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The 2024 Chengdu International Auto Show officially opened on August 30th. According to the data, Chengdu Auto Show was founded in 1998 and entered the first echelon for the first time in 2013, becoming one of the four A-level auto shows in China. The so-called Class An auto show is not only a grand event of the automobile industry, but also an important window to understand the industry trends, technological innovation and brand development. Therefore, the major auto companies of ‌ will choose to unveil new cars and release new technologies at the Chengdu Auto Show.

Although the auto show is an important stage for auto companies to show their products and technology, compared with the Beijing-Guangzhou auto show, the main attribute of Chengdu auto show is to sell cars. It is understood that in order to further ignite consumer enthusiasm, during the current Chengdu Auto Show, Chengdu invested 100 million yuan to carry out the third round of "Huanxin Wise driving Chengdu" automobile consumption incentive activity. From August 30 to September 20, when individual consumers buy new family cars in Chengdu, submit complete data and declare success on the declaration platform, according to the car price, new energy vehicles and fuel vehicles can enjoy a maximum reward of 8000 yuan and 7000 yuan.

At this year's Chengdu Auto Show, although the total number of exhibitors has not changed much, and the brand exhibition area is also large, Hall 9 has been opened for the first time, and BYD's brands have directly contracted the pavilion, but this Chengdu Auto Show appears to be more deserted than before. there are significantly fewer brands that choose to release new cars or technology at the auto show. For example, major brands such as Changan and Geely no longer hold press conferences, only participate in the exhibition and sell cars. In the joint venture brand market, this phenomenon is even more serious. In addition to Volkswagen and Hyundai, Honda, Toyota, Ford, Peugeot, Mazda, Buick and other joint ventures have retreated collectively and no longer hold brand conferences at the Chengdu Auto Show. The same is true of luxury brands, in addition to BMW and Cadillac, Lexus, Volvo and others are not expected to hold a press conference.

In fact, the fact that most car companies no longer release new cars or technology in the exhibition is not that they have no money, but that the influence of the Chengdu auto show is not enough. For a long time, although the Chengdu Auto Show is known as the "International Auto Show", the exhibitors are all local dealers, which is more like a trade fair, not much different from Changchun Auto Show and Shenzhen Auto Show, attracting not car fans but car buyers, and is out of sync with the new car release cycle of traditional auto companies. Coupled with the extremely inward volume of the auto market in 2024, most manufacturers can't wait for new products to be released at the auto show. Strategies can only be made flexibly according to changes in the market. Therefore, the Chengdu auto show in 2024 "not as expected", in fact, it is not surprising, the market volume is the root cause behind.

The volume in the market is behind, and more and more car companies have withdrawn. Compared with the 2023 Chengdu Auto Show, this year's Chengdu Auto Show, including Kia, Gaohe, Dongfeng Nissan, Infiniti and other brands, all chose to be absent, among which some brands were unable to participate because of their own strategies and considerations, while others were unable to participate because of their own business problems.

Take Dongfeng Nissan as an example, cumulative sales from January to July in 2024 were 368300 vehicles, down 4.80% from the same period last year. Nissan is also having a hard time in China, the world's largest car market. In the previous July, Nissan's top-selling model in China was still the Xuan Yi, with cumulative sales of 183000 vehicles, followed by Xiaoke and Tianya, with 62900 and 42100 respectively. In March this year, Dongfeng Nissan launched Land Exploration, the first medium-and large-scale SUV owned by Dongfeng Nissan, which sells for 21.28-274800 yuan. Since its launch, it has sold 6145 vehicles, which is in order. In addition, in the context of major car companies have to speed up the electrified layout, Nissan's competitiveness in the field of new energy vehicles has not been significantly improved. At present, only Ariya Aria is on sale, with cumulative sales of only 1856 vehicles.

Life for Infiniti, a luxury brand owned by Dongfeng Nissan, is even harder, with only two models on sale. The sales of QX60 and QX50 are 1003 and 276 respectively. The slow iteration of product update and the scarcity of products are the main reasons for its low sales. Due to the slow transformation of new energy and low brand recognition, more than half of Infiniti dealerships have closed their doors or merged Infiniti models into Dongfeng Nissan showrooms. Honda Acura, which is also a Japanese luxury brand, has withdrawn from the Chinese market due to poor sales. If Infiniti fails to take concrete measures to reverse the sales dilemma in China, it is likely to be the next eulogy.

As for Gaohe, it is still in the process of survival. On the first day of the Spring Festival resumption of work in the year of the Dragon, Gaohe Automobile held an internal meeting and announced a six-month suspension of production. Ding Lei also admitted that the cash flow of the company's account had dried up. After months of self-rescue, on July 1, Gaohe's parent company, Chinese Express, applied to the people's Court of Yancheng Economic and technological Development Zone for restructuring on the grounds that its assets could not pay off all its due debts, but had the value and possibility of restructuring. And apply for pre-reorganization at the same time. This move is also seen as the last opportunity for corporate "rebirth", which means that a new life may be achieved through restructuring, but it also faces serious challenges.

In sharp contrast, Chinese new energy car manufacturers continue to have a hot market, whether it is the newly listed Xiaomi car or the fully merged Hongmeng Zhixing, or BYD, as the largest new energy vehicle manufacturer at home and abroad. Chengdu Auto Show has become an important occasion for them to "show their muscles", especially BYD, which directly wrapped Hall 9, BYD, Teng Teng, equation Leopard, and looked up to the brand collective appearance. The pavilion covers an area of 5000 square meters, and the rental cost of the venue alone is staggering.

Chengdu Auto Show, perhaps selling cars is the main purpose, especially above the traditional consumption peak of "Golden Nine Silver Ten". Of course, as brands continue to adjust their strategies in the market, consumers' needs and preferences are also constantly changing. whoever can find the best balance between price, quality and value will be the winner in the future market.

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