Rebirth 99 to become a car giant

While everyone was discussing Huabaoyan's affairs, another major event happened in China's automobile industry.

Yes, this big event saved C-NCAP half its life and diverted everyone’s attention.

On July 1, 2008, China's automobile industry began to implement the National III emission standards!

"Mr. Cao, it only took three years for China's motor vehicle emission standards to move from National II to National III."

"For passenger cars, they basically meet the National III standard, so there is no big problem."

"However, the technological improvement of commercial vehicles from National II to National III has undergone essential changes. It is necessary to change the mechanical fuel injection system to an electronic control system, which is a new upgrade of the engine and its emission control technology."

"It will be a test for both OEMs and parts suppliers."

As the general manager of Nanshan Engine, Cheng Tao is naturally very concerned about this change in regulations.

This is a major event that will affect the development of the industry.

Especially in the future, there will be a series of emission standards such as National IV, National V, and National VI. How to plan in advance and how to respond are all things that need to be considered in advance.

Otherwise, the day lilies will be cold if you don’t think about how to respond until the regulations have already been implemented.

In the past, Nanshan Engine did not particularly care about these things because any product of Nanshan Engine can easily meet the current emission standards.

Even the new emission standards can be met relatively easily.

However, as emission standards gradually increase, we need to carefully consider how to deal with them in the future.

"To be more specific, what big impact does this change in emission standards have on commercial vehicles?"

In his previous life, Cao Yang knew a lot about passenger cars, but he really didn't have much contact with commercial vehicles.

So even if Nanshan Engine was arranged to develop diesel engines, he was actually still very unfamiliar with the commercial vehicle situation.

There is no harm in taking this opportunity to have a good understanding of the development of domestic commercial vehicles.

"For light commercial vehicles, this change in emission standards is equivalent to an increase in costs of 10,000 to 30,000 yuan."

"For heavy-duty vehicles, the impact is even greater, equivalent to a cost increase of more than 20,000 to 70,000 yuan."

"Domestic consumers are very cost-sensitive, especially in the field of commercial vehicles."

"Why are those foreign commercial vehicles not developing smoothly in China?"

"Not to mention compared with the development of passenger cars, even compared with some special vehicles, it is far inferior."

"Cost is one of the very important factors, and some of China's special national conditions also have a great impact."

"For example, overloading and consumer concerns are all different from foreign market demands."

"This change in emission standards can be said to be good for China's commercial vehicle development in the first half of the year."

"In the first half of this year, commercial vehicles achieved sales of 1.5732 million units, a year-on-year increase of 21.98%, an increase of 3.46 percentage points higher than that of the entire industry."

"Among them, 380,000 heavy trucks were sold, a year-on-year increase of 48%."

"But this growth definitely comes from overdrafting the market in the second half of the year."

"It is conceivable that the growth rate of the commercial vehicle market in the second half of this year will definitely slow down significantly, or even decline year-on-year."

"And for our group, this is actually a good opportunity."

"A good opportunity to enter the commercial vehicle market."

After Cheng Tao explained this, Cao Yang probably understood what was going on.

Commercial vehicles!

It is indeed possible to do something in this field!

"What is the current layout of domestic commercial vehicle engines?"

When Cao Yang asked, Cheng Tao immediately prepared to take this opportunity to report to Cao Yang, so that the next development direction of Nanshan Engine could be clearer.

Until now, the engine market in the passenger car field has not had much room for expansion.

Even as independent brand car companies begin to use their own engines, Nanshan Engine's complete engine business may decline.

"Commercial vehicles mainly include passenger cars, trucks, semi-trailer tractors, incomplete passenger cars and incomplete trucks, totaling five categories."

"Due to the need for stronger horsepower, diesel engines are the main source of power for commercial vehicles."

"Judging from the situation in 2007, among diesel engine manufacturers, Yuchai Machinery Co., Ltd., Spring City Automobile Group, including Deutz and Xichai, Yunnei Power, Weichai Holding Group and Xifeng Chaoyang Diesel Engine Company ranked among the top sales Top five on the list.”

“The field with the highest threshold is the heavy truck field, which is also the field that Nanshan Engine wants to enter.”

"Judging from the sales of heavy-duty trucks, 2007 was also an interesting year."

"Heroes emerge from troubled times. The disruptive changes in China's heavy truck landscape in 2007 gave rise to four dazzling sparks in the competition between heavy truck companies."

"Last year, China National Heavy Duty Truck surpassed Xifeng Motors and Spring City Motor Group with sales of more than 100,000 vehicles, ranking first in the heavy truck industry."

"Shaanxi Automobile and Foton Auman have created miracles with an increase of nearly 100%."

"Hongyan entered into a joint venture with Modu Auto Iveco and became a pioneer in the new joint venture era of commercial vehicles."

"This series of dramatic events illustrates the fact that China's heavy-duty truck landscape underwent subversive changes in 2007."

"Under such circumstances, our Nanshan Engine's entry into the heavy truck market may lead to further changes in this pattern."

"Mr. Cao, don't look at these heavy truck companies. They are basically Chinese companies, but most of the engines they use are the technology of international engine giants."

Cheng Tao saw that Cao Yang was listening attentively and speaking with great interest.

The boss is interested in listening, which means that Nanshan Engine has a greater chance of developing in this direction in the future.

"For example, Weichai Power, their technology source is Steyr."

"Another example is Xifeng Group. A large part of their heavy truck engine technology comes from Cummins."

"Foton's is a MAN heavy-duty truck from Germany, and Spring City Motor Group refers to Mitsubishi engine technology."

"Such as this, although compared with the field of passenger car engines, these domestic heavy-duty truck companies are generally quite competitive."

"But they can form a completely different pattern from passenger cars, and it doesn't mean how advanced the technology is."

"As for the large-displacement diesel engines currently developed by Nanshan Engine, although they have not yet been officially mass-produced, their levels are higher than any domestic diesel engines. Compared with the mainstream heavy-duty truck engines in the world, they are not bad at all. .”

"The most critical thing is our engine. Most of the parts are made in China."

"Unlike the engines of other heavy truck companies, most of the core parts are produced by foreign-funded companies."

Cheng Tao obviously doesn't think that domestic heavy truck companies are really developing very well.

It's just that the competitive environment is different, so these people are given the opportunity to eat meat.

Even so, the meat was not cooked well.

"The situation in the domestic heavy truck industry is relatively complicated."

"Many car companies have their own engine factories. Even if the technology is not their own, they will not easily purchase engines from outside."

"And this industry is different from the passenger car industry. The players in it are basically state-owned enterprises. If we, a private enterprise, want to compete with them, we will definitely encounter various tangible and intangible obstacles."

"So I think the commercial vehicle business can and must be done, but the entry point must be found well."

"Especially in the field of complete vehicles, it is not suitable for us to produce directly ourselves in a short time. I think it is necessary to find a state-owned enterprise that is easier to communicate with and set up a joint venture. We will provide engines and some other key parts. Then the other party provides qualified shell resources, and everyone runs the company together.”

Cao Yang is not a person with rigid ideas.

Nanshan Group wants to be a sole proprietor, but for some of the following companies, it depends on the situation.

Products such as Nanshan engines, Nanshan gearboxes, and Nanshan auto parts must remain wholly owned.

But when it comes to heavy truck production, sole proprietorship is not necessarily a good thing.

You can use some methods with joint venture car companies, but if you use them with domestic heavy truck companies, they may not be very good.

When the time comes, people will directly mess with you in terms of some industry standards, policies and regulations, and they can make you lose your temper.

Domestic commercial vehicle companies, especially heavy truck companies, really have to be both referees and athletes to a certain extent.

Fortunately, everyone is like this, so there is no particularly unfair situation.

But as a newcomer, if Nanshan Group suddenly enters this market, the possibility of being attacked is very high.

Maybe everyone will be digging holes for it by then.

“When it comes to finding partners to set up a joint venture, there are quite a few options.”

"I think as long as the other party spreads the word about which company Nanshan Group wants to find to jointly establish a commercial vehicle company, there will be a lot of interest."

"Everyone will be interested in Spring City Automobile Group, Didu Automobile Group, Modu Automobile Group, Xifeng Automobile, and even Changan Automobile."

"However, if we establish a joint venture with these people, it is likely that the other party will be stronger by then."

"And, overall, the business atmosphere here in Yangcheng is relatively strong, and everyone is willing to use commercial means to solve problems when they encounter them."

"So I think we can consider cooperating with Yangcheng Automobile Group and let us work together to develop commercial vehicles."

After going around in a circle, Cheng Tao expressed his thoughts.

Cheng Tao, who has worked for companies such as Aerospace Mitsubishi, has some understanding of the work styles of companies in different regions of the country.

Although large companies such as Spring City Automobile Group and Xifeng Automobile Group have some policy and resource advantages, the development of enterprises still depends on people and technology.

Nanshan Group is confident in technology.

But in terms of people...

No matter how good you are, you can't stand up to a bunch of pig teammates holding you back every day.

"Yangcheng Automobile Group?"

"Yes, at the end of last year they formed Yangcheng Hino with Hino Motors to specialize in the production of heavy trucks. This shows that Yangcheng Motor Group is still very interested in heavy trucks."

Cheng Tao knew that Cao Yang also knew a lot about Yangcheng Automobile Group, so after briefly mentioning it, he didn't talk too much nonsense.

"You can try to communicate first to see if the other party is interested."

"If we can take this opportunity to make our heavy truck engines famous, it will also be very beneficial to the future development of Nanshan Engine."

"Even after the engine business is opened, the related parts business of various other heavy truck engines will also develop rapidly."

There is something special about the field of heavy trucks.

Not only do ordinary civilian vehicles have relevant needs, there are also many special needs for military vehicles.

For example, some "express" launch vehicles also need to use this technology.

Nanshan Group has special steel business, engine business, gearbox business, and parts business such as bearings and gears is doing so well.

Under such circumstances, it is really worth looking forward to what the future will look like.

It's unclear when the express launch vehicle will become a product of Nanshan Group.

Along with the news from Nanshan Group, some related parties also began to discuss the news.

"Mr. Zhang, as far as I know, this is the first time that Nanshan Group has taken the initiative to find other mainframe manufacturers to form a joint venture."

"I think we must seize this opportunity."

"Domestically, especially in the field of commercial vehicles, whether it is Spring City Motors, Xifeng Motors, Didu Motors or Modu Motors, they are much stronger than us."

"Some of the conditions they can offer may not be possible for us."

"Under this situation, if we don't act more proactively, this cooperation is likely to go south."

Zeng Guangda is obviously very active in forming a joint venture with Nanshan Group.

The more you stay in Yangcheng, the more you understand the strong strength of Nanshan Group.

In his opinion, other domestic automobile companies do not have as much technological accumulation as Nanshan Group.

Especially in terms of various patents, Nanshan Group is a crushing presence in China's automobile industry.

Other car companies have no intention of competing with Nanshan Group.

Just like an ordinary person, would you want to compete with the richest man to see who has more money?

has no meaning?

"Why is Nanshan Group suddenly interested in commercial vehicles?"

Zhang Jiaqi did not directly answer Zeng Guangda's words, but asked a rhetorical question first.

In his view, there must be a monster when something goes wrong.

He had to figure out the situation first before he could judge.

"That's how I see it."

Zeng Guangda thought for a while and began to express his opinions.

"As the largest engine company in China, Nanshan Engine must think about its future business expansion direction."

"But many car companies, including our company, are taking the road of independent engine research and development."

"This means that Nanshan Engine's business in the next few years is likely to reach a peak and then begin to decline."

"The market share of commercial vehicles in China is actually not low. If we can get orders in this growing market, it will definitely be very beneficial to the future of Nanshan Engine."

"Although the technology of commercial vehicles is very different from that of passenger cars, Nanshan Engine can easily handle difficult gasoline engines such as W12 and W16. I believe that the diesel engines they produce will not be inferior."

"And some domestic commercial vehicle companies with mid-range sales purchase their engines from outside."

"Nanshan Engine can completely capture this part of the market first, and then slowly expand its business."

"If Nanshan Engine's commercial vehicle engine products can be as good as passenger cars in the future, it will not be surprising to become China's largest commercial vehicle engine manufacturer in the future."

"At that time, Nanshan Engine was a complete giant."

"Of course, they themselves may also know that there will be many difficulties if they want to enter the field of commercial vehicle engines so quickly."

"In this case, it is a plan worth exploring to first find a partner to form a joint venture, use the engines they produce to assemble heavy trucks, and slowly increase sales."

"That's why they changed from normal and looked for other people to cooperate."

I have to say that Zeng Guangda’s analysis is still very reasonable.

If Cao Yang were here, everyone would probably applaud him.

"Do you think they found us first, or have they already contacted Spring City Automobile Group and other companies at the same time?"

"As far as I know, Nanshan Group has close relationships with many companies."

After figuring out the motives of the Nanshan Group, Zhang Jiaqi began to worry about gains and losses again.

He definitely wanted to finalize this matter.

But the initiative seems not to be in their hands.

"Shopping around, even if Nanshan Group has already made a decision, I think there is a possibility of discussing with several more companies."

"I will also try to find a way to inquire later to see if several other large heavy truck companies have received this contact from Nanshan Group."

Zeng Guangda is also curious about the answer to this question.

This will also affect the next negotiation strategy between Yangcheng Automobile Group and Nanshan Group.

When there is competition and when there is no competition, the strategies adopted during negotiations are definitely completely different.

"Well, it is indeed necessary to understand."

"However, we will also immediately form a joint venture negotiation working group internally, and I will personally serve as the group leader."

"Everyone comes up with a specific plan, and then takes the initiative to make an appointment with Nanshan Group. Let's discuss it first to see if there is a willingness to cooperate."

Zhang Jiaqi is also a vigorous and resolute person.

In terms of resources, Yangcheng Automobile cannot compare with those large central enterprises.

But compared to work efficiency, he is still very confident.

Originally, we did not talk to other OEMs about commercial vehicle cooperation projects, but due to Zeng Guangda's inquiries, we actually came up with something.

"Mr. Zhu, Nanshan Group wants to enter commercial vehicles and is planning to find someone to jointly produce heavy trucks."

"In the past two years, several heavy truck companies such as Huaxia Heavy Duty Truck and Shaanxi Automobile have suddenly emerged, which has brought huge pressure to us and Xifeng Heavy Truck."

"I think we can take the initiative to contact Nanshan Group to see if the other party has any ideas about cooperating with us?"

As the dean of the Spring City Automobile Group Research Institute, Chang Lei is also very well-informed.

At the same time, as a technical expert in the automotive industry, he also has a deep understanding of the technical level of Nanshan Group.

In his opinion, it would be a good thing if he could learn more about Nanshan Group's technologies through the joint venture factory.

"We already have the Jiefang brand. If we continue to seek a joint venture with Nanshan Group, it doesn't seem to be that meaningful, right?"

"Besides, if Nanshan Group is interested, Mr. Cao should take the initiative to come and discuss with me."

Zhu Zhengfeng feels that although the performance of Spring City Automobile Group's independent brands in passenger cars is not very good, it still has a few brushes in commercial vehicles.

In this case, as a newcomer, Nanshan Group is not ready to take the initiative to visit the dock, so there is no need for him to take the initiative to ask.

"This is indeed the truth, but I don't know if other companies will take action in advance."

"Nanshan Group always likes to bring some surprises to everyone. I heard that they are actually also researching a large-displacement diesel engine internally, and it is even about to reach mass production."

"In this case, it's hard to say what will happen next."

Chang Lei is obviously inclined to cooperate with Nanshan Group.

This kind of cooperation is definitely a win-win choice.

Despite the fact that the sales of the Jiefang brand under Spring City Automobile Group are still decent, the former leader can no longer maintain its number one position.

Even whether the top three positions can be secured is a question.

If we don’t introduce external forces to promote change at this time, we really don’t know what it will be like in the future.

This is a situation Chang Lei doesn't want to see.

"Building a new joint venture factory requires a lot of investment. It is better to give these funds directly to Jiefang Automobile so that they can better develop several models."

Zhu Zhengfeng's attitude was rare and firm this time.

In the past few years, during the cooperation with Nanshan Group, Zhu Zhengfeng felt that he had always been at a disadvantage.

Whether it is Dahongqi or the bulletproof version of Dahongqi that is being developed.

The initiative is all in the hands of Nanshan Group.

Now that a project has finally appeared in which he has the opportunity to take the initiative, he must make good use of it.

Otherwise, wouldn't Spring City Automobile Group's number one position in the industry have to be given to Nanshan Group in the future?

It’s not impossible to let it happen!

But you can’t give in while you’re in power!

"That……"

"That's okay!"

"I'll go make some inquiries first to see what the situation is like at Nanshan Group."

Chang Lei was very disappointed.

But Zhu Zhengfeng had already said that, and he knew that there was no point in explaining anything else.

If you talk too much, you might become annoying.

When the time comes when someone wears small shoes, then the gain outweighs the loss.

Anyway, as the dean of the institute, I am already quite old, so I will definitely be able to retire safely by then.

As for things after retirement, I won't have to worry about it.

After I die, who cares about the flood?