The car giant started by marrying the daughter of the king

Chapter 441: The pioneer of urban SUV, Highlander officially rolls off the assembly line

Jiang Hui is not particularly concerned about how other domestic factories will respond to the development of the BMW Group.

At this stage, BMW Group’s competitors are not local Chinese companies, but international automobile giants.

However, he still has to respond to some of the demands from Hongqi BMW.

"It is not impossible to start the development of Hongqi A4."

"But now we have three cars under development, and I intend to further develop Land Rover into a large 7-seater city SUV and a mid-size city SUV."

"By then, we will have three city SUVs on the market at the same time. Together with the current hardcore SUV Land Rover G series, our product line will be more mature."

In Jiang Hui's opinion, a brand with about 5 models is basically enough for its development in the next ten years.

Land Rover currently has two models in mass production, one under development, and two more models to completely finalize the development pattern of Land Rover.

Then the new project can be placed on Mercedes-Benz and Chitu Auto.

By then, Mercedes-Benz will have two sedans and will develop an additional flagship high-end sedan, forming a combination of three sedans: high, medium and low.

Then we will develop an MPV model to complement each other. Using these four models will be enough to last for more than ten years.

As for Chitu Automobile, in addition to the four-door coupe it is currently developing, the next step will be to wait until Nanshan Engine makes a breakthrough in large-displacement engine technology before developing a real super sports car to improve its data.

This will establish the high-end brand image of Chitu Automobile.

The next step is to develop a mid-range sports car similar to the Porsche 911 to enhance its influence in the sports car market.

In the short term, having three models to conquer the world is enough.

After all, it is not popular for high-end car models to come out with a bunch of different products.

As for BMW, Jiang Hui stayed behind.

Now it is maintained by the BMW Light. If necessary, it can develop an entry-level model similar to the Honda Fit in the future, taking a different path from other brands.

However, this means that the BMW Group's R&D resources will be tight, and not much time can be spared for Hongqi BMW.

"Mr. Jiang, maybe we can agree with FAW to start the development of Hongqi A4, but we can put the mass production of this car in 1991."

"This is also the normal development speed in the industry and will not have a particularly big impact on the development of our other projects."

Hou Guoming proposed a compromise plan based on the demands of Hongqi BMW and the actual situation of the group.

Although he has been engaged in technology all his life, now as the director of the BMW Group's R&D center, he has become much more flexible in his interpersonal relationships.

When faced with the demands of Hongqi and BMW, there is no need to simply say "we can't respond".

"Okay, then follow the direction you mentioned."

"As for the exterior design of the Hongqi A4, I'll give it to you later."

Jiang Hui is still quite looking forward to the future sales of Hongqi BMW in the domestic market.

With the two giants, FAW and BMW Group, working together, it is obviously not a problem for them to conquer the domestic market.

Although private enterprises have developed rapidly in recent years, the mainstream car-buying customers are still various government agencies and state-owned enterprises.

As for these units, FAW has certain capabilities to exert its influence.

BMW Group is just joining in the ride, there is no need to refuse.

Besides, if the BMW Group can lead a new car company like Hongqi BMW to develop the Hongqi brand, the potential other benefits will also be very considerable.

When doing business anywhere, you cannot simply look at how much money you make, you also have to consider other things at the same time.

"The development of the Land Rover urban SUV has been completed and the test results of the two prototype vehicles have come out."

"The conditions for large-scale mass production are now in place."

Hou Guoming knew that Jiang Hui attached great importance to the urban SUV project, and even the strange name "Highlander" was given by Jiang Hui himself.

So I would like to take this opportunity to report on the progress of the R&D center.

"The sales volume of the Highlander will not be less than that of the Land Rover G Series in the future, and its development potential is even greater."

"This time the new car comes off the production line, I have asked the sales department to make arrangements and prepare to make the event bigger."

"GM will also arrange for someone to attend the event."

Regardless of the actual situation, Jiang Hui is prepared to give the title of "the world's first urban SUV" to Highlander.

This will definitely be very beneficial for the promotion of Highlander.

Medium and large SUVs are the darlings of the North American market. Although General Motors has some doubts about whether the urban SUV with a load-bearing body can meet the market demand, it is also full of expectations.

……

"Leader, Mr. Jiang's father-in-law has now been officially appointed as the head of the newly reorganized Mechanical and Electronic Industry Department."

"He will also attend the mass production roll-off ceremony of the Highlander, the world's first urban SUV, at Land Rover next week."

"Land Rover also invited people from relevant departments such as the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Lingnan Province and Customs to participate in the event."

Yao Yiming immediately reported the arrangements at Land Rover to Liu Tianwu.

Thanks to his outstanding achievements in the past, Liu Tianwu has become the second-in-command in Shenzhen this year, and is officially in charge of economic development work.

Under such circumstances, the development of the BMW Group naturally attracted more attention and importance from Liu Tianwu.

“The world’s first urban SUV?”

"It looks like Land Rover is planning to make a big splash this time."

Liu Tianwu had long known that Land Rover had a new SUV under development, but Jiang Hui had not told him much about the details.

There would have been even less talk about publicity stunts like this before.

"Yes, I heard that Land Rover's current plan is to increase the annual production of this SUV to 20 units, and to challenge the high goal of 30 units."

"If this can really be achieved, then the annual sales of the BMW Group will easily exceed the 100 million mark, which will have a very different meaning."

"With the GDP created by the BMW Group alone, Shenzhen can surpass any other province in the country and secure the top spot in GDP."

When Yao Yiming said this, he became a little excited.

In just over a decade, Shenzhen has transformed from a small fishing village into the city with the largest GDP in the country.

Neither the capital nor Shanghai can compare with Shenzhen.

Even compared with the three northeastern provinces with the highest GDP at this time, it is still firmly ahead of others.

This is definitely not an easy achievement.

Historically, China's GDP in 1988 was about 1.5 trillion yuan, of which the three northeastern provinces accounted for about 3000 billion yuan.

This situation is likely to subvert the cognition of many people. After all, the situation in later generations is too different from that of today.

In 1988, the GDP of the entire Lingnan Province was only over 1100 billion. Now, the GDP created by the BMW Automobile Group alone is more than this figure.

This shows the influence of BMW Group and its strong driving force in the automotive industry chain.

"Yes, the last time I went to the provincial government for a meeting, the relevant leaders were very satisfied with the development of Shenzhen."

"Because of the BMW Group, not only has the economy of Shenzhen achieved rapid development, but several surrounding cities have also been affected."

"Especially those factories that provide supporting services to BMW Group have had very good times in recent years."

"Our Pearl River Delta region has already formed its own automotive industry chain."

"In the future, with the further development of the BMW Group, the strength of this industry chain will continue to increase."

"In the next step, we should consider actively supporting the development of a number of auto parts companies and auto industry equipment manufacturers."

"Whether it is providing parts, molds, or equipment accessories to the BMW Group, as long as we can successfully become a supplier of the BMW Group, I think it is worth supporting."

"Shenzhen's tax revenue is now second to none in the country. Those taxes are taken from the people and used for the people."

"I believe that the BMW Group is also very happy to see us support the development of enterprises in the industrial chain."

Liu Tianwu is well aware that the BMW Group has grown to such an extent that small favors from local governments have actually not played a particularly significant role in promoting their development.

However, the situation is different for some of the supporting factories below, especially the small enterprises that have just been established in the past two years.

If Shenzhen could provide a few million yuan in financial support, it would change the development situation of a large number of companies.

"The leadership is wise. This idea is really constructive."

"General Manager Jiang has always emphasized the importance of the automotive industry chain, and for this reason he pushed us to set up the automotive industry park and the industrial equipment industry park."

"We are now taking the initiative to support the growth of companies that provide supporting services to the BMW Group."

"In the future, they will not only be able to obtain orders from the BMW Group, but also orders from other domestic companies."

"It is even possible to follow the BMW Group in exporting and earning foreign exchange, and to obtain orders from foreign car companies."

“This will benefit us in Shencheng immensely.”

Yao Yiming sincerely thought that Liu Tianwu’s proposal was very good.

There have always been policies to support the development of enterprises, but most of them are various tax and land incentives.

This kind of direct support in the form of real money is still very rare.

After all, during this period, finances in various places were extremely tight, and no place was as well-off as Shenzhen.

……

"Xiao Jiang, through my trade with polar bears during this period, I discovered that there is actually a market for cars there."

"Many of their models are generally old. I think there is a market for models like Land Rover G and Land Rover X in Polar Bear." Zhu Jiansheng came to Shenzhen the day before the Highlander rolled off the production line and lived directly in Jiang Hui's home.

He is now in charge of the Ministry of Machinery and Electronics Industry and is very busy.

Normally, I don't have time to come to Shenzhen alone to visit my daughter and grandchildren. This kind of business trip is the best time.

Fortunately, the BMW Group's business has developed very rapidly and it is now the largest industrial enterprise in the country.

Therefore, Zhu Jiansheng has to travel to Shenzhen on business every year for work.

Under normal circumstances, Zhu Jiansheng would not attend the launch of a car company's new product.

However, Land Rover's performance in recent years has been so outstanding, and the launch of the world's first urban SUV has created a lot of hype, so Zhu Jiansheng naturally came over.

"That's true, especially in some member states where there is no local automotive industry. Our products have a certain space to develop there."

"Before, the relationships among people were not good, so it was difficult for us to conduct business when we entered."

"We have set up branches in various places since last year and started to develop this business."

"In the future, we will further increase our efforts and recruit more employees to expand Polar Bear's business."

Considering the future changes in the polar bear industry, Jiang Hui has been making plans since last year.

BMW Technology has established branches in many places in Polar Bear.

Various ruble loan operations and procurement of raw materials are also already underway.

Even part of the equipment for BMW Group's fourth factory was purchased with a loan from Polar Bear.

These actions will surely bring great benefits to the BMW Group in the future.

"This urban SUV model is another innovation of your Land Rover. Do you have confidence in it?"

The father-in-law and son-in-law have had in-depth discussions about polar bears many times in the past, so it will only be necessary to briefly mention it this time. There is no need to say too much.

So Zhu Jiansheng quickly shifted the topic to the protagonist of this event.

"As the first urban SUV, the sales of Highlander may not be very impressive right away when it was first launched."

"But I am very confident about the development direction of urban SUVs. Land Rover will also launch medium-sized SUVs and large SUVs in the future to fully develop its layout in this field."

"According to my estimate, in three or four years, when our three city SUVs are all on the market, we will be able to sell 10 units of these three models each month."

Jiang Hui directly gave a very shocking forecast data.

The monthly sales of the three models are 10 units. If we add the Land Rover G, Land Rover X, two Mercedes-Benz sedans and the BMW X20, wouldn't the monthly sales of the BMW Group be more than units?
In a year, that would be two to three million vehicles.

This is definitely an exaggerated statistic.

Even among the international automobile giants, except for a few companies such as Toyota and General Motors, the annual sales of most car companies still do not exceed 300 million vehicles.

“You are so optimistic about city SUVs?”

Zhu Jiansheng was stunned for a moment.

Although I had heard Jiang Hui talk about urban SUVs before, it was still quite a shock when BMW Group really bet all its efforts on it.

After all, talking and taking actual action are two completely different concepts.

"Yes, I think the sales volume of urban SUVs will continue to increase in the next 20 years."

"Sooner or later, its market size will be on par with that of sedans."

"We are planning ahead. When the market explodes in the future, that will be the time for the BMW Group to take off completely."

Jiang Hui spent so much energy on developing the BMW Group, and naturally he was not aiming for the number one position in the domestic market.

He wants to challenge the world's automobile giants such as General Motors and Toyota, and make BMW Group the leader of the global automobile industry.

If that day really comes, the influence of BMW Group in China will be even greater.

The driving effect of the industrial chain will also benefit many people throughout China.

Countries like Germany and Japan, to a large extent, rely on the automobile industry to drive the industrial development of the entire country.

China can definitely take this path.

Of course, China is too big to focus solely on the automobile industry; other industries must also keep pace.

"Since you are so confident, just go for it and do it well."

"If you encounter any problems, you can always talk to my secretary."

For many things, there is no need for Zhu Jiansheng to directly intervene.

The secretary is Zhu Jiansheng's representative, and all relevant personnel are aware of this.

Zhu Jiansheng made such arrangements directly, which showed his great trust in Jiang Hui.

……

General Motors now attaches great importance to its cooperation with BMW Group.

In recent years, the various cooperative relationships between the two parties have been strengthened, and General Motors has also gained a lot of benefits from it.

Of course, this matter also benefits the BMW Group greatly, making it a win-win case.

After all, if those cars did not cooperate with General Motors and go the OEM route, it would be impossible for them to have such high sales in the United States.

Japanese car companies will be suppressed if they develop rapidly in the United States, not to mention a Chinese company like Land Rover.

Although the BMW Group's current export earnings are so huge, in fact, most of the contribution is from General Motors.

Although it cannot be said that most of the profits were taken away by General Motors, but judging from the profit per vehicle, General Motors really makes more than Land Rover.

This time, Land Rover launched the world's first urban SUV and came up with a brand new gimmick. Austin, the design director, and Edward, the sales director, both flew over in person.

I want to experience the new Highlander model as soon as possible.

Let's take a look at what the so-called world's first urban SUV is all about.

Will General Motors follow this design concept in the future?
The cost of developing a new product from scratch is very high. Even General Motors, a company as big as it is, doesn't dare to make a decision casually.

"Jiang, your car has a very unique exterior design."

BMW Group is already very experienced in this kind of large-scale events.

As long as you follow the steps, you can successfully complete the offline ceremony.

However, the ceremony is over, but the matter will definitely not disappear just like that.

After the event, Austin and Edward drove a Highlander with Jiang Hui to experience the car, and discussed General Motors' OEM sales of the Highlander.

"Yes, our Highlander has smooth and powerful lines, a simple and elegant front face design, and a wide air intake grille that complements the square headlights on both sides, showing a calm and confident temperament."

“The headlights were simple in shape, exuding a sense of practicality and durability, which was in line with consumers’ expectations of SUVs at the time.”

"From the side, the Highlander has a full and layered silhouette, with the waistline extending from the front fender to the taillights, outlining a slender body posture."

"The wide wheel arches and high ground clearance not only improve the vehicle's passability, but also retain the off-road style of the SUV."

“The straight roofline ensures spaciousness and comfort inside the car, especially the headroom for rear passengers is fully guaranteed.”

Although Jiang Hui knew that General Motors would definitely not give up its continued cooperation with Land Rover, being able to let Austin and Eduardo know the benefits of this car at this time would obviously be beneficial to subsequent negotiations.

"For the rear part, the design of our Highlander is simple and elegant."

"The taillight group adopts a classic vertical layout, which echoes the headlights and gives a strong overall feeling."

"The rear bumper is wide and strong, and the double-sided dual exhaust layout below further highlights its power performance."

"And the Highlander's body size is moderate, neither too big nor too cramped, just the right balance between urban driving and outdoor adventures."

"It allows consumers who want to buy an off-road vehicle but also have many urban use needs to choose it with confidence."

Jiang Hui knew that General Motors must be paying close attention to the positioning of the Highlander urban SUV.

So I just had a good discussion with Austin and Edward about this topic.

Anyway, Jiang Hui knows that Highlander will definitely be popular with consumers. The only difference is how popular it is.

In the past, hard-core SUVs like the Land Rover G Series had such a large audience, and urban SUVs like the Highlander will have an even wider audience.

"Jiang, according to your speculation, will urban SUVs become a larger market than traditional hardcore off-road vehicles in the future?"

Austin asked his doubts very directly.

As design director, he is responsible for the future direction of GM.

Once a wrong decision is made, the loss will be huge.

“Although it is still uncertain how broad the future of urban SUVs will be, I think it is certain that they will surpass the hardcore SUV market.”

"After all, the hardcore SUV market has too many limitations."

"After adopting a load-bearing body, the ride comfort will be greatly reduced."

"But city SUVs are different. Their interior style is highly consistent with traditional sedans."

"In terms of the chassis, both the front and rear are equipped with independent suspension, which greatly improves the shock absorption performance."

"In addition, we have tried to reduce the aggressiveness of traditional hard-core SUVs as much as possible in terms of appearance. In the future, many female consumers will also like urban SUVs."

Jiang Hui certainly wouldn't tell everything to Oster and the others, but it was obviously necessary to reveal some information appropriately.

(End of this chapter)