Transporter, VAN, van, van, nanny car, MPV… This sub-category has had many names since its inception, and each name represents the user’s definition of its use. When the history of this category has gone through more than 40 years, various uses have been stripped from the core needs, what will be left in the end?
More wins than less, multi-purpose vehicles have been popular for 40 years
Before the 1980s, if you were looking for a vehicle that could carry both people and cargo, in addition to cars and vans, only the Transporter could meet this need.
One such model is the legendary Volkswagen T1, inspired by the Dutchman Ben Pon in 1947 with a flatbed truck in the Volkswagen factory and suggested to Volkswagen to try it, based on the Beetle in 1948 The platform has evolved, and the model has undergone six iterations over the following decades to become the Metroway that can be seen everywhere in Europe today.
With the success of the T1, the concept of the Transporter was gradually replaced by the Multi Purpose Vehicle. In 1984, the appearance of Renault Espace opened the curtain of European MPV models. It is very popular in Europe due to its extremely spacious interior and flexible seating layout.
At the same time, on the other side of the Pacific in the United States, Chrysler’s Voyager (Jielong) was also introduced to the market. Sales that year reached 210,000 units, surprising Ford and GM, who had no confidence in this segment at first. After only three years, the cumulative sales of Chrysler Voyager exceeded 1 million units. With the successive launch of the subsequent luxury models Town & Country and Grand Voyager (Grand Voyager), MPV models officially entered the competition of luxury cars. market. In the following decades, MPV models such as Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey have also become popular products that have been selling well for many years in the North American market.
In the 21st century, Toyota’s Alpha is known as a nanny car due to its popularity with entertainment stars in Hong Kong. Since Andy Lau, Faye Wong, Sammo Hung and others all like this kind of MPV model that can be used for dressing and resting on the set, Alpha has also become hard to find in mainland China, and even the price increase has reached 200,000 to 300,000.
However, the king of MPV sales in mainland China is Wuling Hongguang, which sells for less than 50,000 yuan. With the blessing of the “God of Famous Mountains in Autumn” network stalk, it has won for many years with the advantages of high quality and low price, and it can carry people and goods. China’s MPV sales champion, although the sales in 2021 has dropped to 25.5 units, no longer the 650,000 units in 2016, and still won the championship title. The reason is that when the MPV model is still the image of the official vehicle represented by the Buick GL8 in the eyes of the Chinese, Wuling has seized the needs of the micro-customer group for product loading capacity and comfort, and has provided users with a very low price. expected product.
Looking back at the more than 40-year history of MPV development, from the initial mixed load of passengers and goods, to the later official travel, and even the livelihood tool of micro-customers, this sub-category model has multi-purpose to meet the needs of multiple types of user groups. demand, which is why it has always maintained a strong vitality.
However, times have changed.
Less is more, learning to do subtraction is the way to develop MPV
The sales volume of China’s MPV market has dropped from nearly 2.5 million units at its peak in 2016 to 1.08 million units in 2021. Behind this seemingly shrinking market segment is the growing demand for mid-to-high-end MPV models.
Among the top 10 models with a sales volume of 2.5 million MPVs in 2016, only the Buick GL8 model sold for more than 150,000 yuan, and most of the remaining models were priced below 100,000 yuan, and most of them had strong tool attribute labels .
By 2021, although the full-year MPV sales will be less than 50% of that in 2016, although Wuling Hongguang ranks first, as the Passenger Association said: “The rapid growth of high-end/large MPV sales has driven the healthy development of MPVs. “Among the 31 provinces and cities across the country, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Zhejiang and Jiangsu accounted for more than 50% of mid-to-high-end products in MPV sales, and even more than 70% for the two cities of Beijing, Yu and Shanghai.
If the population structure is taken into account, with the country’s gradual increase in the policy of multiple children, the number of families with two or even three children has gradually increased. Normally, it is not surprising that MPV models with more seats and more space are valued by these families. In addition, the first-tier cities represented by Beijing have gradually begun to withdraw from low-end industries in recent years, which has also gradually reduced the demand for those who bought a car for less than 50,000 yuan to pull in and pull goods.
Mid-to-high-end MPVs that focus on meeting the core needs of a class of users have emerged. Among them, Lantu Dreamers are trying to rewrite the definition of Multi-Purpose Vehicles with Multi-Passenger Vehicles.
In Lantu’s view, high-end MPVs in the new era should be people-centric, provide each occupant with the most comfortable ride experience, provide drivers with a relaxed and pleasant driving experience, and provide enough room for family users. The space of a car, the comfort of an SUV, and the intelligence of a fuel vehicle have all become extremely striking shortcomings in the face of smart electric MPVs.
From the perspective of space, the length, width and height of Lantu Dreamer are 5315*1985*1820mm. Among the mainstream MPV products in the current market, only the long-wheelbase version of Mercedes-Benz V-class can be slightly better. However, if you consider that it is a pure electric model that is being developed, the Dreamer will be more comfortable in the design of the interior space because it has no engine and other components. The extra-long sliding rails in the second row create a space for a mobile living room. The trunk that can still accommodate four 24-inch suitcases in the state of seven people can only use the word “satisfaction” to describe its loading capacity.
In terms of comfort and luxury requirements, the all-aluminum independent suspension with front double wishbone and rear five-link is much more expensive than the McPherson suspension used in some MPV models in the industry, but the horizontal Stability and comfort stability at medium and high speeds are much stronger than the latter. But the suspension is not the only element that guarantees the comfort of the vehicle. The air suspension with the magic carpet function and the CDC system play a greater role. The Dreamer is equipped with these two configurations for the first time in the MPV model, and realizes the optimal driving experience under various road conditions by intelligently adjusting the damping of the shock absorber. In principle, the magic carpet function uses the ADAS system to predict the road conditions ahead in order to achieve adaptive buffering and shock absorption. It has to be said that the power of technology brings enough satisfaction and happiness to passengers at this moment.
As an MPV suitable for family users, what really impresses those parents may be the MPV mother-infant-class cockpit pioneered by Lantu Dreamers. Lantu insists on using the leading mother-infant-grade skin-friendly material – OEKO-TEX, which complies with the most authoritative international health certification standards for ecological textiles. The new car still has no odor after being exposed to the sun at 50°C for 8 hours. Lantu Dreamer also uses zero-pollution water-based paint and water-based damping acoustic materials, and invests huge costs in invisible places such as health and environmental protection, so that parents who worry every day whether their baby will be affected by various chemical volatiles Take a long breath.
From the point of view of bonus points, Dreamer is derived from ESSA’s native intelligent electric architecture. With the support of Qualcomm’s 8155 flagship chip and gigabit 5G in-vehicle network, it has 26 L2+ intelligent driving assistance functions and ECALL collision intelligent emergency call system, which is unique at the same level. Some automatic parking systems and remote control parking systems can eliminate the parking anxiety caused by users driving this MPV with a length of more than 5.3 meters. The same-level leading OTA upgrade function of the whole vehicle makes the vehicle always new and keeps the driving control fresh for a long time. feel. Lantu Dreamer’s car-machine system responds faster, bringing smoother voice interaction, navigation, and audio-visual entertainment experience.
It is not difficult to see that the Lantu Dreamer attaches great importance to every occupant in the car, and provides each member with the most comfortable driving experience with the most sincere configuration and technology. The attempt of Multi-Passenger Vehicle has just begun. Perhaps Lantu Dreamers can redefine the concept of MPV and find a unique development path for mid-to-high-end products in this segment.
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