On May 20th, FAW-Volkswagen Magotan [Summary Picture Forum] B7L made its debut in Shanghai. Whether B7L is a remedy for the absence of the Shanghai Auto Show or a response to Shanghai Volkswagen's new Passat [review picture forum], the competition between the two "PASSAT" has become increasingly fierce.

The Magotan B7L is the European version of the PASSAT's extended wheelbase version, which is known in the industry as a "vertical generation" product, while the Shanghai Volkswagen Passat is known as the "new generation of Passat" developed for the Chinese and American markets.

Who is more correct? Volkswagen China has not given a positive reply so far. In the same way that Passat B6 (Malteng) settled in FAW-Volkswagen, Volkswagen seems unwilling to give a clear answer.

Behind this, Volkswagen is launching a new counterweight in China. Volkswagen has created a new type of self-owned auto-branded electric vehicle in China. On the surface, the public is showing good to the government, but in addition to the “innocent” electric vehicles, the public has controlled the North and South Is constantly strengthening.

The two "Pasate" fight May 20, FAW Volkswagen's most important model this year, the MAGOTAN B7L made its debut in Shanghai. FAW-Volkswagen stressed that as the seventh-generation B-Class Volkswagen car, the MAGOTAN B7L has a pure European heritage and has been extended to Chinese consumers.

"This is nothing more than to highlight the difference between the B7L and Shanghai Volkswagen's new Passat." Some analysts pointed out.

In fact, in the technically leading magotan, the market performance has been inferior to Passat. In 2007, the Magotan model launched the market. The model was derived from the more advanced "PQ46" platform of Volkswagen at that time and was called PASSATB6 in Europe. The Shanghai Volkswagen Passat prix [Review Photo Forum] is the same as the European PASSATB5, which is from the Volkswagen's previous generation "PQ45" platform. However, in terms of market performance, in 2010, Passat sold more than 130,000 vehicles, and Magotan sold only more than 70,000 vehicles, a difference of nearly doubled.

This time the new Passat was listed, and people in Shanghai Public Relations Department told reporters that since April 17th, nearly 50,000 orders have been accepted. Shanghai Volkswagen expects the new Passat's market share in the Class B market to exceed 10%.

“The relationship between the two joint venture partners is 1+1 greater than 2.” According to Su Weiming, executive vice president of market and sales for Volkswagen China, told reporters about the competition between the two joint venture partners in the B-class market. However, in terms of market performance, both the Passat and Magotan, and the Japanese three B-class models of the competition is not obvious, internal competition is very prominent.

It is reported that the MAGOTAN B7L as FAW-Volkswagen's most important model this year, did not appear at the Shanghai Auto Show, is the result of public mediation, the public does not want to see the two "PASSAT" fratricide.

On the eve of the Shanghai Auto Show, Shanghai Volkswagen officially released a new generation of Passat, with a price range of 218,800 to 3,100 yuan. Some analysts pointed out that this poses a problem for the pricing of the Magotan B7L. As the Volkswagen's seventh-generation B-class car, the introduction cost of the Magotan B7L is much higher than that of Shanghai Volkswagen New Passat. The up-front pricing of Shanghai Volkswagen New Passat has already dominated the current mainstream price range for Class B vehicles. If the price of the Magotan B7L is too high, it will certainly be abandoned by the market. If the price overlaps with Shanghai Volkswagen Passat, it will be difficult to allocate huge vehicle import costs.

The two "PASSAT" models were launched in the Chinese market in such a time period. The layout and division of labor of North and South China Volkswagen have been completely disrupted, which has given the public more say in the joint venture. Through the distribution of products, VW has more choices in balancing the interests of joint venture partners.

Electric vehicles become expansion chips While balancing North and South public, the public is working hard to expand production to meet market demand.

At the beginning of May, FAW-Volkswagen's own-brand electric vehicle "Kelly" entered the "225th Approval of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology New Vehicle Entry Catalogue" of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, opening up another model for joint venture autonomy.

Following the Kaili brand is the FAW-Volkswagen Foshan factory project. Earlier, as an important part of the popular South strategy, the Foshan plant project has been shelved. Su Weiming told reporters during the Shanghai Auto Show, "We will introduce it in due course. We have been moving forward."

It is worth noting that in the Foshan factory project, the ratio of the public ownership has increased from 40% to 49%. According to relevant analysis, the public will share higher profits in joint venture factories through the increase in the proportion of equity.

According to industry insiders, under the condition that the Chinese government strictly limits new production capacity and the approval of new factories, the “Kai Li” model of autonomous electric vehicles is a mode of expansion that caters to policy and at the same time has the lowest cost.

In addition, Shanghai Volkswagen's own brand electric car project has also begun. Shanghai Volkswagen in the "Daily Economic News" reporter's official response said that Shanghai Volkswagen's own brand has applied for trademark registration, positioning as energy-saving environmental protection electric vehicle products, the current product has entered the early stage of development.

Under the pressure of FAW-Volkswagen's "Carrie", Shanghai Volkswagen's Jiangsu Yizheng base may accelerate its approval. In July 2010, Shanghai Volkswagen Yizheng project was signed and the planned capacity of the project was 300,000. However, as the public has not disclosed any updated information on its own brands and new energy vehicles in China, the project has not received final approval.

Obviously, in the face of strong demand in the Chinese market, while satisfying government regulations, the use of new energy technologies as a bargaining chip to increase the voice in the construction of new factories has become a way for the public to take advantage of many things.

Highlighting the value of the public's own brand An industry veteran told reporters that because of the strength of the VW joint venture partners in China, when the public entered the early days of China, the right to speak in the joint venture was not strong enough. However, with the introduction of a number of products, in recent years, the public has increasingly attached importance to the construction of their own brands, and through the promotion of their own brands, they have gradually assumed a dominant position in joint venture companies.

In addition to the “director” Passat’s dispute, the public also launched a “public self-made” campaign that emphasizes the value of the public’s own brand, and there are more and more “individual” actions in China. After North and South Volkswagen helped the Olympics in 2008, Volkswagen China is now more willing to highlight the popular brands, while "FAW" and "Shangqi" have appeared less frequently.

While stressing the concept of Volkswagen itself, the layout of Volkswagen's imported models has accelerated since last year. In 2010, VW imported car sales reached 43,000 vehicles, an increase of 114% year-on-year, and the growth rate far exceeded the 80% increase in the domestic imported car market. Su Weiming said that in 2011, Volkswagen will have more imported models, accelerate the distribution of dealers' network of imported vehicles, and maintain a good growth trend.

The above-mentioned industry sources told reporters that the public is demonstrating the road for auto groups with core technologies to explore the Chinese market, that is, after the market growth has entered a relatively stable period, it begins to spread its own brand value, and based on this to obtain more stable and rapid profit growth. .