What's wrong with me being a rich man?

Chapter 543 Forced to Reveal the True Colors (5k)

Silicon Carbon Group officially entered the Chinese automotive market in the first quarter of 2015.

Whether it's domestic, joint venture, or foreign-owned, they have all been paying attention. Among them, the sales volume represented by the carbon silicon weekly ranking is undoubtedly the most important factor. But even so, many manufacturers are still taking a wait-and-see approach to the development of this car company located in Lingang.

As GAC Toyota, which reacted most strongly, said, boosting sales and promoting products is not an uncommon practice.

There have been car models operated in this way in the past, just like the Silicon Carbon Group, and there will certainly be many more in the future.

It's not a skill for silicon carbide to maintain sales for a week, it's not a skill to maintain sales for two weeks, it's not a skill to maintain sales for a month, two months or even a year, that's a real skill.

Many industry peers share a similar mindset: if the higher-ups want to promote silicon carbon, then let's just watch with a cold eye. Dark clouds can't block out the sun, and true gold fears no fire. When the tide goes out, we'll naturally see who's been swimming naked.

Compared to its industry peers in silicon carbide, the broader user base naturally feels less enthusiastic about this new car company.

With 1215 in one week and 1326 in another, totaling 2541 vehicles sold in half a month, generating over 7 million in revenue, this performance at this price point has caught the attention of automakers. However, the choice of just over two thousand car owners is naturally a drop in the ocean compared to the vast user base of the world's largest auto market.

He Shaosi is the kind of person who would just glance at any advertisement or news like that and would even scoff at keywords like "lifetime warranty." He thought, "If you say it's for life, then it's for life. If the company goes bankrupt, who can I turn to?"
He does plan to change cars, but he will not include domestic new car manufacturers in his shortlist.

However, He Shaosi only realized after noticing the comments in the electronic product reviews he often read that "Bai Xiaosheng Review" and the car manufacturing company were the same company behind them. After seeing Bai Xiaosheng's response, he became a little interested.

When are you guys going to test the car your boss built? I'm waiting to see your review before I decide!
—We applied before the car was released, and we applied several more times in the two weeks since the launch, but we were rejected every time. We may not be able to conduct a review in the short term, but we will definitely be able to get more in-depth materials when we have the opportunity to conduct a review in the future. Please look forward to it (helplessly).

He Shaosi was quite surprised. He then took some time after get off work to search for other people's reviews of this domestic car and found the latest video on Youku titled "In-depth review of the 'Kyushu Max' by Carbon Silicon Group" from "38 Car Review Center".

"38 Car Review Center" is a car-focused account that conducted car reviews and tests on Youku last year. After nearly a year of hard work, it has become quite well-known.

He Shaosi was eating while reviewing the food, and he had only taken two bites when he heard No. 38's opening remarks.

"This in-depth review might be the most in-depth one I've ever done since I started this account, but I'll talk about that later."

"The 'Kyushu Max' behind me, produced by Silicon Carbon Group, is a domestically produced six-seater SUV that has become quite famous in the automotive industry over the past two weeks. I borrowed it from a friend last week."

“When I was reviewing vehicles before, I was least willing to talk about the exterior design because I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But the rounded front face of this Kyushu, plus the front and rear wraparound light strips, was very unusual at first, but after driving it for a few days, I suddenly got used to it.”

"At least, this model has a very distinctive appearance."

"'Jiuzhou' has only been on the market for a little over half a month, but its price is not low. Combined with its performance, it aroused my curiosity. My first impression of it was... I don't know if what I'm saying will make you feel like I'm getting paid for advertising, but I really didn't."

The speaker gave a heads-up before putting forward his views on the 38th.

He Shaosi put down his chopsticks, waiting with great interest for the unconventional conclusion that would appear on the screen.

"Luxury feeling. My first impression when I sat here was luxury. This Max is black on the outside and brown on the inside. The feel of the leather, the materials I touch, I just feel like something is not right."

"Then, I added this, and everything went back to normal."

In the test video, when the camera switched to the driver's seat, the silicon carbide logo on the steering wheel was replaced with the Mercedes-Benz three-pointed star emblem.

He Shaosi was stunned for a moment, and then looked at the screen and interior that he had already glanced at several times, and suddenly found them much more pleasing to the eye.

I used to think those screens were just for show, but now I see them as a combination of technology and luxury!
He scrolled through the comments again and suddenly found that everyone felt the same way. They had never thought that a brand could have such a strong influence before, but now that they looked at it, wow, it really is quite deeply rooted.

"If this new car is produced by Mercedes-Benz, I think its quality is worthy of its brand. In other words, it is indeed a pleasant surprise for domestic cars."

"The Kyushu Max comes with a lot of features. What impressed me most while driving it was how agile this car, which is just over 5 meters long, is. This is thanks to its rear-wheel steering. I should mention that my review is based on the top-of-the-line Kyushu. I didn't get to borrow the standard version, but I'll post another review if I get the chance in the future."

"In fact, I also studied the differences between the two versions, and the standard Pro version provides more than enough features."

"New energy vehicles are not lacking in power, as BYD has proven in the past two years. However, in the past, these alone were not enough to gain more recognition for new energy vehicles. Jiuzhou's sales in the past half month have gotten off to a very good start."

He Shaosi wiped his mouth with a tissue, then scrolled back to find out what the "most in-depth" part of the review was. He quickly found what was shown in the multiple images.

The two right-side doors, which weren't shown in the video, both have deep damage marks.

Pointing to the wound, No. 38 said with a helpless expression, "The night before last, I parked my car in a roadside parking space. When I drove it the next day, I saw that the door had been hit by some car. When I checked the nearby surveillance footage, I found that the parking space was not covered by the camera angle."

His expression changed instantly, and he said with relief, "Fortunately, this Kyushu car has a built-in 'sentinel function' and captured the image of the car that caused the accident last night. It hit my car door with its rear end while reversing."

He Shaosi was surprised to see the unusual situation captured by the camera of Kyushu Max: a white sedan was reversing and collided with another vehicle. The owner of the car, whose face had been blurred by number 38, got out of the car to check the damage. He touched the damaged door of the Kyushu car, looked around, and then drove away.

"I rely on!!"

He Shaosi paused the video, looked at the comments section where people shared his surprise, and then resumed playback.

“We provided the video to the traffic police department yesterday, and just before filming today, we received news that the person had been found. At first, the person denied it, but after seeing the video sent to them, they had no choice but to admit it.”

"Although the damage was caused by someone else's accident, I still feel very sorry for my friend, especially since it was a brand new car."

"Regarding Kyushu's 'Sentinel Mode' feature, I can only say that I urge all automakers to consider adding such a feature!"

"As someone who uses a car regularly, I can say from my personal perspective that this is a groundbreaking feature."

The review included several photos of car doors that had been damaged or injured when the doors were opened, all of which were cars that had suffered from door-opening accidents.

He Shaosi is also a regular driver, and he encountered almost the same situation as No. 38, except that he couldn't find the party responsible for the accident and could only frustratingly repair his car himself.

He then rewound the video to catch up on the parts he had missed, and watched the entire review in a rush.

No matter how you film it, it's hard to truly appreciate the quality of the actual car. 38 also expressed this point in the video, and based on his pleasant surprise at domestically produced cars, he suggested that viewers visit a 4S store for a test drive.

After reading the review, He Shaosi thought about the praise given by "Car Review Center No. 38" and its opinion that it was "suitable for families but not for those who prioritize driving experience." Suddenly, he felt a little tempted. His family was considering having a second child, so perhaps it really was a good idea...

At the very least, you can go to a 4S store to take a look.

Consider it just a show of support.

He Shaosi developed an interest in the "Jiuzhou" car and began searching for related information in his spare time. He soon discovered a message from the founder of the Silicon Carbon Group.

There is a high level of discussion about the first silicon carbide vehicle on the Baixiaosheng Forum.

The combined market acceptance figures from the two weekly rankings show that, despite the stimulus of cash subsidies and free license plates in some cities, the actual price of at least 28 yuan is still an unprecedented performance for domestic brands.

How exactly was this performance achieved?

A heated discussion broke out on the Baixiaosheng Forum.

One answer caught everyone's attention: "Why are there so many questions? Without subsidies, the cost of a single bike is 30 yuan. If you want to sell it, you can sell it. Those who dare to take the plunge do have courage, but they also have foresight."

The cost per vehicle is 30?
Gross profit margin is less than 15%.

Many people on the forum didn't believe that the cost of the first silicon carbide vehicle could be so high, and some kept tagging the forum administrator, hoping he would give a clear answer.

Yu Xing has actually been tagged this time.

He came out to clarify: "It's not 30, how could it be 30? The cost of a single vehicle is 32." Forum users were incredulous.

Yu Xing explained: "The business model for carbon silicon at this stage is very simple. By taking advantage of subsidies, we can exchange quality for quantity. With quantity, we can use scale to reduce costs. With lower costs, we can maintain competitiveness. 'Jiuzhou's' current cost is indeed just over 32. It will decrease later if sales are good. Let's make friends."

Many people on the Baixiaosheng Forum were convinced by this logic.

The same applies to He Shaosi.

Although people in business seem to be shameless, this Mr. Yu seems to have a good reputation.

If the car really costs 32 yuan now, no matter what the car company plans, after I get the subsidy, I only need to pay a little over 28 yuan. Isn't that enjoying the opportunity to buy it "cheaply"?

He Shaosi had this idea, but he didn't really focus on just the "Jiuzhou" brand model. He then looked for other models that could also get subsidies with the same budget.

As a result... there really was only "Nine Provinces".

There is a BYD model that was launched in January with a similar price. However, He Shaosi always felt awkward about the homonym of BYD in his hometown and always thought that the models of BYD that appeared around him were low-end brands.

He also patiently watched the test videos of the "Tang", but the performance of the vehicle was quite different from his expectations.

On March 13, He Shaosi finally found some time to actually visit Carbon Silicon Kyushu.

Before even touching the car, my first impression was that there were so many people at the dealership.

After finally getting to touch the car, the sights and the feel of it gave me feedback that met or even exceeded my expectations.

"What kind of function does your sentry have?"

He Shaosi asked the silicon carbon employees his questions and then saw that many potential customers became more interested. It seemed that many people, like himself, had noticed this feature that could make people less annoyed at certain times.

Evaluation, search, test drive.

From being completely indifferent to being quite satisfied, the only problem lies in... the brand.

Is it worth taking a gamble on a brand that has no reputation at all?
As for the range-extended electric vehicles that many people are also concerned about, He Shaosi doesn't care that much. Even without electricity, they still use a 2.0T engine.

He Shaosi was still hesitant and frankly expressed his concerns to the account manager who was urging him to expedite the order.

"Mr. He, I need to make one point clear: our 2.0T engine does not actually participate in power driving; it takes on the function of generating electricity. This is different from traditional gasoline vehicles, so it is called a range extender."

"As for the brand, Silicon Carbon Group is indeed a new brand, but we are not without reputation. In the national SUV market starting at 20 yuan, we can be among the top three. Without being immodest, we can build up our reputation quickly, and the same goes for brand power."

"We still have launch benefits until the end of this month. After this month, we don't know if the launch benefits will be extended. Even if they are extended, some benefits may be reduced or offset against the small deposit cash discount."

俞兴在发布会上就明确了首发权益是从2月21日到3月底，包含终身无限流量、终身免费道路救援、价值2000元的电动踏板、价值2000元的车顶行李箱。

He Shaosi knew this, but a car was a big purchase, and he still needed to discuss it with his family before making a decision.

On March 15th, the third weekly ranking of Silicon Carbon Group was released, with delivery performance continuing its stable momentum. At the same time, 5 new directly operated stores were added in the Yangtze River Delta region, bringing the total to 1468 vehicles.

1215, 1326, 1468.

For three consecutive weeks, the Silicon Carbon Group's deliveries have been climbing, and its factory capacity is reportedly also steadily increasing.

He Shaosi took his wife and children with him for his second test drive. As a result, he almost placed an order for the car on the spot. The rich features of the Kyushu are very competitive in today's market.

So, the last question is: should I buy the Deepcool Pro or the Max?

He recently read a lot of reviews, and many people said that the top-of-the-line version is actually more cost-effective.

Besides browsing the recent surge in product reviews, He Shaosi has also developed a habit of frequently visiting the Baixiaosheng Forum. To his surprise, he found it to be quite active and a real mixed bag. He even witnessed two anonymous users arguing in a thread, only to discover after they removed their pseudonyms that they were actually superior and subordinate...

Even more interestingly, a rumor emerged on the forum regarding the launch of the first car by the Silicon Carbon Group.

—The competition in the automotive industry isn't as fierce as I imagined; it hasn't even forced Dr. Yu to reveal his true colors.

Seeing the excitement in these posts, He Shaosi then went to read more about the more meticulous way of doing things of Yu Xing, the founder of Silicon Carbon Group, and found that he was indeed much more stable after transitioning from the internet industry to the automotive industry.

On March 23, just as He Shaosi had made up his mind to order a car while the first-launch rights were still available, another fresh review video was released, which changed his mind and made him reconsider.

At 11:00 AM, car reviewer "Lao Xiang" uploaded a test video titled "Multiple results seriously inconsistent with the advertisement, Kyushu's quality is questionable" to multiple platforms such as Youku and Autohome.

Among these, the most eye-catching was the significant deviation in the results of the elk test that had been presented at the press conference.

Yu Xing announced a result of 75 km/h, calling it the world's first in the moose test for mid-to-large SUVs, compared to Jeep Grand Cherokee's 63.5 km/h, BMW X5M's 72 km/h, and so on.

However, Lao Xiang's test results showed that the "Jiuzhou" almost overturned at a speed of 57 km/h.

Falsified grades? Difficult to replicate?
This review quickly went viral and sparked widespread discussion about silicon carbon in Kyushu.

Silicon Carbon Group did not initially notice the evaluation, but only after it was disseminated the following day, and also received feedback from potential customers through frontline sales.

By evening, the questions raised about the evaluation, along with related discussions and impacts, were presented to Yu Xing.

Yu Xing glanced at the evaluation footage in the video and asked Cui Zhiyu, "Is there a problem?"

“There should be a problem, but this review didn’t show any in-car operation footage, and the external perspective was also cleverly cut off,” Cui Zhiyu said thoughtfully. “This car reviewer isn’t very big, but he’s started to gain some popularity these past few days.”

Yu Xing and Cui Zhiyu were very confident in the Kyushu deer test, because it had been tested repeatedly. Even if there were fluctuations, the error would not be this bad. As this "Old Xiang" said, this was not an error, but a serious discrepancy, which constituted deception.

"Of course, evaluations are allowed, both good and bad, but they must be based on facts. There can be different perspectives on the same facts, but you can't fabricate facts to find the angle you want," Yu Xing expressed his opinion, adding, "Our vehicle data agency is affiliated with Shanghai."

Cui Zhiyu nodded. This was an exploratory cooperation agreement reached between the company and Shanghai in January, specifically for storing real-time data on vehicle operation. The company kept one copy, and the official records were kept as well.

Yu Xing looked at Cui Zhiyu again and asked, "We hired a legal department, didn't we?"

Cui Zhiyu realized what was happening and quickly said, "Then let's first determine which car it is, then retrieve the data, and finally process it according to the procedure. We'll release the data as Uncle requested, so that we have a legitimate reason for doing so."

Yu Xing nodded slightly, almost certain that something had been done underhanded, and such verification was not complicated for new energy vehicles.

After Cui Zhiyu left, he reconsidered the matter and felt that these kinds of evaluations were still manipulated, but Xiao Hei wasn't really black, so distorting the facts was not acceptable.

Even those who are involved in illegal activities must adhere to basic principles.

Just like shorting a mountain peak requires solid evidence, not fabricated facts.

After pondering for a moment, Yu Xing called his secretary and instructed him, "Please compile a list of industry unspoken rules regarding markups on cars after registration. There's an industry event in two weeks before the Shanghai Auto Show, and I'd like to discuss it with you."

Zhang Yangxu's spirits lifted. He knew that his boss was never stingy with discussing matters with his peers. There were no cars to discuss before, but now that he had the weekly rankings in hand, he should take the moral high ground.

(End of this chapter)