A to Z for Zeekr for Aiways: Chinese publishers roaming Europe

Our estimate: Also, thanks to the development of a close-knit dealer network, BYD is likely to position itself permanently in the European market.

Only those who are into cars should know about the industry giant Geely. The Chinese are the parent company of Swedish automaker Volvo and its former sports division Polestar, which has been operating as an all-electric brand since 2020. In addition, Geely is the largest single shareholder of Mercedes.

In addition to the newly removed Polestar 2 (577 Swiss sales as of the end of August), the SUV 3, SUV coupe 4, sports sedan 5 and convertible 9 will follow Polestar in the coming years. Not so successful Launched in Europe: The hybrid SUV 01 has been available in several European markets since 2021, primarily as a subscription model (starting at around CHF 500 per month) – but the numbers are still below expectations. There is still a long time to enter the Swiss market, which has been announced for a long time. The reboot of Smart, the Mercedes subsidiary that developed the #1 electric Golf-sized SUV with Geely behind it, has also been slow.

Geely wants to launch the yet unknown luxury brand Zeekr in Europe by the end of the year. It starts with the compact electric SUV Zeekr X, and soon after, the sports sedan 001, Porsche Taycan and Co. competes with. The driving performance of the 001 is impressive: the all-wheel drive version with 400 kW (544 hp) and 686 Nm of torque, which is already on sale in Sweden and the Netherlands at prices starting at around 65,000 francs, has a range of 580 kilometers. At sports car manufacturer Lotus, the situation is even stronger, but also significantly more expensive; It has been under the umbrella of Geely since 2017. The brand new premium SUV Eletre produces between 600 and 900 hp, has a range of up to 600 kilometers and costs at least 116,000 francs.

Our estimate: Geely is already established in Europe, along with Volvo and Polestar. Time will tell whether brands such as Zeekr and newly established Lotus will also be successful in the long run.

Great Wall Motors (GWM), China’s first private manufacturer, which went public in 2003, also has big ambitions in Europe. The Wey and Ora brands have recently gone on sale in Germany, albeit off to a rough start: only 13 (!) examples of the stylish plug-in hybrid SUV Wey Coffee 01 were delivered this year, due to discussions with sales partner Emil Frey. Things are going a little better for the Ora Funky Cat, the electric retro city car whose platform is also used by the new electric Mini Cooper. The German Federal Motor Transport Authority counted 831 registrations as of the end of July. However, it does not seem possible to reach the target of at least 15,000 vehicles from both brands. Following Germany, the Wey and Ora models will be introduced gradually in all markets where the Emil Frey Group is represented, and in the future also in Switzerland. But before that, the dispute over the sales model needs to be resolved.

Our estimate: The sustainable success of even a giant company like GWM can only be possible with a functioning sales organization. It is not yet known whether Wey and Ora will recover after the false start.

A spectacular comeback for the former British sports car brand MG after its bankruptcy in 2005: the first vehicles arrived in the UK and then on to the European mainland in 2019, under the wing of China’s largest auto group SAIC. In countries like Germany, MGs are now part of the street scene: almost 10,000 e-cars were sold in the first half of 2023; This was double the number of the previous year. The reasons for the success are the dense dealer network with more than 100 agencies in Germany and the product portfolio that appeals to the tastes of the customers.

Bestsellers include, for example, the compact MG4 Electric, which competes with the VW ID.3, starting at CHF 32,000. The Chinese are also presenting the MG5, the world’s first electric station wagon. Other models include the ZS EV, Marvel R (both all-electric), EHS (plug-in hybrid) and ZS (petrol) SUVs. MG had originally planned to launch it in Switzerland in 2022, but the models have taken a long time to arrive so far. It is not yet clear when that will happen.

Our estimate: MG is building its business in the middle class where European manufacturers are breaking it up. With the huge SAIC group in the background, MG needs to be with us permanently.

Nio’s founder and CEO, William Li (49), is celebrated almost as Chinese Elon Musk (51). The influential pioneer had a successful start in 2020 in China after nearly bankruptcy and then sought to take the European market by storm. The e-cars are not only impressive in appearance: the ET5 and ET7 sedans, the ET5 Touring electric station wagon and the EL6, EL7 and ES8 SUVs already available in some European markets, produce between 480 and 650 hp and, depending on the battery, 450 to 450 hp 600 kilometers between them. Thanks to solid-state batteries, distances of up to 1000 kilometers will soon be possible.

Nio eliminates range anxiety with specially developed battery changing stations. Here, the energy storage devices in the underbody of the vehicles can be replaced in just a few minutes. But clearing stations can be deadly for entrepreneur Li: Building and maintaining a nationwide network takes huge sums. That’s why Nio now works with German energy supplier EnBW. But sales figures are still far from the original targets, and there is also a tough price war with Tesla in the domestic market, where Nio has repeatedly had to cut prices. Nio lost around 600 million francs in the first quarter of 2023 alone.

Our estimate: Whether Nio can really make a big breakthrough depends on its success in Europe. The potential is definitely there. However, the air is weak for newcomers in the premium segment, where competition is quite high.

The newcomer Xpeng, which already offers two sedans and two SUVs in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands, is also targeting the premium segment. With the support of the powerful Alibaba Group as the financier, Xpeng’s flagship is the luxury SUV G9, which can refuel up to 300 kW with a fast charger thanks to its 800-volt technology; which is faster than any other e-commerce tool. The car is now. Ranges of up to 650 kilometers are also impressive. Sales will be made through own brand stores in metropolitan areas and commercial partners such as Emil Frey. Prices for the noble SUV G9 and the luxury class sedan P7 start at around 67,000 francs.

Our estimate: Technologically and visually, Xpeng’s e-cars are state-of-the-art. It is unclear whether this will be enough to compete with established premium brands such as Audi, BMW or Mercedes in Europe.