Rebirth 99 to become a car giant

"Vondel, according to the data reported by our various regions in the past week, the sales of the Volkswagen brand plummeted by 62%, and the Audi brand fell by 51%."

"We cannot allow this situation to continue."

As the first vice president of Spring City Volkswagen, Tariq is a German stationed by Volkswagen.

Seeing the situation getting worse after the 3.15 party was exposed, he was worried.

Originally, he thought that this party was like a gust of wind. Spring City Public had already officially announced that they would be recalled, so this matter was considered a thing of the past.

Who knew that the data fed back by the terminal was very different.

"There are too many posts against DSG on the entire Internet now, and the people we are looking for simply can't handle them."

"If this pace continues, future models using DSG gearboxes will be affected."

"Should we consider re-introducing some models with AT transmission models?"

Vondel has been thinking about future countermeasures these days.

Volkswagen has only developed the DSG gearbox itself. If you want to use AT, whether it is 6AT or 8AT, you need to buy it from other companies.

The most popular choices on the market are ZF, Aisin and Nanshan transmissions.

How to choose definitely requires careful consideration.

"Although this is not in line with the headquarters' strategy, DSG's problems are not unique to China."

"Last year, the company recalled a batch of models equipped with DSG in the United States."

"The company's original idea was to systematically promote self-developed DSG to improve cost competitiveness and avoid the supply chain being controlled by other suppliers."

"But I think if you include the cost of the recall, there is actually not much difference between the cost of the self-developed DSG and the outsourced 6AT."

"As for supply chain control, as long as we are still using some DSG gearboxes and do not purchase all 6AT and 8AT from one supplier, there is actually no supply chain risk."

"After all, on one of our vehicles, there are actually many parts other than the gearbox that are supplied by only one or two suppliers."

"For example, ESP and high-pressure fuel pumps, as well as fuel pumps and fuel injectors, are supplied by Bosch or Continental and are not produced by ourselves."

Tariq clearly supports Vondel's views.

Develop some models that use 6AT or 8AT. Don't put all your money on the DSG gearbox, otherwise it will be difficult to deal with if something goes wrong.

Volkswagen has experience in developing a large number of 6ATs before. For R\u0026D personnel, it is not very difficult to add 6AT models again.

If it goes quickly, some models will be able to launch 6AT versions within this year.

Even if it is a little slower, it will definitely be possible next year.

This is very important for the long-term development of Spring City Volkswagen in China.

As for whether this will have an impact on the operation of the DSG factory, that is not something Tariq wants to worry about.

He is just a member of Spring City Volkswagen, and Vondel needs to be responsible for the overall situation of Volkswagen China.

"I also agree to launch versions with AT gearboxes on various hot-selling models as soon as possible, otherwise it will be too passive."

"In the past, TSI+DSG was a representative of advanced power, but now everyone thinks that DSG is a representative of backward technology and frequent quality problems."

"On the Internet, models using DSG are even described as garbage models, saying that the OEM does not consider the feelings of consumers in order to reduce costs."

"Even if it uses a CVT gearbox, no one is willing to have a DSG."

"Faced with this situation, I think it can also be considered to use CVT gearboxes for some small-displacement models."

"After all, many models of Toyota, Honda and Nissan now use CVT transmissions."

Strauss's mileage is exactly the same as Tarik's.

The decline in sales is a situation that no one wants to see, but it is an objective situation that we are facing now.

If we don't make some real changes, this situation will continue.

This is very detrimental to the development of Volkswagen and Audi in China.

Both generals held this view, and Vondel himself also had this idea, so Volkswagen China quickly reported this content to the headquarters.

Since the DSG gearbox has brought many problems to Volkswagen in recent years, so many problems have appeared in the most profitable Chinese market.

Therefore, Volkswagen's headquarters is unusually more efficient this time and has agreed to consider adding 6AT, 8AT or even 10AT gearbox versions to some models.

After receiving the confirmation results from the headquarters, Volkswagen China took action immediately.

"Tarik, I suggest that if you want to use 6AT, 8AT or 10AT, or CVT, it is best to buy it from Nanshan Transmission. This will be more beneficial to our company's recovery of sales."

Hu Yong, general manager of Spring City Volkswagen, is obviously very experienced in the domestic market situation. He himself is a person with a sales background.

Before, he was not particularly optimistic about Volkswagen moving towards DSG. However, this is Volkswagen's global strategy and it is impossible for him to oppose it.

Now that Volkswagen China is actively communicating with the joint venture company to introduce AT models, they will naturally not miss this good opportunity.

"Nanshan gearbox?"

Tariq's mood was a bit complicated.

He is not stupid, and he can naturally understand why Hu Yong recommended Nanshan gearbox.

It's not that Hu Yong has anything to do with Nanshan Gearbox, nor is it that Nanshan Gearbox has brought any benefits to Hu Yong.

But the most recognized gearbox in China is the Nanshan gearbox.

Another most critical thing is that after using the Nanshan gearbox, the relationship with Nanshan Automobile Group can basically be eased a lot.

Correspondingly, Autohome will not try their best to hack you.

In recent years, among various automotive media in China, Autohome has reported the most negative news about Volkswagen.

Tariq also knew a little bit about the reason behind it.

But there are some things that cannot be put on the table.

If it were a tit-for-tat confrontation, it would be a quarrel.

"Yes, not to mention that the reputation of Nanshan gearbox is very good now, and its price is also lower than ZF's gearbox of the same level."

"As for Aisin gearboxes, although the price has dropped to a level similar to that of Nanshan gearboxes."

"But Aisin is an industry owned by Toyota Motor, and the reputation of Japanese car companies in China has not been very good in the past two years."

"I think Volkswagen can consider using Aisin's transmission in ATs launched in the United States or other markets, but in China it is better to use Nanshan transmissions."

"In this way, it won't be said that all ATs around the world are purchased from Nanshan Transmission, which can better dispel some people's doubts."

Hu Yong really wanted to promote this matter, so his analysis was very pertinent.

The two people communicated for a while and finally reached an agreement.

Soon, Xu Liang, the director of Spring City Volkswagen Purchasing Department, contacted Zeng Tingting.

"Minister Xu, I haven't congratulated you on your promotion yet. Have you been busy lately?"

Zeng Tingting and Xu Liang are also old acquaintances.

After so many years, Xu Liang was promoted from an ordinary employee in the Spring City Volkswagen Purchasing Department to the director of the Purchasing Department.

This speed is definitely not slow.

However, Spring City Volkswagen's current sales are not good, and the purchasing department must be under considerable pressure.

No matter which car company it is, when sales are not good, they will either blame sales for not selling cars, or they will blame the purchase cost for being too high.

Few people criticize R\u0026D for not developing a car that looks good, sells well and is cheap.

In fact, whether a car sells well or not is 80% determined by research and development.

Whether the cost of a car is high or low, in fact, the biggest limitation comes from research and development.

There is a saying in the automotive industry that cost is by design.

If you have to design a certain part in a weird shape, its cost will not be low.

For a certain part, you can obviously choose the lowest price among four competing companies. When you develop it, you have to specify a certain manufacturer on the drawing.

In this case, as long as the manufacturer's sales brain is not corrupted, it is impossible for them to quote a very low price for the OEM's purchase.

"Hey, don't mention it. Mr. Zeng knows the situation best in Spring City."

"Fortunately, Volkswagen has figured it out this time and finally plans to continue launching AT models."

"Our internal Chinese side strongly recommends using the AT gearbox produced by Nanshan Transmission, so I thought it would be better to talk to you first, and then let the people below do the detailed docking."

Xu Liang didn't beat around the bush.

We have known each other for more than ten years, so we all know each other well.

At the beginning, when Zeng Tingting went to Spring City, she would ask Xu Liang to have dinner with her from time to time.

"All products of our Nanshan gearbox have withstood the test of the market, and the cost is also very competitive after years of evolution."

"Minister Xu, I believe that Spring City Volkswagen will definitely not regret it if it chooses to cooperate with Nanshan Transmission."

Zeng Tingting's confidence in Nanshan's gearbox is really not just a boast.

The three major components of automobiles have always been a major problem that has plagued China's independent brands.

But since the establishment of Nanshan Engine and Nanshan Gearbox, this situation has greatly improved.

Even in terms of chassis, due to the emergence of Nanshan Auto Parts and the entry of a large number of foreign chassis manufacturers, the level of the entire industry has improved a lot.

Therefore, for current independent brand car companies, the core parts are really not much worse than those of joint venture car companies.

At most, in order to better reduce costs in some non-core parts, there may be some gaps in materials and part accuracy.

But this also depends on the model.

For independent brands such as Nanshan Hongqi that want to compete with joint venture car companies, all aspects of materials used are benchmarked against joint venture car companies, and they are really no worse than others.

"Well, I think so too. At present, our two general managers have agreed on this general direction."

"I also hope that Mr. Zeng can give me more support."

Xu Liang and Zeng Tingting will definitely not discuss too many details on the phone.

We are all busy people. After deciding on the general direction, just let the people below have a good communication.

After Zeng Tingting finished communicating with Xu Liang, she immediately went to find Cao Yang.

“Is Volkswagen going to consider using our gearbox?”

Cao Yang looked at Zeng Tingting a little surprised.

He didn't expect that this time China Channel's 3.15 would bring such benefits to Nanshan Automobile Group.

Despite Volkswagen's limited sales growth, it still sold more than one million vehicles in China a year.

As long as 500,000 vehicles use Nanshan gearbox products, it will be a big order.

After all, normally, a large-scale gearbox factory has a production capacity of about 1 million vehicles.

This can fill half the factory.

"Yes, Spring City Volkswagen's Purchasing Department Director Xu Liang has officially communicated with me. I estimate that Modu Volkswagen will take action soon."

"These arrangements are made by Volkswagen China, and even the Volkswagen headquarters has agreed."

Zeng Tingting was naturally very happy about this change.

Although currently only Volkswagen China will use Nanshan gearboxes, it is not ruled out that some of them can be exported in the future.

The relationship between enterprises is not just about competition. It is not surprising to engage in cooperation when appropriate.

It is not uncommon for the world's major automobile companies to come up with some surprising cooperation cases from time to time.

"Whether it's Volkswagen, Toyota, or Honda, it's unrealistic to completely drive them out of the Chinese market."

"There are always some die-hard fans who are willing to buy their cars."

"So the best way is to compress their living space so that their sales cannot increase after they maintain a certain level."

"At present, domestic independent brands are still doing well in this regard."

"We can cooperate with Volkswagen in whatever way we want in the future. There is no need to give special bad business conditions, and there is no need to give special discounts."

"In business, it is enough for everyone to achieve a win-win situation."

Cao Yang set the tone for this cooperation, which made Zeng Tingting and the others more aware of the appropriateness of what to do next.

As for the specific details, Cao Yang will definitely not be personally involved.

Now it's not like when Nanshan Transmission just started selling to international automobile giants, Cao Yang still needed to fly to Detroit in person to meet with the purchasing directors of Ford Motor and General Motors to discuss specific cooperation projects.

"Yeah, that's what I thought too."

"Volkswagen has extended an olive branch to us this time."

"If there are orders for about 500,000 gearboxes throughout the year, that would be sales worth several billion."

"It is estimated that they also hope that through this cooperation, they can ease the relationship between the two parties."

"However, we may not be suitable for Autohome to report Volkswagen's bad news in a large space in the future."

Zeng Tingting directly pointed out the hidden content behind this cooperation.

Otherwise, it will be difficult for Autohome to deal with it.

"With Volkswagen's current situation, even if we don't deal with them specifically, other companies will do so."

"In the future, we will allow Autohome to report news on the entire automotive industry from a relatively impartial perspective, which will be beneficial to enhancing the authority of Autohome."

Cao Yang naturally understood what Zeng Tingting meant, and he did not object.

Soon, Spring City Volkswagen and Modou Volkswagen arranged personnel to connect with Nanshan Transmission and began to discuss specific follow-up cooperation matters.

Since Nanshan's gearbox products are all mass-produced products, the most they can do is make some adjustments to Volkswagen's engine output parameters.

So the parts preparation aspect is very quick.

On the contrary, it will take several months for Volkswagen to confirm some internal compatibility or modify peripheral parts.

However, overall, the progress of this project is still very smooth.

At this time, another event with huge impact occurred in China's automobile industry.

Venus Technology's Starlink satellite system has adopted Spring City Automobile Group, Xifeng Automobile Group, Changan Automobile Group, Modu Automobile Group, Great Wall Motors, BYD Automobile, Chery Automobile, plus Yangcheng Automobile Group and Didu Automobile Group, a total of 9 domestic mainstream companies Investments from automotive groups.

If Geely Auto is also included, there are 10 car companies.

However, among the overall shares, the shares of automobile companies can only account for 10%.

So in the end, Venus Technology, China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom, Warwick and Geely Automobile will all have to give up part of their shares.

Among them, Geely Automobile gave up the most.

After all, if other car companies add up to less than 6%, and Geely has a little over 4.0%, there will definitely be public outrage.

In the end, Geely Auto was forced to cash out some of its funds.

To a certain extent, Geely Automobile can be regarded as the first winner of this investment.

After all, all the funds they previously invested have been recovered in this financing, and they still have 1.9% of the shares in the end.

Among them, 9 car companies each contributed 0.9%.

After the news was officially announced, it immediately caused a huge shock in the automotive industry.

Because major car companies have invested in Venus's Starlink satellite system, and stated that subsequent car systems will be linked to the Starlink satellite system, enabling free Internet access in the car, turning the car into a mobile phone. mobile phone.

After this gimmick came out, the impact was definitely huge.

"Melgen, do you think the connection between the car computer system and the Starlink system developed by China will have any big impact on the future automobile industry?"

As the CEO of Ford Motor Company, Mulally felt a vague sense of crisis.

Ford Motor Co. can't keep up with the way China's automobile industry plays this game.

The topic of Starlink has been quite popular recently. He also knows that Space Exploration Technology Company is developing its own Starlink. It is said that Boeing also has plans to develop its own Starlink.

But in his opinion, Starlink has just started, and the final practical application should not be that fast.

Even if it is really put into actual use, it should first be used in places where various communication networks cannot be connected, such as merchant ships and outdoor expeditions.

However, China has come up with arrangements for using it on automobile systems.

When a car is driving in most areas, mobile signals can cover it. In theory, it does not require Starlink support.

However, it cannot be ruled out that some cars will go to relatively remote places or where the signal is not good.

At this time, Starlink comes into play.

If the car-machine systems of all car brands cannot connect to signals in the wilderness, then it doesn't matter.

But part of it is okay and part of it is not, which is very serious.

"Nanshan Automobile Group has come up with many new tricks in recent years."

"If this matter has nothing to do with them, actually I wouldn't be too worried."

"But this time it happened that it was actually done by a brother company of Nanshan Automobile Group, and it also involved China's major automobile manufacturers and communication operators."

"So in the end, it is very likely that they will actually make some noise about this matter."

Melgen thought about this matter seriously and felt that it still needed to be taken seriously.

Lest Ford be caught off guard.

In recent years, Ford Motor has attached great importance to the Chinese automobile market.

They are also thinking about whether they can increase China's car sales to the level of 1 million vehicles.

To this end, they have invested a lot of resources.

"You are right, this matter may really bring some bad effects to us."

"However, although we do not have Starlink shares in Venus Technology, the vehicle machine system produced by Nanshan Auto Parts will eventually be sold to external parties, right?"

Mulally thought of a countermeasure in the future, that is, if there is a real need, purchase the vehicle system from Nanshan Auto Parts.

At that time, Ford vehicles will also be able to enjoy Starlink services.

I'm just not sure whether Nanshan Auto Parts will launch different vehicle systems for different customers.

In other words, the same car-machine system will be sold at different prices to different customers.

"Theoretically it's definitely possible."

"They have no reason to abandon the orders they have received."

Although Melgen is in sales, he is not responsible for purchasing.

But he could not think of a reason why Nanshan Auto Parts would refuse to supply vehicle systems to other car companies.

It even feels that Venus Technology’s Starlink system is developed for a large part to serve the vehicle-machine system produced by Nanshan Auto Parts.

After all, as long as new cars can be equipped with their in-car systems, the market will be huge.

Not to mention the world, only half of China's 30 million cars in the future are equipped with it, and its annual turnover has reached more than 100 billion.

After all, this car-machine system can be sold for more than 10,000 yuan a set. It’s not an exaggeration at all, right?

Even after adding the function of autonomous driving, it is not an exaggeration to sell the entire system and related parts for 20,000 to 30,000 yuan a set.

By then, Nanshan Auto Parts will definitely be the largest auto parts company in the world.

Even the scale of Nanshan Automobile Group will create a new historical height.

This situation makes even Mulally jealous when he sees it.

What's more, their car-machine systems may still be exported by then.

Even though China's car sales are only about 30 million, if exports start up, the actual production numbers will be exaggerated.

No matter which angle you consider it, the news caused by Venus Technology’s Starlink system has shocked the global automotive industry.

Because in this field, it will really be possible to use the Starlink satellite system on a large scale by then.

Among the major car companies in the world, no one has plans to connect their car-machine systems with the Starlink satellite system.

Invisibly, they are lagging behind the Chinese automobile industry.

Many people will definitely not be able to accept this situation.