Chinese brands at the Munich Auto Show: 116 companies go to Europe to participate in the exhibition, and BBA faces new forces at home turf.
On September 8, the 2025 International Motor Show Germany (hereinafter referred to as the "Munich Auto Show") was held in Munich. As a biennial global top - tier auto show held in Europe, the Munich Auto Show is regarded as a home - court event by many European automakers. Major European automakers such as Mercedes - Benz, BMW Group, and Volkswagen Group all launched significant new products.
△XPENG Motors' booth. Image source: Provided by the enterprise.
As the European market becomes the main destination for China's automotive industry to expand overseas, Chinese enterprises are paying more and more attention to the Munich Auto Show. Self - owned brands such as Changan Automobile, BYD, GAC Group, Leapmotor, SERES, and XPENG Motors all participated in the exhibition. Companies in the automotive industry chain such as CATL, Horizon Robotics, Black Sesame Intelligence, Hesai Technology, and Momenta also showcased their latest technologies and solutions locally.
Different from the past, China's automotive industry's overseas participation in exhibitions is presenting a full - industry - chain exhibition lineup of "complete vehicles + three - electric systems + intelligent technology + software and electronics, etc.", and the scale is rapidly increasing. This time, 116 Chinese enterprises participated in the exhibition, reaching a new high compared with 70 in 2023, making China the country with the largest number of participating enterprises except Germany.
"The collective appearance of Chinese enterprises at this Munich Auto Show is a display of the brand and product strength of the enterprises. Chinese enterprises are winning more dominance and voice in the reconstruction of the global automotive industry pattern." Liu Yan, the deputy secretary - general of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, commented.
In fact, in addition to competing on the same stage, the cooperation between Chinese and European automakers is also deepening. For example, Mercedes - Benz and BMW have cooperated with the domestic autonomous driving company Momenta, Volkswagen Group is jointly developing products with XPENG Motors, and Stellantis Group is providing a sales network for Leapmotor. Amid competition and cooperation, Chinese and European automakers are writing new stories in Munich.
Chinese Automakers' Diverse Approaches to the European Market
Competing with traditional top - tier European and American automakers on the same stage is a challenge that self - owned brand automakers must face when accelerating their expansion overseas.
During this year's Munich Auto Show, XPENG Motors showcased five main models, including the new XPENG P7 and the 2025 XPENG G6, and also exhibited cutting - edge technology exhibits such as humanoid robots, flying cars, land aircraft carrier models, and the SEPA Fuyao architecture. Senior leaders such as He Xiaopeng, the chairman and CEO of XPENG Motors, and Gu Hongdi, the vice - chairman and co - president, all appeared at the booth.
XPENG Motors also announced the opening of its first R & D center in Europe, which is a key milestone in its globalization strategy. As the ninth largest global R & D center of the brand, it coordinates with the R & D centers in Silicon Valley and San Diego. With the core concept of "In Europe, With Europe", it deeply explores the local users' needs and accelerates technological innovation and local implementation.
△Leapmotor's booth. Image source: Leapmotor.
Leapmotor publicly unveiled its new strategic product with personality, the Lafa5, for the first time at the Munich Auto Show. At the same time, the Leapmotor B10 was officially launched in the overseas market, and European deliveries began simultaneously.
Zhu Jiangming, the founder, chairman, and CEO of Leapmotor, revealed on - site that with the resource system of Stellantis Group, the fifth - largest global automaker and its European shareholder, Leapmotor has completed business layouts in more than 30 countries and regions, with sales and service outlets exceeding 1,700. From January to August this year, Leapmotor delivered more than 30,000 vehicles in the overseas market.
△SERES AITO's booth. Image source: Provided by the enterprise.
The AITO brand under SERES showcased three new models, the AITO 9, AITO 7, and AITO 5, which were deeply localized for the Middle - East market, for the first time at the Munich Auto Show. The new - generation SERES super - extended - range system and the SERES Magic Cube technology platform also made their debuts.
The exhibition content of traditional automakers also mainly focused on new - energy vehicles.
Two brands under Changan Automobile, Shenlan and Avatr, participated in the exhibition. The Shenlan S05 was officially launched in Europe, and the Shenlan S07 was previously launched in Norway and is about to enter the UK. The Avatr brand held a brand day on September 7, and globally premiered the concept car XPECTRA.
GAC Group showcased five new - energy vehicle models. Its AION V was launched in the European market, with a price of 35,990 euros (about 300,000 RMB). Feng Xingya, the chairman and general manager of GAC Group, released the "GAC Solution" for future mobility and announced the implementation progress of the "European Market Plan".
Previously, at the 2024 Paris Auto Show, GAC Group released the "European Market Plan", clearly designating Europe as the core strategic market. At the market level, GAC Group will accelerate its layout in the European market. Starting from September this year, it will gradually enter countries such as Poland, Portugal, and Finland, and plans to fully cover the European market by 2028.
In addition, the Hongqi EHS5 (Hongqi Tiangong 06) made its debut in Europe and is planned to be launched in the Danish market in the fourth quarter. Chery Automobile launched the Jaecoo and Omoda brands at the Munich Auto Show. BYD displayed the Denza brand and the Seal 06 DM - i plug - in hybrid station wagon.
The Counter - attack of BBA in Their Home - court
With the aggressive momentum of Chinese brands, European local brands are not willing to be left behind. European mainstream automakers such as Mercedes - Benz, BMW, and Volkswagen also launched their main models at this auto show to compete with mainstream domestic products.
The new all - electric GLC launched by Mercedes - Benz this time is the all - electric version of the best - selling GLC. The all - electric GLC is equipped with the MBUX Hyperscreen, the MB.OS in - vehicle system, the S - class sedan's air suspension, and rear - wheel steering technology. The domestically - produced long - wheelbase all - electric GLC will be launched next year, and will be equipped with technologies such as urban and highway pilot - assisted driving and the Doubao AI large - model to improve its intelligence level.
△The new all - electric Mercedes - Benz GLC SUV. Image source: Provided by the enterprise.
From the perspective of design and technology, the target of the Mercedes - Benz all - electric GLC is the Chinese luxury all - electric SUV market.
This car not only increases the size to the largest in history but also provides a 128 - liter frunk to attract users. On the other hand, it is equipped with the mainstream 800V electrical architecture, silicon - carbide inverters, and the only two - speed gearbox and four - wheel - drive disconnect device in its class, with a range of more than 713 kilometers. Charging for 10 minutes can increase the range by more than 300 kilometers. These are all the configurations of current mainstream domestic products.
The new - generation BMW iX3 and the all - electric GLC of Mercedes - Benz are both medium - sized luxury all - electric SUVs. This car will be unveiled in China within this year, and the long - wheelbase version will be mass - produced next year. BMW introduced that the new car is based on a new intelligent electronic and electrical architecture. Three breakthrough technologies, the BMW panoramic iDrive, the BMW Driving Super Brain, and the large - cylindrical battery, will significantly improve the product experience.
△Oliver Zipse, the chairman of BMW Group, with the new BMW iX3. Image source: Provided by the enterprise.
The new - generation BMW iX3 has also made multiple improvements in battery technology and range to compete with domestic products. For example, the new car directly integrates the battery cells into the battery pack and integrates them into the body through CTB technology to reduce weight, lower the center of gravity, and improve the interior space and aerodynamic performance. The large - cylindrical battery allows the domestic version to recharge more than 400 kilometers in 10 minutes.
Volkswagen's new products are more diverse. It showcased new all - electric products such as the ID. Polo and the ID. Polo GTI. The compact all - electric SUV concept car, the ID. CROSS, also made its debut. It is understood that Volkswagen will adopt a new vehicle - naming strategy, with the ID. Polo being the first to use it, and the names of many classic models will also be extended to all - electric vehicles.
In addition, Audi's new all - electric two - seat sports car, the Audi Concept C, and the 2026 Porsche 911 Turbo S under the Volkswagen Group made their debuts on the same day. MINI under the BMW Group launched two JCW concept models, the MINI JCW The Machina and the MINI JCW The Skeg.
Competition and Cooperation between Chinese and European Automobiles
While Chinese and European automakers are competing in Munich, the automotive industries in the two regions are also deeply integrating.
The large - scale participation of Chinese automotive supply - chain enterprises in this auto show is also a highlight. It includes power - battery enterprises such as CATL, CALB, and EVE Energy; software and electronics enterprises such as Joyson Electronics, iFlytek, and Desay SV; and technology enterprises in the field of intelligent driving such as Momenta, Horizon Robotics, and Hesai Technology also went to Europe.
CATL released the NP3.0 technology platform with the highest safety level in the battery field and launched the first lithium - iron - phosphate power - battery product under this technology, the Shenxing Pro. The long - life version has a service life of up to 12 years or 1 million kilometers. The super - charging version has a peak charging capacity of 12C, and it only takes 20 minutes to charge from 20% to 80% in a - 20°C environment.
△CATL's booth. Image source: Provided by the enterprise.
CATL told reporters from Times Weekly that it has established cooperation relationships with more than 90% of mainstream European automakers and has established three production bases in Europe, in Germany, Hungary, and Spain (under construction), to ensure local production capacity supply.
The 15GWh Hungary factory of CALB has started trial production. Its main lithium - manganese - iron - phosphate battery can reduce costs by 10%. The 20GWh Germany factory of Guoxuan High - tech focuses on the cascade - utilization technology of energy - storage and vehicle - use batteries, showing a differentiated competition strategy.
Going out of China and into Europe has become the common choice of domestic leading power - battery enterprises. This is also a "two - way journey" with European local automakers. For example, BMW told reporters that before the Munich Auto Show, BMW had started trial production of large - cylindrical battery packs at its Shenyang production base at the end of 2024 with Chinese top - tier battery suppliers such as CATL and EVE Energy.
The collective participation of Chinese intelligent - driving companies in the auto show is also a new highlight this year.
Momenta, which was founded with investment from SAIC Group, participated deeply in this year's auto show. Momenta officially stated that it has reached in - depth cooperation with more than 20 global mainstream automakers. Recently, the overseas versions of the IM L6 and LS6 were launched in the UK. Both new cars are equipped with the Momenta Flywheel large - model assisted - driving system. Overseas automakers such as BMW also use Momenta's assisted - driving solutions.
Momenta also announced a deepened strategic cooperation with Uber. The two parties plan to start the Robotaxi testing of L4 - level autonomous driving Robotaxis in Munich in 2026.
Another domestic leading intelligent - driving company, Horizon Robotics, showcased its latest Journey® 6 series computing solutions and the HSD urban assisted - driving system. Horizon Robotics also announced the official establishment of its European headquarters in Munich, which will be able to provide more efficient and more locally - relevant support for Chinese automobiles going overseas.
Currently, including top automakers such as Volkswagen and Toyota, nine joint - venture automakers have reached fixed - point cooperation on 30 models with Horizon Robotics. In addition, based on the product solutions of Journey 6B, Horizon Robotics has successfully obtained model fixed - point cooperation from two foreign automakers in the overseas market.
China's automotive industry is accelerating its expansion into Europe, and European local automakers are continuously benchmarking against domestic competitors. Amid competition and cooperation, China's automotive industry is stepping onto a larger global stage.
This article is from the WeChat public account "Times Weekly" (ID: timeweekly), author: Wu Kai. Republished by 36Kr with permission.