The new generation of Maiteng will arrive at the store at the end of June at the soonest, and the ＂old and new＂ will be sold until 2026.
Every reporter, Duan Siyao, every editor, Pei Jianru
After the debut of this year’s Beijing Auto Show, the new generation of Maiteng is about to go on sale. The "Daily Economic News" reporter learned from the FAW-Volkswagen dealership that the new car will arrive at the store as soon as the end of June.
At the 2023 Munich Motor Show, the new Volkswagen Passat (the European version of the Maiteng) was unveiled. As the ninth generation of the family, the new Volkswagen Passat has cancelled the sedan version in Europe and only retained the travel version. Therefore, the new generation of Maiteng is also considered to be a "special car" for the Chinese market. In response, the relevant person in charge of the FAW-Volkswagen brand responded: "The new generation of Maiteng is not special. Except for the appearance, [other] are basically the same as the European version."
It is worth noting that with the upcoming launch of the new generation of Maiteng, FAW-Volkswagen does not seem to plan to stop production of the model on sale. According to a FAW-Volkswagen dealer told reporters: "The 2023 Maiteng 2 million commemorative models on sale will be sold together with the new generation Maiteng until 2026."
Larger discounts on models on sale
"At present, Maiteng only has 2023 2 million commemorative 330TSI DSG leading type and 2023 2 million commemorative 330TSI DSG luxury two configurations on sale, of which the luxury cash discount is 74,000 yuan, and the naked car price is 150,000 yuan." A FAW-Volkswagen 4S store in Beijing said.
In 2022, Maiteng 2 million commemorative version will be launched, with a total of 5 models in three power configurations, including 280TSI, 330TSI, and 380TSI. The price range is 186,900 to 253,900 yuan. According to the above-mentioned sales staff of a FAW-Volkswagen 4S store in Beijing: "In order to cooperate with the upcoming launch of the new generation of Maiteng, as early as the beginning of this year, the manufacturer has stopped production of 280TSI and 380TSI power configurations."
Generally speaking, after the replacement model is launched, the old model will be discontinued, but FAW-Volkswagen hopes that after the new generation of Maiteng is launched, the Maiteng on sale can still play a residual heat. In May this year, Maiteng sold 11,100 vehicles, ranking sixth in the domestic B-class car market. In the first five months of this year, Maiteng sold about 89,900 vehicles. Among them, in January this year, Maiteng rushed into the second place in the domestic B-class car market with 16,000 sales.
Since the new generation of Maiteng has not yet been launched, its market performance is unknown, but from past cases, in the "old and new" sales, the old models and replacement products complement each other, and car companies can take into account two or more market segments to improve market coverage, but it will cause products to cannibalize each other, especially in the case of a significant reduction in the price of the old model, car buyers will pay too much attention to the preferential strength, thereby ignoring the value of the product.
Can the new generation of Maiteng turn over and defeat Passat?
With the arrival of the new generation of Maiteng, the SAIC Volkswagen Passat will also usher in a new generation, which is expected to be launched in the second half of this year. Unlike Maiteng, which inherits the European version of the Passat, the SAIC Volkswagen Passat is more based on the evolution of the American version.
Next, the upcoming new generation of Maiteng and the new generation of SAIC Volkswagen Passat competition is worth looking forward to. However, in the first five months of this year, Passat has been beating Maiteng in sales. From the cumulative sales of January to May, the gap between Maiteng and Passat is 20,000.
In addition to the Passat, in May this year, the sales of Model 3, BYD Han, ZEEKR 001 and Maiteng were comparable. This also means that the "opponent" of the new generation of Maiteng that is about to be launched is not only fuel vehicles, but also faces the impact of a number of new energy vehicles.
For a long time, Maiteng has been outstanding in terms of quality stability and driving experience as a global model, which has also won the favor of many consumers in the market. The above-mentioned FAW-Volkswagen dealer said that the new generation of Maiteng is biased towards younger consumers in terms of appearance, interior and intelligence. For example, 11.6-inch co-pilot screen, IQ. Pilot intelligent driver assistance system jointly developed with DJI Automotive for China’s road conditions, etc.
At present, more and more multinational car companies have used the platform of joint ventures to develop products that are more suitable for Chinese consumers, and even more tailor-made models for Chinese consumers. "Many multinational brands find that Chinese and foreign consumers have different views on automobile products and cultures. Foreign consumers value the simplicity, practicality and safety of vehicles, while Chinese consumers prefer to display the configuration in a visible place, such as emphasizing large size," an expert in the field of automobile circulation told reporters.
CITIC Securities said in a research report that joint ventures generally import overseas mature products, and then make small adjustments (such as wheelbase lengthening, adjustment of configuration, localization of vehicle and machine applications, etc.). Their localized R & D investment is small, authority is low, and decision-making process is long. In the past, foreign automakers relied on a mature powertrain and overseas models to capture share in the Chinese market. Now, Chinese auto consumers’ demand for electric and intelligent has evolved faster than the world, and the empirical formula for introducing overseas mature products has expired.