There is a gold rush atmosphere in electromobility. That may also be due to increased CO2Limit values and government subsidies, but has its origin in China. The largest car market in the world is extremely dynamic and the manufacturers there benefit greatly from massive subsidies and a joint venture obligation for foreign car companies. This enabled them to catch up technically to such an extent that, with Aiways, a Chinese electric car start-up dares to venture into Europe for the first time.
The first attempt failed
The first attempt by a Chinese manufacturer in Germany went horribly wrong. The Jiangling Landwind was to become the spearhead of Chinese brands in Europe in 2005. But the unrivaled low-priced SUV experienced a crash test and thus an image debacle. Copies that made it onto the road rusted away at record speed.
In the automotive industry, this export attempt has had a lasting impact on the image of Chinese cars. Cheap, insecure, more improvised than developed. But times have changed. Every car manufacturer has to be represented in China if it wants to play a role globally. The German brands now generate around 40 percent of their sales in the People’s Republic. However, under strict conditions.
Knowledge transfer towards China
Foreign brands need a joint venture partner on site, which leads to an enormous transfer of knowledge to China. To this end, the Communist Party has been promoting so-called New Energy Vehicles (NEV) for years. The manufacturers have to push a certain amount of it into the market. The NEV category includes plug-in hybrids, hydrogen models and battery-electric cars. The most important requirement, however, is that these vehicles must be produced in China.
As for Europe, however, manufacturers from China are very cautious. Nobody wants loud marketing in a saturated market with demanding customers and then crashing into failure. However, electromobility is making companies bolder. Many have already exported small numbers to Norway. As a test balloon, so to speak. But Aiways wants more. The brand was founded in 2017 and now has its own branch in Munich – including a small research and development department.
Electric is easier than combustion technology
The fact that electromobility in general, and that in China in particular, works very differently than the classic combustion industry is already shown by the short period of time. Less than two years passed between the official founding of the company and the production of the first cars. A sprint that would not have been possible with an internal combustion engine. But during that time the brand developed and produced the Aiways U5.
It is a battery-electric SUV that, minus government subsidies, can be had for just under 30,000 euros. At 4.68 meters, it is ten centimeters longer than an Audi Q4 e-tron (from 41,900 euros) and five centimeters shorter than a BMW iX3 (from 67,300 euros). So dimensioned so that the car fits a large number of customers.
Crumbling target groups
That is exactly what is so exciting about electromobility, explains the managing director at Aiways, Alexander Klose, in an interview with heise / Autos. With combustion engines, there would be a car for every imaginable customer group. Designers, developers and the marketing department would have a supposed solution for every age and income group, for every life situation and every area of application. But the target groups would crumble because a customer base is formed who just wants to drive electrically – the vehicle class plays a subordinate role here.
In view of this constellation, Aiways tries to remain as flexible as possible and relies on the MAS platform for production. The abbreviation stands for “More Adaptable Structure” and means that the size of the vehicles can be easily adjusted. New models should appear correspondingly quickly. The U5 is to be followed by the U6 in 2022. An SUV with a slightly sportier look. The U7 study can already be admired in pictures. The aim is to bring a new model onto the market every year.
A new car every year
Ambitious when you consider that this brand has only existed for four years. Aiways got off the starting blocks so quickly because the brand acquired 50 percent of Jiangling Motors when it was founded (keyword: Landwind). This not only gave the company a production line, but also a license to build electric cars. But the construct was only an emergency solution from the start. Aiways now has its own production plant with a total annual capacity of 300,000 pieces.
Although Aiways does not communicate any sales figures, it does claim that it already has a four-digit number of U5 on the street in Europe. The company plans to sell a five-digit number in 2022. Which could work just because of the sporting expansion policy. The U5 can already be bought in Germany, France, Holland, Belgium, Denmark and Israel. Austria, Switzerland, Portugal and Spain are to be added very quickly.
Maintenance interval 100,000 kilometers
Aiways does without a classic dealer and workshop network. With the advent of electromobility, Klose believes the car manufacturers are in a battle of retreat in this business area. The U5 has a maintenance interval of 100,000 kilometers. Electric cars are much less complicated to build and require less service, argues the manufacturer. Aiways therefore cooperates with the electronics store Euronics for sales, while ATU is responsible for maintenance and repairs.
Convince with Chinese values
With the U5, Aiways is not even trying to replicate a European car, but wants to convince customers with Chinese values. This means, for example, an enormous amount of space on the rear seat bench. Because many Chinese car owners do not drive themselves, but have a chauffeur to do it. But that also means that the cockpit has been completely digitalized. Every single function – opening the tailgate, closing windows, switching on lights or changing the color – must be controlled via the central on-board computer. That takes some getting used to. After all, often used functions can be operated by quick selection and at least for the windows and exterior mirrors there are additional classic buttons.