Volkswagen Group will be officially put into mass production. For Toyota, the new Highlander and RAV4 will be successively unveiled. Although the decisions made by each enterprise may vary to some extent, this time at the Chengdu Auto Show, joint - venture enterprises can finally stand up straight.

As is well - known, the Sichuan - Chongqing region has always been an important development base for the automobile industry. Not only is the Changan Group based here, but Volvo is also an important automotive industry partner in Chengdu. Perhaps this is the reason why the new XC70 has chosen to start its pre - sales here.

Of course, in terms of economic strength, the consumption power of luxury cars in Chengdu ranks among the top in the country. Over the years, not only Volvo but also almost all first - and second - tier or super - luxury brands have gathered here, eyeing the wallets of Chengdu consumers.

It's a pity that after Huawei and Xiaomi entered this market, there is no room for weak brands in the automobile market around the 500,000 - yuan price range. Even Porsche may have failed to withstand this pressure, resulting in a continuous decline in sales.

Every year in Chengdu, we can see a variety of situations. Some enterprises are always high - spirited, while others come to the exhibition with a nervous mindset. In 2025, the pre - exposure of star models has made the Chengdu Auto Show lose some focuses that could attract traffic. There are also many external factors behind its "decline". However, as an annual large - scale auto show, as long as it can form a regional influence, the existence of the Chengdu Auto Show is meaningful.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Automobile Commune" (ID: iAUTO2010), author: Cao Jiadong. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.