Although many people do not believe, but the Audi and SAIC Volkswagen formed a 50:50 joint venture sales company, is a clincher. Reporters from the parties do not want to be informed of the informed sources, the official message will be released in mid-November, the new company will set up a separate channel, the first product plan released in April next year.
This is the second Audi partner in China, the cooperation form similar to the Skoda in China with the SAIC-Volkswagen model of cooperation, OEM production by the SAIC-VW production, not a new joint venture production enterprises, there will be no relevant state departments Approval possible.
Audi and SAIC public negotiations began a year and a half ago.
In May 2015, Audi bid farewell to the March 2013 sales for 26 consecutive months of increase; the second half of the dealer terminal opened an unprecedented preferential efforts to break the stick for many years to stabilize the price system. This year, Audi sold 570,900 units in China, down 1.4% (3.6% global sales growth), entered China 26 years after the first negative growth.
Although the first three quarters of this year, the Audi brand in the world's total delivery of 1,408,800 units, compared to 1347,883 units in the same period last year, an increase of 4.5%, and the first three quarters of FAW - Volkswagen Audi sales in China for 438,376, an increase of 6.3% But the Audi in China to maintain the first pressure is growing - the first three quarters of this year, Mercedes-Benz has regained the first position in the world, and sales in China by leaps and bounds.
In fact, Audi's current development situation is not unusual, for many years in China is a special phenomenon under special historical conditions, can not continue to maintain high growth but continue to hold the leading position in the luxury market in China is the German expectations.
And this position is becoming increasingly difficult to stick to watch, resorted to the magic of the two partners has become an inevitable choice.
An anonymous source said, Audi that its weakness in China, with the partners in the past year is not very market-oriented incentives are not unrelated. Due to share than share, Germany in FAW - Volkswagen Audi's voice is far less than the Chinese side, the face of some problems beyond their grasp.
Since the middle of this year, Audi performance in China increasingly unstable. The first three quarters, Audi is still among the luxury car "boss" of the place. Among them, A3 and Q3 made a considerable contribution, while the A6L and A4L situation is not optimistic, continuous suppression by competitors, especially in A4L after the emergence of a year-on-year decline. This shows the success of the Audi rejuvenation strategy, but in the B, C-class models mainly battlefield high-end brand competition, the situation is no doubt adverse to Audi.
In the background, Audi and SAIC public contact, on the one hand to promote the FAW - Audi self-change, on the other hand can be logical to expand their own sites. In the pressure of competitors at every step, as well as "emissions gate" follow-up huge profit pressure, the German side and SAIC to speed up the process of negotiations. Now can be described as melon.
For a long time, Volkswagen Group has been convinced that the two joint ventures in China is a very wise decision, and now this strategy extends to the Audi brand, will also make it contain each other to promote the development of luxury car market in China, Audi will have only two channels, Audi believes it will bring a positive than negative energy.
Moreover, SAIC VW's existing platform and some suppliers can quickly use the Audi body, which saves costs, but also help to quickly achieve localization - SAIC Volkswagen, such as the latest product uses a new generation of Audi A6 is used MLB platform.
For SAIC Volkswagen, this is a Porsche homebound project stranded, the pursuit of higher profits almost the only opportunity, naturally firmly grasp. SAIC Audi launched after the launch of
Diesel Nozzle the models is still unknown, from the current Audi product line layout, A5, Q2, or even A7 are possible, some imported models may also be among their channels, of course, the most likely Audi A5.
Audi's development in China can be described as positive, more products and networks, coupled with Shanghai's new thinking, new ways of injection, will help it in the increasingly tough high-end car market competition again take the initiative.
