Category: China

China NEV wholesale in May at about 670,000 units, CPCA estimates show

From January to May, China's wholesale sales of passenger NEVs are expected to be 2.78 million units, up 46 percent year-on-year, the CPCA said.

China's wholesale sales of passenger new energy vehicles (NEVs) are expected to be 670,000 units in May, up 11 percent from April and up 59 percent year-on-year, the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) said in a report today.

In April, the 11 manufacturers with more than 10,000 wholesale sales of NEVs contributed 81.1 percent of all wholesale sales, the CPCA said.

These companies are expected to sell 542,000 units in May, and the normal structure would put China's wholesale sales of passenger NEVs in May at around 650,000 units, the CPCA said.

The CPCA gave a higher estimated figure of 670,000 wholesale sales as the development of China's NEV industry continues to consolidate this year, the report said.

In the January-May period, China's wholesale sales of passenger NEVs are expected to be 2.78 million units, up 46 percent year-on-year, according to the report.

NEVs include battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), and fuel cell vehicles.

China's new energy passenger vehicle market returned to stronger growth in May, with sales hitting a new high this year, the CPCA said.

As a result of last year's low base and the recent continued strength of China's passenger NEV exports, vehicle companies in the core regions of the NEV industry chain, including Shanghai, performed well, the CPCA said.

Passenger vehicle sales in China are expected to be 23.5 million units in 2023, including 8.5 million NEVs, and penetration is expected to reach 36 percent, the CPCA said, repeating its previous forecast.

In 2022, wholesale sales of passenger NEVs in China were 6.5 million units, up 96.3 percent year-on-year.

Here are the wholesale NEV sales of major automakers in May, as published by the CPCA.

Tesla sells 77,695 China-made vehicles in May, up 2.44% from Apr

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Tesla sells 77,695 China-made vehicles in May, up 2.44% from Apr

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(NASDAQ: TSLA) sold 77,695 China-made vehicles in May, including exports, according to data released today by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

That's up 2.44 percent from 75,842 vehicles in April and up 141.55 percent from 32,165 vehicles in the same month last year.

Tesla has a factory in Shanghai that produces the Model 3 and Model Y. The vehicles produced at the factory are supplied to local consumers and also exported.

From January to May, Tesla sold 382,859 China-made vehicles, up 77.37 percent from 215,851 units in the same period last year, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.

Tesla's China-made vehicle sales in April included 39,956 units delivered in China and 35,886 units exported. The breakdown figures for May are expected to be available in the coming days.

Tesla's pattern is to produce cars for export in the first half of the quarter and for the local market in the second half.

Musk once laughed at BYD, but now thinks 'their cars are highly competitive'

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Battery cell prices in China fall 9% MoM in May, report says

Strong increases in lithium carbonate prices will not be immediately reflected in lithium battery prices, and prices of other raw materials are still falling, TrendForce said.

Battery cell prices in China fall 9% MoM in May, report says-CnEVPost

Prices for power battery cells continued to fall in May, even though the price of lithium carbonate, a key raw material, saw a big drop, according to a new report.

The average price of battery cells used in electric vehicles (EVs) fell about 9 percent in May from April, local research firm TrendForce said in a research note today.

The average price of square ternary cells fell 9.4 percent to RMB 0.75 ($0.1054) per Wh in China in May, while square lithium iron phosphate cells fell 9.5 percent to RMB 0.67 per Wh and soft pack ternary cells fell 9 percent to RMB 0.79 per Wh, according to the report.

The average price of battery-grade lithium carbonate in China has rebounded to RMB 254,300 per ton in May, up more than 28 percent from April, TrendForce said.

As of the end of May, battery-grade lithium carbonate was priced at RMB 305,000 per ton in China, up 57.22 percent from RMB 194,000 per ton on May 4, according to data from Mysteel monitored by CnEVPost.

Although the strong price increase in lithium carbonate is driving up the cost of cells, this will not be immediately reflected in lithium-ion battery prices in the short term, TrendForce said.

In addition, prices of other materials needed for lithium-ion batteries, such as cathode precursor materials, anode materials, diaphragms, electrolytes and PVDF, are still falling, so lithium-ion battery prices continued to be lower in May, the report said.

After a strong rebound in lithium prices in early mid-May, they have gradually stabilized in the second half of the month, TrendForce said, adding that the Chinese power battery market is still slowly recovering in May, with demand improving slightly.

Lithium prices rose rapidly on one hand because of the low willingness of suppliers to offer lower prices, and on the other hand because of increased demand from downstream battery makers to replenish their inventories in May, according to the report.

Lithium prices began a strong rebound in May, with a single-day gain of up to 10,000 yuan per ton, which is an irrational increase, TrendForce said.

Actual demand for lithium was not growing at a high rate, but was steadily recovering, TrendForce said, adding that the peak in demand is expected to come in June.

($1 = RMB 7.1190)

Lithium carbonate prices up RMB 2,500 per ton

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Wuling mulls post-delivery fuel-engine option for Baojun Yep

Wuling is considering offering a range-extender option for the Baojun Yep, which would provide the mini EV with the ability to get an extra 80 kilometers of range by refueling.

(Image credit: Baojun)

SAIC-GM-Wuling is considering a range-extender option for the Baojun Yep mini electric vehicle (EV), which went on sale only last month, highlighting a new approach to trying to address range anxiety among EV consumers.

Baojun will not offer an official extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) version of the Yep, but will consider offering a post-delivery range-extender option for the model, Zhou Xing, vice president of SAIC Wuling's brand division, said on Weibo yesterday.

"Because of the call from everyone, the team is looking into the possibility of putting a small generator in the engine compartment," Zhou wrote.

The option, which could cost about 2,000 yuan ($280), could hold four liters of gasoline and thus provide an additional 80 kilometers of range, according to a supplier proposal, he said.

The option is similar to a power bank for a cell phone and would additionally allow the vehicle to support external discharge capability, according to Zhou.

Zhou asked his followers on Weibo if they really wanted the option and if so, they would speed up the rollout process.

Consumers expecting the option can still buy the Baojun Yep now, as it can be installed after delivery, Zhou said.

It's not clear if Wuling's planned option complies with China's vehicle modification regulations.

SAIC-GM-Wuling officially launched the Baojun Yep on May 25, offering it in two versions with starting prices of RMB 79,800 and RMB 89,800, respectively.

Both versions of the model have a battery pack capacity of 28.1 kWh and a combined CLTC range of 303 km.

Baojun's idea to offer a range-extender option for the Yep underscores the appeal of plug-in hybrid or quasi-plug-in hybrid models at a time of transition to electrification in the Chinese automotive industry.

Among Chinese EV startups, (NASDAQ: LI) is known for its EREVs, which delivered a record 28,277 vehicles in May.

For comparison, (NYSE: NIO) and (NYSE: XPEV), which only offers battery electric vehicles (BEVs), have had weak deliveries over the past few months, delivering 6,155 and 7,506 units in May, respectively.

Their peer Leapmotor has abandoned its insistence on offering only BEVs, attracted by the larger market space.

On February 1, Leapmotor unveiled its first EREV model -- an EREV variant of its flagship SUV, the C11. The Leapmotor C11 EREV went on sale on March 1 and deliveries began in mid-March.

In May, Leapmotor delivered 12,058 vehicles, the fourth consecutive month of growth and well above the 1,139 units delivered in January.

($1 = RMB 7.1061)

Leapmotor delivers 12,058 units in May, higher-priced C-series dominate-CnEVPost

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BMW recalls 99 EVs in China for risk of power output interruption

The recall involves the locally produced i3 and iX3, as well as the imported i4, i7 and iX EVs.

BMW recalls 99 EVs in China for risk of power output interruption-CnEVPost

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

BMW has carried out another electric vehicle (EV) recall in China, albeit in small numbers.

The German luxury carmaker is recalling a total of 99 EVs in China from June 2, involving locally produced i3 and iX3, as well as imported i4, i7 and iX, according to a Friday announcement on China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) website.

Specifically, this includes 42 China-made i3 EVs with production dates from May 3, 2022 to April 12, 2023, and 47 China-made iX3 EVs with production dates from September 22, 2021 to March 2, 2023.

The recall of these EVs is being conducted by BMW Brilliance, BMW's joint venture in China.

The recall of imported vehicles includes five i4 EVs with production dates from December 15, 2021 to October 6, 2022, one imported i7 EV with production date on September 20, 2022, and four imported iX EVs with production dates from February 4, 2022 to September 27, 2022.

The recall of these imported EVs is being conducted by BMW China Automotive Trading Ltd.

The cable bridge of the high-voltage battery monitoring electronics cell supervision circuits (CSC) in the vehicles covered by the recall is not properly locked into place, and in extreme cases, the CSC is unable to effectively monitor the high-voltage battery, the announcement said.

In the event of such a situation, the CSC will perform fail-safe measures to stop the power output of the high-voltage battery, resulting in a possible power interruption in the moving vehicle, according to the announcement.

BMW Brilliance and BMW China will replace the high-voltage battery monitoring electronics for the vehicles free of charge to eliminate the safety hazard.

BMW last recalled EVs in China on March 29, when one locally produced i3 and 136 imported i4 EVs were involved.

BMW Brilliance retail sales in China rose 8.4 percent to 217,636 vehicles in January-April, ranking ninth with a 3.7 percent share, according to China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) rankings last month.

BMW's EV sales did not make it into any of the CPCA's rankings.

BMW recalls over 90,000 EVs in China due to software issues

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NIO ES7 and ET7 wait times get slightly longer

Wait times for both the ES7 and ET7 have gone from about 3 weeks to 3-4 weeks.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

Wait times for two NIO (NYSE: NIO) models have gotten slightly longer, the latest check by CnEVPost shows.

The current wait time for the NIO ES7 is 3-4 weeks, slightly higher than the about 3 weeks as shown previously, according to the NIO App.

NIO launched the ES7 on June 15, 2022, the company's second model based on the NT 2.0 platform after the ET7, and the first SUV on that second-generation platform.

The first delivery of the NIO ES7 was on August 28, 2022. NIO does not disclose ES7's deliveries when it announces monthly delivery figures.

The last change in the model's wait time was on June 1, from about four weeks to about three weeks.

The latest wait time for the NIO ET7 is also 3-4 weeks, slightly higher than the previous wait time of about 3 weeks.

The last change in the sedan's wait time was on April 28, from about 4 weeks to about 3 weeks.

On the first day of the Shanghai auto show on April 18, NIO launched the 2023 ET7 at the same prices as the previous version. Deliveries of the new ET7 began on May 19.

Except for the ES7 and ET7, the expected delivery dates for NIO's other models remain unchanged today.

Deliveries of the new ES8 are expected to start in June, the wait time for the new ES6 is still not shown, the EC7 is about 5 weeks and the ET5 is about 3 weeks, information from the NIO App monitored by CnEVPost shows.

NIO delivered 6,155 vehicles in May, down 7.55 percent from April and down 12.37 percent year-on-year, according to data released on June 1.

NIO plans to launch a new model based on the NT 2.0, the ET5 Touring, a midsize electric wagon that will begin deliveries to customers in June, the company said in announcing the May deliveries.

(Screenshots on June 5.)

Data table: Latest wait times for NIO models

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