Welcome to the WeChat subscription number of “Sina Technology”: techsina
Editor | Yu Bin
Produced | Chaoqi.com ‘Yu see column’
Recently, Weilai held a press conference in Berlin, Germany. After entering Norway, it announced that it has entered the German, Dutch, Swedish and Danish markets. This time, it is only for rent and not for sale. Prices range from 1,249 euros (8,659 yuan) for ET5 to 1,669 euros (11,670 yuan) for EL7, and the long-term rental price will be cheaper.
Subscriptions are not pleasing to users
Regarding this new rental method, some European netizens said that it deprives users of the right to choose and purchase, which will make fans disagree.
Similarly, another US stock investor commented on Weilai’s Twitter official Weibo NIO: “We need to thoroughly explain why you only launched a subscription option in Europe. Has NIO conducted quantitative research on bullseye consumers to verify the so-called advisory committee Why not introduce the right to buy?” However, “Yu Jian Column” did not see the official reply from Weilai before the press release.
There is also a netizen who can’t believe that Weilai has switched to a subscription model in Europe. Compared with other companies, the cost of such a car is too high. And this comment has the highest number of likes in the comment area.
Some netizens think this is a disaster, and the overpriced subscription is not what they want. Weilai is crazy. It is recommended to ship the car back to China, in general the income in China seems to be much higher, isn’t it better.
At present, from the perspective of European users and US stock investors, Weilai’s subscription model of only renting and not selling seems to be widely criticized and questioned, because it seems to be a very bad move. Users who want to buy should have the option to buy. No one likes this model of renting and not selling. NIO is a company that claims to put customers first, and customer satisfaction is important, but it is very unsatisfactory.
Touching porcelain Audi, was forced to change its name
At present, NIO brings three models from China to Europe, the three-door ET7 (from October 16), the ET5 (from March 2023) and the SUV EL7 (from January 2023). NIO has been selling the car under the ES7 name since this summer, drawing attention and lawsuits from Audi. The Ingolstadt-based company sued NIO over the model names ES6 and ES8. These names may be confused with the Audi S6 and S8, whose trademark rights belong to Audi, which believes that NIO has infringed intellectual property rights and therefore filed a lawsuit, in addition to that, Audi also wants to take action against the ES7.
However, at the last moment of this conference, Weilai announced that it had compromised before the market launch in these countries. Co-founder Qin Lihong told us: “We didn’t want to wait for the outcome of a long-term legal dispute, and the outcome was uncertain, so we renamed our model model.” It is true that the rights to NIO’s European ES series had been applied for in 2016. However, they don’t think ES is pronounced like S in German. But without knowing the final result of the relevant departments, there is a certain risk of losing the case, and this risk is obviously too great for Nio.
After all, the hype and touches should go on forever. By early 2021, NIO was worth nearly $100 billion, not even $25 billion today. Electric vehicles have generally struggled in the stock market recently, and NIO hopes to convince investors.
In addition to brand touch porcelain, Weilai’s battery replacement station is the next big thing. According to the manufacturer, customers can not only charge the brand’s cars at the charging station, but also replace them within five minutes. Germany’s first station went into operation last week on the A8 in Zusmarshausen, according to Germany’s head Ralph Kranz.
NIO plans to install more than 20 more “power exchange stations” in Europe this year, and more than 120 by 2023. Weilai hopes to increase a certain number of “power exchange stations” compared with refueling, but the two factors of long charging time and quick battery replacement have a certain impact on the exchange station. To cover the high cost of building exchange stations, each of which could cost manufacturers nearly 500,000 euros (3.46 million yuan), NIO is open to partnerships.
However, there are various uncertainties in the future. Can Weilai have a future in Europe?
(Disclaimer: This article only represents the author’s point of view and does not represent the position of Sina.com.)
This article is reproduced from: http://finance.sina.com.cn/tech/csj/2022-10-10/doc-imqmmthc0301155.shtml
This site is for inclusion only, and the copyright belongs to the original author.