Xpeng eyes mass-market segment to take on BYD

Firm plans to launch compact electric vehicles for domestic and global markets

Premium electric-vehicle maker Xpeng plans to launch a mass-market brand in a month to challenge market leader BYD amid an escalating price war.

Models under this new brand would be fitted with autonomous driving systems and would be priced between 100,000 yuan (HK$109,000) and 150,000 yuan, said He Xiaopeng, the Guangzhoubased carmaker’s co-founder and chief executive. These electric vehicles will cater to more budget-conscious consumers.

“We will launch a class A compact electric vehicle at a price range of between 100,000 yuan and 150,000 yuan, which will come with an advanced driver assistance system, for both the China and global markets,” He said during the China EV 100 Forum in Beijing, according to a video clip seen by the Post.

“In future, cars with the same prices might be developed into fully-autonomous vehicles.”

Xpeng confirmed He’s remarks and said in a statement the company envisioned slashing the development and production costs of autonomous driving technology by 50 per cent this year. At present, Xpeng assembles smart electric vehicles that are sold at more than 200,000 yuan.

BYD, the world’s largest electric-vehicle maker, delivered 3.02 million pure electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles – most of them priced below 200,000 yuan – to customers at home and abroad last year, a year-on-year increase of 62.3 per cent. Exports accounted for 242,765 units, or 8 per cent of total sales.

Premium electric-vehicle makers were actively looking to grab a slice of the pie from BYD, said Eric Han, a senior manager at Suolei, an advisory firm in Shanghai.

“The segment where electric vehicles are priced from 100,000 yuan to 150,000 yuan is dominated by BYD, which has a variety of models targeting budget-conscious consumers,” Han said.

Xpeng’s announcement comes on the heels of Shanghaibased Nio’s decision to launch cheaper models after BYD began cutting the prices of nearly all of its models last month to maintain its leading position.

Nio chief executive William Li, said the firm would unveil details of its mass-market brand Onvo in May.