When benchmarking Tesla becomes a political correctness.

In the past, there were six major factions besieging Guangmingding, and now there are five major brands strongly benchmarking Tesla. In this busiest September in history, at least five new car models have been launched, all aiming at Tesla Model Y, trying to carve out a large slice of the cake from this globally best-selling model.

Zhidejie R7, Jiyue 07, Zeekr 7X, AVATR 07, and the all-new IM Motor LS6... From the naming logic, automakers have even started to believe in Feng Shui, believing that Xiaomi SU7 was the first model that could successfully establish a foothold amidst the dominance of Model 3, and the reason behind this is undoubtedly related to the number 7 in its name.

In fact, Xiaomi SU7 has never truly surpassed Model 3 in the true sense. It has always been Tesla itself that can defeat Tesla. However, Xiaomi SU7 historically sold like hotcakes in the market segment where Model 3 resides, becoming a phenomenal domestic model and subsequently becoming the object of learning and preparation for surpassing by major automakers.

Therefore, in this round of siege against Model Y, the number "7" is once again popular.

While China's automotive industry achieves overtaking of traditional automotive giants through smart electrification, Tesla has become another mountain that looms large in front of domestic brands.

Defeating Tesla is not just about establishing a core position in market behavior; to some extent, it is more like a political correctness, similar to shattering the golden brands of Volkswagen and Toyota in China.

The global sales champion faces a siege

On August 30, AVATR 07 opened blind reservations, with a single store exceeding 200 blind reservations.

On September 10, Zhidejie R7 opened presales, exceeding 10,000 orders within 24 hours of presales. On the same day, Jiyue 07 officially launched, starting at RMB 209,900, with a limited-time cash discount of RMB 10,000, exceeding 5,000 orders within 48 hours.

On September 19, NIO's sub-brand's first model, Letao L60, officially launched, starting at RMB 206,900, with the BaaS version as low as RMB 149,900.

On September 20, Zeekr SUV Zeekr 7X, which debuted at the end of last month, officially launched, starting at RMB 229,900. From presales to official launch, it exceeded 58,000 orders in 20 days.

On the upcoming September 26, the launches of AVATR 07 and IM Motor LS6 are on the horizon. After reviewing the prices and market feedback of a batch of competitors, the two are now urgently convening meetings to adjust their pricing strategies for the new pricing system.

Yu Chengdong defined Zhidejie R7 as "bringing an experience beyond Model X at the price of Model Y," while Letao Automobile President Ai Tiecheng likened Letao L60 to "a larger, deluxe Model Y."

IM Motor CMO Li Weimeng bluntly stated at the Chengdu Auto Show, "Not just us, all automakers want to win the race. Several SUVs recently launched in Hall 10 of the Chengdu Auto Show almost all mentioned Tesla Model Y, which remains the TOP 1 in this segment."

Zeekr is one of the few brands that have taken a different approach in benchmarking Tesla. Zeekr Intelligent Technology Vice President Lin Jinwen told the media that there are more than one product that pixel-level copies Tesla Model Y, priced 70000 to 80000 yuan cheaper, but none have achieved sales success. "Truly wanting to surpass Tesla cannot be done by walking in its shoes and reaching its peak; that's not realistic."

'Comprehensively benchmarking Model Y' has become the most common boast in the new energy vehicle circle at this time. Although these models belong to different brands and employ different marketing strategies, smart pure electric SUVs boast of being automotive robots, engaging in battery swapping races, or even offering range extension this year... Yet this large batch of newly launched models have unanimously targeted Tesla Model Y.

There is only one reason: Model Y is Tesla's offering from the United States, and Model Y is the global sales champion.

According to data from the China Passenger Car Association, Tesla Model Y sold 646,847 units in the Chinese market in 2023, winning the annual model sales championship. With global sales of 1.223 million units, Model Y easily claimed the title of the world's best-selling model in 2023.

In the era of fuel vehicles, Toyota Corolla was listed in the Guinness World Records as the 'best-selling car' in history with cumulative sales of 25 million units over 34 years; Toyota RAV4 similarly took nearly 30 years to become the global sales champion among single car models. Tesla broke Toyota's record in just five years.

In July this year, Tesla introduced a new car financing policy for its Model 3 and Model Y, offering a 5-year interest-free plan for orders placed by July 31 (inclusive), covering both the Standard Range and Long Range All-Wheel Drive versions. Since then, the interest-free plan has been repeatedly extended, seemingly becoming Tesla's alternative to price cuts.

Amid the strong benefits of the 5-year interest-free offer, Tesla Model Y continued to lead the SUV sales rankings for domestic passenger vehicles in August, selling 45,330 retail new vehicles. Notably, Tesla Model Y's sales in August increased by 9,031 units from July's 36,299 units.

Next year, the Tesla Model Y 2025 model is set to launch, featuring a brand-new futuristic design language, Tesla's latest dual-motor all-wheel-drive system with a maximum power of up to 500 kW and a peak torque of an astonishing 900 Nm, as well as a new generation of 2170 battery packs with a capacity of up to 100 kWh, delivering over 600 km of NEDC range.

Whether in terms of exterior design, performance configuration, or interior technology, it achieves a qualitative difference. All major models want to carve out a share of this aging Model Y, which has been on the market for many years, with their long-planned new cars. This year is the last chance.

In terms of product definition, Model Y is indeed aging. As a model that has been on the market in China for four years, apart from OTA software updates and the introduction of a Standard Range version midway through, it has remained largely unchanged over the years.

It has even been repeatedly ridiculed as unfinished, yet this unfinished model has never lost in sales despite its online criticisms. Some say that Tesla is like Apple in the automotive world, with no obvious advantages but also no apparent shortcomings, making it a 'bucket car.'

Using mobile phones as an analogy, you might choose Samsung for niche preferences, OPPO or VIVO for photography and battery life, Xiaomi if you have a PDST for Lei Jun, or even Huawei to satisfy some people's patriotic sentiments.

Of course, if none of the above preferences apply, Apple is undoubtedly the safest choice, just as Tesla is.

Brand or Product

Although the leaders of major automakers are shouting like Wang Po selling melons, trying their utmost to show that their products can surpass Tesla Model Y in all aspects, they are still uncertain deep down. Apart from a slight slackening in Model 3 sales due to Lei Jun's strong appeal, Tesla has remained undefeated since its localization in China.

To give the simplest example, if Model Y were launched by IM Motor, Jiyue, or AVATR, would it still be the sales champion in the domestic market?

Even if a product achieves a significant, dimensionality-reducing lead, it's still Model Y.

At this crucial juncture, we have reason to believe that each product has its unique strengths, but amidst these vociferous and flashy marketing tactics, IM Motor, Jiyue, and AVATR lack not only products but also brand power.

In fact, consumers in the domestic automotive market have long grown tired of empty propaganda, arrogant boasts, and excessive marketing, and have even suffered too many 'deceptions' and had to defend their rights too many times. For users, the product itself has become less important.

In other words, they don't care about what they buy as much as they care about what they are buying.

A product is part of a brand, but a brand is much more than just a product. A brand represents an enterprise's image, trust, and value in the minds of consumers.

In this regard, Tesla has a significant advantage similar to Apple. They have a founder with built-in influence and were the first new energy enterprise to introduce autonomous driving and technology into users' awareness a decade ago.

When consumers consider IM Motor, Jiyue, AVATR, they must consider factors such as price, performance, appearance, battery swapping, range extension, and more. Often, the labels of many models are not so obvious, but when consumers choose Tesla, they often only need it to be Tesla.

This is the original sin of being a latecomer. In the absence of a strong label to gain user awareness, even the best products rarely stand a chance against Tesla Model Y.

A brand must have both a precise brand positioning and good products and services to reflect it. There are no brands that exist without relying on product services in the market. Although the two are complementary and interdependent, there is still a hierarchical relationship at the underlying logic level.

A startup automaker must first establish a target audience and market positioning... forming a brand positioning, followed by product positioning, which gradually extends to product planning and design. There are companies operating according to this mindset, such as Tesla and NIO.

However, many brands currently have products first, adapt to the market, and then supplement market and product positioning... finally arriving at brand positioning. To some extent, this is not unlike the 'reverse engineering' of companies like Zotye in the past, which is particularly common among state-owned enterprises transforming into new forces like IM Motor, AVATR, and Voyah.

Many times, the results of product development and marketing are not responsible to the market but to leaders and the group. The entire company indulges in self-gratification, blaming the market for being too competitive at critical moments and the internal pace being too slow.

No one has truly considered that these enterprises were born with an original sin from the start.

At the end of last year, Tesla released the end-to-end + large model FSD V12 system, and Tesla has made it clear that the FSD will officially land in the domestic market in the first quarter of next year, pending regulatory approval. The technologically advanced FSD system may become Tesla's killer app next year, further strengthening Tesla's brand appeal.

For these companies besieging Model Y, it is likely that next year they will instead be surrounded by Tesla alone.

After another routine meeting late last night regarding AVATR 07, a long-time product development lead wrote on their WeChat Moments, "High mountains have their own paths for travelers, and deep waters have their own ferrymen."

In the 74th chapter of Journey to the West, the Tang Sanzang and his disciples traveled to Lion-Tusk Ridge and faced the old demon in the cave, along with its 48,000 underlings, unaware of the crisis ahead. They simply said to themselves, "High mountains have their own paths for travelers, and deep waters have their own ferrymen. Isn't there a way to get through? We can rest assured and proceed."

Can IM Motor, Jiyue, Zeekr, and AVATR, who are guarding Model Y, the old demon, really proceed with confidence?

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