Two years ago, XPeng wanted to phase out hybrid vehicles. Two years later, XPeng turned around and embraced extended-range electric vehicles.
During the earnings conference call after the release of the second - quarter financial report, He Xiaopeng said that a monthly sales volume of 40,000 vehicles would become the norm for XPeng.
In the just - passed October, this new - energy vehicle startup kept its promise. It delivered a total of 42,013 new vehicles, a year - on - year increase of 76% and a month - on - month increase of 1%, setting a new historical record again.
As an onlooker, the most prominent feeling is that "after continuously launching a series of pure - electric vehicle models, the market has given XPeng relatively positive feedback, and it should be no problem to maintain the so - called bottom line."
However, the pain points are also clearly on the surface.
As of now, even though the specific sales composition of XPeng in October is not available, it is foreseeable that the MONA M03, which targets the A - class sedan market, will surely account for almost half of the sales. The remaining part is contributed by models such as the G6, G7, G9, including the P7+, the new P7, and the X9.
In terms of the average price of models, compared with its competitors in the same camp, such as Xiaomi, NIO, Li Auto, and Hongmeng Zhixing, XPeng has almost no advantage.
Moreover, it should be noted that whenever the competition in the Chinese auto market intensifies, the mainstream mass - market segment will surely face the fiercest involution and competition. Although XPeng has exceeded the 40,000 - vehicle mark, it has not essentially escaped the difficult situation and is at risk of being challenged and besieged at any time.
Precisely based on this background, the most urgent task this year is to find new breakthrough points, to increase terminal sales on one hand and to elevate the brand on the other.
Betting on range - extended electric vehicles is the answer given by XPeng.
Actually, similar signals were released as early as last year's Technology Day. Last night, it was finally time to present the results of this stage.
Regarding the technology itself, according to He Xiaopeng, the current traditional range - extended electric vehicle models on the market have limited pure - electric range, which can only meet the needs of urban commuting, and frequent charging is time - consuming and laborious.
In contrast, thanks to its profound accumulation in the three - electric field and leading technological innovation, XPeng has successfully defined and implemented the "super range - extended" concept, maximizing the pure - electric range.
The X9 Super Range - Extended Edition, as the first model to carry this technology, not only has a pure - electric range of 452 kilometers, meeting the need to charge only once a week for commuting, but also has a comprehensive range of 1602 kilometers, making it the world's longest - range large seven - seat vehicle.
Of course, as the brand's first super range - extended product, it also spares no effort in terms of configuration.
It is reported that the X9 Super Range - Extended Edition is the only product in the industry that features a "63.3 - kWh large battery + 60 - liter large fuel tank". It supports 800V 5C ultra - fast charging, allowing it to charge for a 313 - kilometer range in just 10 minutes, and the battery cycle life exceeds 2000 times.
In terms of luxury and comfort configurations, it also performs excellently. It is equipped with high - tech features such as a dome star - track ambient light, an AI aviation reading light, and an AR - HUD. The whole vehicle uses 100% soft - wrapped materials and Ayous real wood.
Two SKUs, the MAX and the Ultra, are launched, equipped with one and three self - developed Turing AI chips respectively. The pre - sale prices are 350,000 yuan and 370,000 yuan.
As for its mission, it is very straightforward: to gain a share from the luxury MPV segment through the range - extended form. After all, the performance of the pure - electric version of the X9 can only be described as mediocre. It would be good if the two - pronged approach can achieve the effect of "1 + 1 > 1.5".
Meanwhile, the reason why XPeng chose the X9 as the first carrier is also very simple.
Use the current flagship model of the family to help the "super range - extended" system establish a high - end initial impression in the industry and guide potential customers to regard it as a configuration rather than a power form.
Next, according to the new - vehicle catalog of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the super range - extended versions of the G6 and the P7+ will most likely soon come to the forefront. The battle of "increasing sales volume and elevating the brand" for the protagonist of today's article has gradually begun.
If pure - electric vehicles maintain XPeng's bottom line, then range - extended electric vehicles determine its upper limit. Making good use of the "fuel tank magic" is crucial, as it concerns whether this new - energy vehicle startup can smoothly enter the recognized final stage.
From an onlooker's perspective, I also want to share a concern.
Once upon a time, the rapid rise of Li Auto and Wenjie largely proved that range - extended technology is not the so - called backward technology in the eyes of the ignorant. Instead, it seems to be a lucrative option for automakers to achieve both fame and fortune.
However, since this year, as more and more brands have blindly followed the trend and entered the market, people have surprisingly found that the actual situation seems a bit off.
Taking the retail sales data of new - energy vehicles in September released by the China Passenger Car Association as an example, a total of 109,000 range - extended electric vehicles were sold, a year - on - year decline of 8%. The cumulative growth rate from January to September is also the weakest compared with pure - electric and plug - in hybrid vehicles.
Looking at the proportion of the wholesale sales structure of new - energy vehicles in September, pure - electric vehicles accounted for 63% (a year - on - year increase of 4.7%), plug - in hybrid vehicles accounted for 28% (a year - on - year decrease of 3.9%), and range - extended electric vehicles accounted for 9% (a year - on - year decrease of 0.9%).
From January to September, in the cumulative wholesale sales structure of new - energy vehicles, pure - electric vehicles accounted for 62% (a year - on - year increase of 3.8%), plug - in hybrid vehicles accounted for 29% (a year - on - year decrease of 3.0%), and range - extended electric vehicles accounted for 9% (a year - on - year decrease of 0.8%).
All these results indicate that although this market segment is indeed attractive, the market size is not large enough to satisfy so many competitors. XPeng has actually missed the generally recognized best opportunity to enter the market.
Next year, judging from the continuous release of important new - vehicle catalogs, whether it is Li Auto, Wenjie, other models under Hongmeng Zhixing, the ambitious Xiaomi, as well as the unnamed independent and joint - venture giants, they will surely make the already - competitive range - extended electric vehicle market even more brutal. Fortunately, the bigger the waves, the more valuable the fish.
The range - extended electric vehicle segment will ultimately be a game for the strong.
In such an environment, how much return and dividend XPeng can gain and how high it can raise the company's upper limit are undoubtedly full of uncertainties and challenges.
In addition, for any automaker that operates in both pure - electric and range - extended electric vehicle segments, internal strife and self - competition are inevitable. XPeng should also find ways to alleviate the dilemma of "range - extended electric vehicles cannibalizing its own pure - electric vehicle sales". Only by doing so can it reach the monthly sales volume of 50,000, 60,000 vehicles or even higher.
While looking through the photo album, I accidentally saw a photo taken on November 6th two years ago. He Xiaopeng was standing in the center of the stage, vigorously promoting pure - electric vehicles, and the PPT behind him clearly read "Eliminate hybrid vehicles = ultra - fast charging + long - range + self - operated charging stations".
However, two years later, XPeng has turned to embrace range - extended electric vehicles. Although it seems a bit ironic, the old saying still holds: "It's not embarrassing to change one's stance. The important thing is to survive and live better." In the Chinese auto market, one must learn to adapt to the situation.
As He Xiaopeng said in an interview, "Many things are not about right or wrong, but about choices."
Then, he also specifically shared: "Since 2019, I have actually been promoting the development of range - extended electric vehicles within the company, but I always encountered various resistances. Finally, on the fifth attempt, I convinced everyone."
When asked if it is too late to enter the market now?
He Xiaopeng's judgment is that "there is still a large share of fuel - powered vehicles in the market, and it is very likely that fuel - vehicle users will switch to range - extended electric vehicles as their first step into the new - energy vehicle market. Our products will selectively adopt a dual - strategy of pure - electric and range - extended electric vehicles."
Anyway, after an hour of communication, one can deeply feel the determination and confidence of this leader. The new era of range - extended electric vehicles and a new journey have begun.
As this article is coming to an end, I would like to share my thoughts on the Technology Day last Thursday.
What I care most about is not whether there are people hidden in the XPeng IRON, not how many orders the HT Aero flying car has received, and not how many Robotaxis will be mass - produced next year.
To some extent, they are just chips to support the capital valuation of this new - energy vehicle startup and help it gain more attention.
In contrast, I always think that the success or failure of the second - generation VLA is the key.
According to the official introduction, this new intelligent driving system innovatively removes the "language translation" link and for the first time realizes the end - to - end direct generation from visual signals to action instructions, completely subverting the traditional "V - L - A" architecture in the industry and trying to explore a new physical model paradigm.
It is further learned that by the end of this year, XPeng will invite pioneer users to jointly experience the second - generation VLA, and in the first quarter of next year, it will be fully pushed to all Ultra models.
At that time, the quality of the functional experience and whether it can indisputably rank among the first - tier will directly determine its position in the industry in the future.
It is well - known that "intelligent driving" has always been a key label firmly attached to XPeng and is also its golden signboard for selling cars.
However, in the past two years, with the entry of a "dominant player" like Huawei and the efforts of many leading suppliers, XPeng's first - mover advantage has been gradually eroded.
The protagonist of today's article is facing fierce attacks from both the front and the back. Once it fails to capture consumers' minds in this aspect, the blow to the enterprise will be devastating.
Therefore, the second - generation VLA cannot afford to fail. From He Xiaopeng's words at the Technology Day, one can clearly feel that "the old era is over, and a new war with AI as the foundation has begun."
Both emotionally and rationally, XPeng has to continue to compete.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Automotive Commune" (ID: iAUTO2010), author: Cui Liwen, editor: He Zengrong, published by 36Kr with permission.