new ERA of car business

[Stan Chen]

When these two separate news stories popped up on my laptop, it made me wonder about the decline of the Western car industry. Chinese automakers are approaching car manufacturing like the consumer electronics industry while Western automakers still rely on traditional methods. Is this a good thing or not?

Ford CEO Calls China's EVs 'Humbling' as Xiaomi Debuts $35K Tesla Model Y Rival

The cost, quality, and technology of Chinese EVs exceeds what Jim Farley has seen 'in the West.' He would know, because he drove a Xiaomi SU7 for six months and didn't want to give it back.

www.pcmag.com

[News] Xiaomi’s YU7 EV Frenzy Reportedly Boosts TSMC, Thanks to Qualcomm and NVIDIA 4nm Wins | TrendForce News

Just a week after launch, Xiaomi’s second EV, the YU7, priced at 253,500 yuan ($35,360) and nearly 4% cheaper than Tesla’s Model Y, racked up 240,000 ...

www.trendforce.com

 

[Xebec]

Ford CEO Calls China's EVs 'Humbling' as Xiaomi Debuts $35K Tesla Model Y Rival

The cost, quality, and technology of Chinese EVs exceeds what Jim Farley has seen 'in the West.' He would know, because he drove a Xiaomi SU7 for six months and didn't want to give it back.

www.pcmag.com

[News] Xiaomi’s YU7 EV Frenzy Reportedly Boosts TSMC, Thanks to Qualcomm and NVIDIA 4nm Wins | TrendForce News

Just a week after launch, Xiaomi’s second EV, the YU7, priced at 253,500 yuan ($35,360) and nearly 4% cheaper than Tesla’s Model Y, racked up 240,000 ...

www.trendforce.com

When these two separate news stories popped up on my laptop, it made me wonder about the decline of the Western car industry. Chinese automakers are approaching car manufacturing like the consumer electronics industry while Western automakers still rely on traditional methods. Is this a good thing or not?

There's a reason some of us refer to Western Auto as "Legacy Auto" .

They're really not prepared for the upcoming transition to EVs. In this case, Western also includes the Japanese makers (Toyota is the #1 lobbyist against EVs).

I think the Koreans "get it", and the German makers are slowly coming around (though maybe too slow).

The biggest advantage-turned-disadvantage of legacy automakers is the lack of vertical integration. They have the power that they can order parts from all kinds of OEMs, but making a sea of change to a vehicle (true electric, 48V architecture, etc.) is basically a nightmare because so little expertise and manufacturing is in house.

Kudos to Ford for always being a little bit ahead of it's American peers (Chrysler, GM). They weren't bankrupt in 2008 because they took steps earlier. They were first to NACS for charging in the USA, and by evaluating the Chinese cars, they now realize that Tesla isn't the only 'new auto' threat.

 

[Arthur Hanson]

Batteries are the name of the game, for electric motors have been around for decades.