NOVEL NEXT Chapter 249
“Mr. Lu, you are right. Car manufacturing is a technical industry, so of course it requires research and development. We also attach great importance to research and development internally. We invest hundreds of millions of dollars in research and development every year. For a company like us that manufactures small cars, this is already enough.”
“But R&D is a long process after all. It takes several years for a technology to mature from release, so it is difficult to see results in a short period of time.……”
Lu Jun smiled bitterly.
He said that it was not that Wuling did not have R&D, but R&D was a long-term thing that required a lot of accumulation.
Some companies had not even waited for results before their capital chain collapsed!!
There was a big difference between companies that were determined to do R&D and ordinary companies. Some companies, from the boss to the backbone, had a fighting spirit and could devote everything to technology and R&D. The product launch conference was full of fighting spirit.
But Wuling was the latter, a company that was not good at R&D.
Take the senior executives who attended the meeting today, for example. They all came from the era of fuel vehicles, and they were old and had long been accustomed to the old model. Now the market changes too fast, and they can’t win the current rhythm at all.
You let them fight for technology and business, but they only think about how to make money comfortably.
Lu Yan heard what he meant.
Compared with several other traditional car companies that have been close to successful transformation and are also crazy about internal competition, Wuling is more like the old traditional car company.
Although it is still competitive now, it is all passive competition. It has not actively developed any eye-catching technology or new business model.
“Mr.
Lu, I actually have two technologies here.
Unlike solid-state ion batteries, which are more expensive and only suitable for mid-to-high-end vehicles, they are specifically aimed at the low-end entry market to reduce costs and increase efficiency.
One is semi-solid-state battery technology, and the other is high-strength hybrid steel.
Although semi-solid-state batteries are not as good as solid-state batteries, they can achieve energy density and battery life that surpass the ternary lithium battery packs on the market.
The most important thing is that the cost of this battery pack is no longer 80,000 or 100,000 yuan.
If it is of ordinary capacity, it only costs 10,000 or 20,000 yuan to produce.
……”
Lu Yan got straight to the point and threw out his 533 chips first.
Every car includes various vehicle costs and marketing costs. If you want to say what is the most expensive thing in electric cars in the new energy era, it is undoubtedly the battery pack.
When the price of lithium is high, the cost of a large battery pack can really reach 1,000 yuan per kilowatt-hour, and 100 kilometers of electricity is 100,000 yuan!!
The cost of the battery pack alone for a car costs 100,000 yuan, plus other vehicle costs, and the average marketing and promotion costs of tens of thousands of yuan per car, and shipping costs, it will not be able to make back the cost unless it sells for 300,000 yuan!
Although the price of lithium has plummeted now, the cost of large battery packs on the market is still 50,000 to 70,000 yuan.
Semi-solid batteries can reduce this cost to 20,000 to 30,000 yuan under the same energy specifications.
The cost of a small battery pack used in a small car is more than 10,000 yuan, which is terrifying!!
Hearing the information contained in this, Lu Jun was shocked!
He was completely excited!!
“Mr. Lu, are you serious? This technology is simply born for the low-end market.……”
“Do you have the PPT and the business plan? How about I come and see it myself!” He couldn’t sit still at all.
If Wuling’s cars could be equipped with this kind of battery, wouldn’t it dominate the same level market?!
Lu Yan:”No need, we at Hongqi never do technical PPTs. If a technology can be brought out, it means that it has a finished product. I will bring samples directly to your Wuling for on-site testing.……”
Lu Yan was a straightforward person and didn’t want to waste time.
The two had a preliminary negotiation.
Lu Yan set off at noon that day and booked a special plane to take Yang Xudong and two accompanying engineers, along with two samples, to Wuling headquarters.
He arrived at around four in the afternoon.
He met Wuling’s CEO Lu Jun and a group of senior executives.
Although they ordered to eat quickly, these people were not hungry at all. They went to the airport to wait for Lu Yan. When they saw him, their eyes were shining. I think they had already had a meeting!!
Lu Yan smiled and stretched out his hand:”Boss Lu, it’s better to meet than to hear about him for a long time.” Lu Jun hurriedly shook his hand enthusiastically:”Boss Lu, I didn’t expect you to come here in person. You’ve been tired all the way. Are you hungry? Why don’t you go to a star-rated hotel to eat something? I’ll book a place to welcome you!!”
I wasn’t hungry at all, but I was afraid of neglecting the”noble” in front of me.
After learning some parameters of the semi-solid battery, the entire Wuling’s internal senior executives were excited for several hours!!
And Lu Yan’s attitude towards Wuling also made them feel very promising!!
Lu Yan shook his head:”No need, this time we are here to discuss technology and cooperation, if we really go to the hotel, we don’t know how long it will take, let’s go straight to the company, and then you can eat something in the company cafeteria.”
“”Okay, then let’s go directly to the company.” Lu Jun nodded immediately.
Since it was a technical exchange, the two of them and a group of senior executives went directly to Wuling’s R&D and testing center.
Lu Yan asked Yang Xudong to take out the samples of”semi-solid battery” and”high-strength hybrid steel”. The
“semi-solid battery” brought here is not a whole battery pack, but one of them. With the help of instruments, the overall energy parameters and various indicators can be measured.
“The same is true for”high-strength hybrid steel”. Otherwise, if the finished product is moved directly over, the volume will be too large.
“Mr. Lu, this is our internal semi-solid-state battery. Different from pure solid-state ion batteries, the electrolyte inside is a 50:50 ratio of liquid and solid. The ratio of nickel, cobalt and manganese and the manufacturing process are adjusted. It is obtained after repeated research and development tests. Don’t underestimate this small section. It definitely exceeds the parameters of ternary lithium on the market, and the safety is also not bad.……”
“In addition, this high-strength mixed steel is also an excellent rigid material for making front and rear anti-collision beams and four-door anti-collision beams. Aluminum and magnesium elements can be further added to enhance local strength, such as the pillars and dangerous parts.……”
In order to reduce weight, the anti-roll bars on the market are all made of aluminum alloy, but the internal mixed steel of Hongqi can achieve several times the tensile and torsional strength without exceeding the weight by too much!!
Some companies will add boron steel to the alloy in the AB pillar, which is related to the life and safety of the car owner, to improve the local strength so that the AB pillar will not break when it is subjected to special accidents. This operation is just pediatrics in Hongqi.
So when Lu Yan just introduced it, several Wuling executives had already widened their eyes!
There was an expression of disbelief on their faces!!
Lv Jun took a deep breath:”Mr. Lu, your technology is really amazing from the parameters, and the most important thing is that the cost is still low. I wonder if we can test it?”
Lu Yan smiled:”Of course.” Lv Jun nodded, and then signaled two technical executives in their company to move the equipment for testing.
The two first conducted a discharge test on the semi-solid battery, and then conducted testing and charging samples. When the voltage and current data came out, they were all shocked!!
“The data is exactly the same as what Mr. Lu said, and even exceeds it!!”
The engineer reported.
Wuling is also developing batteries internally, so the internal technicians are very sensitive to these parameters and will not make mistakes.
The next step is the test of high-strength hybrid steel.
“Mr. Lu, the thickness of the high-strength mixed steel you brought is exactly the same as the thickness of the front anti-collision beam of our mini car. We will use the dismantled car parts to try to test with the same torque on the test platform to simulate the impact force of the car hitting the front anti-collision beam at 45 yards.……”
Lv Jun introduced.
Each car company has its own set of safety test sites and equipment. (To read the novel, go to Faloo Novel Network!)
The thickness of the front anti-collision beam of Wuling mini model is 1.03mm. The U-groove is stamped from cold-rolled steel plate. It looks very thin, not as thin as those luxury cars with a thickness of 1.5mm or even 2mm, which focuses on safety. However, this is also limited by cost.
Some cars with tens of thousands of yuan directly use fiberglass for anti-collision beams, which is really a rip-off and has no protection!!
The mechanical arm used to simulate the collision has a cube-shaped collision test head on the top.
As the tester pressed the button.
With a bang!
The materials fixed on both sides collided at the same time, followed by!!
Lu Yan narrowed his eyes slightly.
It can be seen that Wuling’s anti-collision beam components have been completely twisted and deformed under the force of simulating a 45-yard collision, and the U-groove on the back has also been completely crushed. The whole appearance can be said to be horrible!!
But Wuling’s CEO and a group of executives were not surprised at all by this result.
Instead, he had an expression of expected surprise!!
They have done this kind of test internally for countless times. Although it looks completely deformed, you have to know that the anti-collision steel beam is only the first barrier of passive safety of the car. It absorbs and reduces the external impact. There is also an energy absorption box design after the buffering. After the force is greatly buffered, the car is a bit miserable, but at least the people are safe.
Some people think that 45 mph is not fast.
But then again, this is only a car of tens of thousands of dollars, what else do you want?!
Wuling’s executives think that they can achieve this effect at this cost, which is already very good, and there is nothing to blame!!
However[]
When some of them looked away and saw the steel material brought by the red flag on the other side, they were stunned!!
Several people suddenly widened their eyes!!
“Oh my god, it’s okay!!”
“Wow… This is harder than the high-strength body area of our new internal structure!!”
They were all shocked!!
With the same U-groove design, the Hongqi component did not completely twist and deform after being hit with such a strong force. There was only an obvious dent on the surface, and the U-energy absorption groove design on the back collapsed under the force. This means that this component not only perfectly withstood the impact force, but also played a role in absorbing the impact force with the minimum deformation!!
“Mr. Lu, what do you think of this result?”
Lu Yan asked with a chuckle.
This impact force is just child’s play for high-strength hybrid steel, and it can withstand even stronger tests.
Lu Jun gave a thumbs up and said with admiration:
“Too strong. High strength is not the most important thing, but Mr. Lu, you said that the cost can be lower than ours, which is too exaggerated… So much so that before you came, I couldn’t believe it!!”It is no exaggeration to say that as long as they are willing to spend money, any car company can do a good job in safety!
But the difficulty lies in how you can do better than your opponent at the same cost or even lower cost than the opponent?
Wuling has been involved in the low-end supply chain for so many years and thinks that it is already a leader among them, but this time the technology that Hongqi has brought out really opened his eyes!
A sentence from the mobile phone industry rang in his ears——””Far ahead”!!
This time it is really”far ahead”! It makes people have no desire to catch up.
Hongqi’s technology is simply terrifying!!
“Mr. Lu, this is what I mean. As long as these two technologies are applied well, even if we don’t go for high-end cars, we can still expand on a large scale and make a lot of money.……”
Lu Yan said. Lu
Jun nodded repeatedly:”Yes, yes!”
Just kidding, it would be ridiculous if you don’t make money with this technology!!
“Mr. Lu, after what you said, I found that blindly buying high-end products is indeed not a good choice. I just don’t know how you supply semi-solid batteries? What is the purchase price? ?”
His mind instantly became active.
Lu Yan was waiting for him to say this. By showing his technology, he would take the initiative and gain bargaining chips.
“We do not plan to supply semi-solid batteries and high-strength hybrid steel on a large scale in the next two quarters. Instead, we want to create a truly best-selling entry-level model. So if Wuling wants, you can co-develop with Hongqi. Hongqi must be the leader in the process, and the entire production line and supply chain must cooperate with us. In addition, I want Wuling’s shares!!”
Lu Yan made a condition.
If Wuling’s supply chain fully cooperates, Hongqi will not need to rebuild the factory. Wuling can be responsible for publicity and channels. Hongqi only needs to provide technology and supply battery materials. Moreover, co-branding is a routine of hitting low from high, which will neither damage the brand value nor appear to be cheap!.