The controversy from a month ago has not subsided, and the Zhiji L6 is officially launched.

On the evening of May 13, after several warm-ups, the configuration parameters of the Zhiji L6 were already clear. After the technical details were introduced, Co-CEO Liu Tao unraveled the final mystery. The price of the entry-level L6 was only 199,900 yuan, which was 30,000 yuan lower than the pre-sale price, and an additional 25,000 yuan of preferential benefits were added.

Although there was no further mention of the Xiaomi SU7 on the scene this time, Zhiji offered the price Lei Jun couldn't bear to offer. However, behind their magnificence, there is actually a sense of urgency to know oneself. This high-end brand, which SAIC has high hopes for, is also involved in the price range below 200,000.

As SAIC Motor's “No. 1 Project”, it has held the resources and technology of the three shareholders of SAIC Motor Group, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech, and Alibaba since the launch of the brand, aiming at BBA to try to replace it. Liu Tao, a chassis engineer, initially gambled heavily with the driving control label and braved the 30,000 to 400,000 yuan market.

However, after more than two years of hard work, the Zhiji still hasn't surpassed the mountain of scale. Until the third model, the LS6, went on sale at the end of last year. After the price dropped to around 200,000, it finally allowed Zhiji to sell more than 10,000 a month. However, this year, due to frequent competition and the impact of price wars, LS6 sales have once again rebounded, and the overall brand has pulled back from a peak of 10,000 units in December last year to the current level of 2,3,000 units.

Chen Wei, director of the Zhiji Product Strategy Center, admits that although Zhiji's own products are very powerful, they are unable to make it into the TOP3 “Choice List” of consumers' favorite brands, and the marginal effects of cognitive decline are particularly strong.

Liu Tao made no secret of his shortcomings in brand awareness. He said that in an environment where the industry is raging and products are rapidly iterating, technology is progressing faster than consumers' perceptions are being updated faster, and “bursting technology is even easier to pass on without refrigerators, color TVs, and color schemes.”

It may seem that smart self is stuck in a situation where people don't pay enough attention, but in the opinion of industry insiders, the essence of the problem is that it depends on differentiation such as brand and driving control, and it is still difficult to support higher premiums for the time being.

Now, under the rage of the industry, the price system in the car market has changed dramatically. Traditional fuel B-class cars are within 200,000 yuan after being reduced; high-end models originally worth 300,000 yuan or more, such as the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4L, and Mercedes-Benz C-Class, have become the main force in the mid-range of 200,000 to 300,000 yuan after the price reduction.

The competitiveness of mid-range electric vehicles is under threat, and a decline in sales is inevitable. According to data from the China Automobile Association, in the first quarter of this year, the 200,000 to 250,000 yuan range dropped by 4.9%, and the former star model Model 3 was not spared. Sales volume in April was only 5,000 units, losing the glory of the previous 30,000 month sales.

Within the 200,000 yuan market range that the Zhiji L6 has entered this time, brands such as Xiaopeng P7, Extreme Krypton 007, Geely Galaxy E8, Zhijie S7, Star Era ES, and BYD Han EV are collectively piling up, and homogenized competition is becoming more and more obvious. As a last resort, Zhiji began using extreme price tests and marketing methods in an attempt to seize consumers' mentality.

Fortunately, after the two decks were released, Zhiji seemed to have received enthusiastic feedback from the market as desired. It first obtained orders for 29,000 units before the launch, and 48 hours after the official launch, a large number of units broke (locked) 6,000 units.

However, it is still difficult for the market to reassure them. Some industry insiders believe that the L6, which starts at 199,900 yuan, is a big gamble for the company and SAIC Motor Group, that is, “choose one of the two” in disguise between the Zhi Ji and Feifan brands.

From “breaking three” to “breaking two” in price, Zhi Ji has broken the “unspoken rules” within the group twice and entered the price range of Feifan Auto. A person close to Feifan told Wall Street News that the L6 pricing made Feifan a bit embarrassed.

The price of Zhiji has dropped further, making the survival situation of Feifan, which is frequently rumored about layoffs and mergers, even more confusing. At the same time, it also means that the market is constantly compromising, pushing itself into a more competitive and sinking market.

However, Liu Tao confidently stated, “When we combine the capabilities of software, smart driving, smart cabin, and digital chassis, it is difficult for this explosive power to compete with us in the short term.”

Regarding the lack of brand power, Liu Tao reflected on finding his own path. “Simply blogging some traffic is neither a characteristic of Zhizhi, nor a place where Zhizhi excels; Zhi Ji must take technical strengths and user scenarios as the real focus of future marketing.”

As for example, the LS6 has a short sales cycle, Liu Tao learned about 3C electronic products and proposed strategies to speed up the promotion and replacement of products, forming 3-4 waves of product offensives every year. In addition to the L6, there are two other models on the rise this year.

The smart self, who is being taken advantage of by the group, still seems to have the resources and ambition to go it alone. At the beginning of March of this year, Zhiji obtained a B-round financing of 8 billion yuan to accumulate grain and grass for technological development; at the same time, in the face of temporary losses, Liu Tao claimed that SAIC Motor's strong supply chain system could also share some of the pressure.

However, even with a golden spoon, it remains to be seen whether Zhi Ji can solve the core positioning problem in the future. This will also affect SAIC Motor's dream of rising high and whether it can finally be realized.