On July 23, 2026, Xiaopeng Motors officially made its foray into the Bahrain market, celebrating the milestone with a delivery ceremony for the 200,000th global unit of the Xiaopeng G6 at the event venue.

Just six days later, He Xiaopeng announced that Xiaopeng Motors had achieved a cumulative sales figure of 100,000 units in overseas markets, with over 20,000 units sold in the second quarter alone, marking an impressive 81% year-on-year growth. The European and Middle Eastern markets, led by Norway and Israel, emerged as the key drivers of this expansion.

Image source: Xiaopeng Motors WeChat Official Account

Despite these achievements, Xiaopeng still falls short of its internal growth targets. By 2025, the company aimed to deliver a cumulative total of 45,000 units in overseas markets, with a goal of doubling sales to 100,000 units by 2026.

Xiaopeng is now navigating the challenging waters of international expansion.

Pre-Sales Predicament: A Three-Month Wait with No Updates

"We have numerous customers who, after making payment, are left in the dark about their car's whereabouts for three months, let alone knowing how much longer they'll have to wait," revealed an anonymous Xiaopeng Motors employee, Shen (pseudonym), to . "Even local dealers are clueless about the car's location."

For domestic consumers of new energy vehicles, this is an unfathomable experience.

While the Xiaomi SU7 faced wait times exceeding six months post-launch, and other new energy vehicle players like NIO, Xpeng, Li Auto, as well as established giants like BYD and Geely, all have popular models with lengthy wait times, these companies provide consumers with precise, transparent, and nearly real-time updates on timelines and progress. Consumers can log into the app at any time to check the remaining wait time and monitor their vehicle's production and transportation status.

Xiaopeng Motors' mainland consumers enjoy visibility into production progress

Image source: Internet

However, Xiaopeng's overseas consumers are denied this level of transparency.

Typically, a domestically produced car undergoes multiple stages from factory to consumer, including port arrival, container loading, sea freight, customs clearance, and land transportation. This process takes approximately 30-90 days, depending on distance, customs clearance speed, and shipping schedules.

Popular models often face immediate unavailability, and when factoring in factory production schedules, wait times are further extended.

Several traditional automakers opt for self-owned fleets and warehouses overseas to shorten delivery times. BYD reduced its European shipping cycle from 45 to around 30 days using eight self-operated ro-ro ships; Chery deployed inventory directly overseas through over 1,000 global dealers, enabling some models to be picked up in just 7-10 days.

BYD's self-owned ro-ro ship, 'Changsha'

Image source: BYD official website

New energy players, lacking the accumulated experience of established giants, are also exploring overseas factory construction, partially alleviating overseas delivery pressures and primarily aiming to provide local job opportunities to meet market access requirements in certain countries.

Xiaopeng G9L flagship SUV completes its first production trial in Europe

Image source: Xiaopeng Motors official website

While factories keep pace with production, information flow lags behind. "Europe's infrastructure and informatization level can't keep up, making information less transparent and accurate once the car leaves the factory," Shen told . "We're working hard to solve this, but it's indeed challenging."

This undoubtedly causes frustration for Xiaopeng's overseas users. Numerous studies in psychology and human-computer interaction (HCI) show that a well-designed progress bar can significantly reduce users' subjective anxiety during waiting and even make the wait feel 'faster' even if the actual time remains the same or increases.

"We're eager to make delivery times transparent, but we don't know when this feature will be available," Shen said.

Opacity Extends Beyond the Waiting Period

noticed on Reddit that some overseas consumers complained about dealers being unable to locate payment information after full payment and vehicle pickup, preventing the activation of Xiaopeng accounts and rendering many features like in-car data and navigation unusable.

"We're concerned that excessively long and opaque waiting times will drive users to competitors," Shen said.

Prolonged After-Sales: Challenges Extend Beyond Parts Waiting Times; Some Customers Were Even Overlooked

After-sales service often poses significant challenges in imported car consumption.

According to the released by the China Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) and horizontal data on industry insurance claim settlement cycles, Chinese consumers face a clear 'three-tier differentiation' in parts waiting times when repairing imported cars:

Conventional consumables/maintenance parts are usually in stock at 4S stores; commonly used body parts and some mechanical assemblies are mostly stored in domestic central warehouses, with an average arrival time of 7-15 days; niche parts/spare parts for older models require ordering from overseas factories, with waiting times typically ranging from 1-3 months.

Chinese manufacturers have learned from their foreign counterparts. Chery established a 12,000-square-meter spare parts warehouse in the Middle East, stocking over 20,000 parts; BYD invested in a spare parts storage center in Phnom Penh, Cambodia; SAIC relied on its owned 'Anji,' China's largest automotive logistics enterprise, to establish logistics firms in the Netherlands, UK, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Dubai, Mexico, and other countries.

Chery's Middle East spare parts warehouse

Image source: Qatarliving.com

"Xiaopeng is also building its after-sales system, but there's still a gap compared to the industry leaders," Shen told . "Taking a Nordic country market as an example, the Austrian factory regularly delivers spare parts to the country's central warehouse, which then distributes them to stores weekly. However, BYD does this 2-3 times a day."

Xiaopeng Motors' factory in Graz, Austria, in collaboration with Magna

Image source: PR Newswire

The gap in delivery frequency is indeed constrained by Xiaopeng's current overseas inventory levels, but consumers don't consider cost calculations from the company's perspective; they simply perceive Xiaopeng's after-sales service as slower than competitors.

"Some minor damages only require half a day of repair, but consumers wait two to three months for parts," Shen said.

Of course, waiting times will gradually decrease with increased inventory and after-sales investment, but Xiaopeng may need to overhaul its after-sales service system from scratch.

"A customer's car had a part damaged within the warranty period, so the store submitted a repair request. However, he waited several weeks without any contact," Shen recounted with a mix of amusement and frustration.

"It's said that quality issue repairs require dealers to provide extensive documentation to headquarters and undergo multiple approvals. Due to the prolonged approval process and misaligned internal responsibilities, the case was forgotten."

An employee from a Xiaopeng overseas dealership explained to the key reasons behind the current chaos in Xiaopeng's overseas after-sales system:

"Our overseas dealership group generally uses its own after-sales system for repair work order recording, rather than directly using Xiaopeng's system. However, the two systems aren't integrated, preventing automatic data entry into Xiaopeng's backend. This leads to information gaps, delays, and errors, not only indirectly prolonging wait times but also potentially causing cases like the forgotten repair to occur."

It's hard to imagine the impact on Xiaopeng's brand if such incidents occurred in the fiercely competitive domestic market.

Car purchases represent significant, infrequent expenditures, with most owners not frequently replacing their vehicles. According to PR Newswire, S&P Global Mobility data indicates that the average lifespan of small cars in the U.S. was 12.8 years in 2024, meaning most owners may not replace their vehicles for over a decade or longer.

Therefore, reputation during the lengthy after-sales cycle significantly influences a car brand's repurchase rate and market penetration.

New energy players, with relatively short histories, have ample experience in expanding market awareness. However, without strong internal capabilities to maintain a good reputation through excellent after-sales service throughout a vehicle's lifecycle, short-term sales surges are unlikely to translate into sustained, stable revenue.

Xiaopeng's reliance on local dealerships for overseas expansion means the company must lengthen approval processes to mitigate risks like fraud and dealer arbitrage during approvals. However, consumers should not bear the brunt of poor after-sales experiences as a result.

Xiaopeng has much to learn in optimizing its overseas after-sales system while controlling costs.

Localization Challenges: A Multitude of Tasks, with Company Resources Focused on Sales

Localization is a mandatory course for all companies expanding overseas, especially automotive firms.

Audi serves as a prime example.

In 1988, FAW Group and Audi signed the first luxury car technology transfer contract in Chinese automotive history, introducing the Audi 100 (code-named C3), which became synonymous with 'official cars' among the general public.

After establishing a premium brand image, Audi has consistently focused on advancing localization. In 1999, recognizing Chinese consumers' emphasis on rear-seat space and comfort, Audi lengthened the rear axle by 90mm when introducing the A6 (code-named C5), pioneering the '+L trend' in China's luxury car market and briefly becoming the leader among BBA (BMW, Benz, Audi).

"Xiaopeng has always valued listening to local consumers' voices during its overseas expansion," Shen said. "If we can localize effectively based on local consumer needs, Xiaopeng's reputation will undoubtedly improve."

For instance, in Israel, Xiaopeng's largest overseas single market, owners face exorbitant repair costs.

This stems from local government regulations—if repair costs exceed 50% of the vehicle's value, a total loss is advised; if they surpass 60%, mandatory scrapping is required.

On July 2, 2025, a local Xiaopeng P7 owner posted on the Israeli CARS·FORUM forum: "My P7 was damaged in an accident. Only the front bumper, fender, and front spoiler were broken, but the parts are extremely, extremely expensive. The insurance assessor advised me to declare a total loss."

Image source: CARS·FORUM

In response, he mentioned that the front bumper repair would cost 30,000 NIS, each headlight over 20,000 NIS, and total repair costs exceeding 100,000 NIS (currency unit: Israeli New Shekel).

Image source: CARS·FORUM

Ultimately, the owner opted for a total loss. According to the quote he uploaded, the insurance company's total loss assessment was 119,900 NIS, while the P7, with less than 1,000km on the odometer, was priced at only 215,900 NIS.

Image source: CARS·FORUM

The extent of the car's damage hardly justified a 'total loss' classification.

Image source: CARS·FORUM

"We've noticed that parts pricing might be too high but haven't made adjustments yet," Shen told . "In my view, if we don't adjust the local parts-to-vehicle price ratio (the ratio of automotive parts prices to the vehicle's selling price), insurance premiums won't decrease, and some insurers might even refuse coverage, affecting consumers' purchasing decisions."

Israel is Xiaopeng's largest overseas single market, with a high density of stores, but its after-sales repair strategy requires adjustment.

Image source: Xiaopeng Motors official website, Google Map

Such region-specific demands encompass a vehicle's entire lifecycle.

An industry expert specializing in Chinese automotive overseas expansion told : "Expanding overseas involves numerous regional issues, such as extreme cold in Nordic countries, Russia, and Canada; rodent infestations in France and Southeast Asia; and corrosion in coastal areas. Automakers are unlikely to anticipate these issues in domestic offices and must gather extensive information from frontline markets and promptly provide feedback and corrections."

Currently, Xiaopeng's localization process faces two main challenges:

First is the issue of headquarters' control. As a new brand, Xiaopeng's influence over dealers in various markets, especially Europe, is weak. Xiaopeng has recruited many talents with decades of experience in local automotive markets from luxury brands like BBA. However, these professionals often have differing views from headquarters' guidance and standards in their actual work.

Dealers may not comply, but Xiaopeng must bear the consequences of their operational errors.

In 2025, Xiaopeng Motors' general agent in Australia, True EV, faced a severe debt crisis, with a broken capital chain. Many Australian P7 owners who purchased through True EV reported that the promised 5,000 AUD cashback remained unfulfilled, leaving them with no recourse. Additionally, True EV's contracted local third-party repair networks in Australia (e.g., Ultra Tune) faced obstacles in providing free maintenance, parts replacement, and warranty claims to owners due to being owed hundreds of thousands of AUD in service fees by True EV.

True EV's official website still displays Xiaopeng's advertisements

Image source: True EV official website

Xiaopeng Motors had to pay the 5,000 AUD cashback to all affected owners and continue providing high-quality after-sales service.

The second issue concerns resource allocation. Chaoyang Capital Theory has learned that within Xiaopeng, due to the ambitious sales targets set for this year, the company has predominantly directed its resources towards the sales front, striving for as much global market expansion as possible. It's not that these issues are undervalued; rather, the company currently lacks the capacity to completely overhaul its overseas strategy from the ground up. Instead, it depends on the after-sales department to address cases on an individual basis, soothing customer concerns and resolving issues as they surface.

Based on past observations by Chaoyang Capital Theory, all overseas brands encounter challenges such as headquarters' control and resource allocation during their expansion phases. However, automotive brands have a narrower margin for error. Failing to swiftly adapt to localization can easily result in market rejection and reputational harm, ultimately compelling an exit from the local market. This scenario is exemplified by the Korean luxury automaker Genesis, which entered and exited the Chinese market three times.

Epilogue

During conversations with Shen, what struck Chaoyang Capital Theory most profoundly was the intricate blend of pride and helplessness in his words.

Pride emanated from the fact that Chinese new energy brands were finally displaying their cutting-edge technological capabilities on the streets of Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, reshaping the perception of 'Made in China' for overseas consumers. Helplessness arose from the awareness that Xiaopeng still had significant room for improvement.

Expanding overseas is a marathon with no shortcuts. While speed may elicit applause, the capacity to support vehicle owners throughout their vehicle's 'entire lifecycle' is paramount for Xiaopeng to successfully navigate the 'make-or-break' phase of its overseas expansion.

Source: Chaoyang Capital Theory