Category: Li Auto

Li Auto survey shows Li L8 buyers mainly former German luxury car owners

Among the first owners of the Li L8, those who previously owned a BMW 3 Series were the highest, followed by those who owned a BMW 5 Series and an Audi A6.

US | Li Auto HK

(Image credit: Li Auto)

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is taking market share away from the German luxury car company, a survey by the company shows.

Among the first owners of the Li L8, those who previously owned a BMW 3 Series were the highest, followed by those who owned a BMW 5 Series, according to a survey of 303 first owners of the Li L8 released yesterday by Li Auto.

Among these Li L8 owners, the number of owners of the Audi A6 came in third, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class in fourth, the Audi A4 in fifth and the Audi Q5 in sixth.

Li Auto launched the Li L8, a six-seat mid to large-size SUV, on September 30, 2022, when it was offered in two versions, Pro as well as Max, with starting prices of RMB 359,800 ($52,300) and 399,800 respectively.

On February 8, Li Auto introduced a lower-priced Air version of the Li L8 with a starting price of RMB 339,800 when it launched the five-seat SUV Li L7.

Li Auto delivered 16,620 vehicles in February, up 9.77 percent from 15,141 in January and up 97.53 percent from 8,414 in the same month last year, data it released on March 1 showed.

The company did not release a breakdown of deliveries for these models, though data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) monitored by CnEVPost show that 8,192 units of the Li L8 were delivered in February, bringing the model's cumulative deliveries to 29,773 units since deliveries began last November.

As for the owners' reasons for replacing their old cars for the Li L8, most believe the model is suitable for family use. Targeting family consumers has always been the positioning of Li Auto.

Some said their original cars had problems including constant minor issues and high gas consumption, and some said the Li Auto offered simple car-buying options.

($1 = RMB 6.8801)

Li Auto to build charging stations at 'NIO pace', report says

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China NEV insurance registrations for week ending Mar 12: BYD 37,141, Tesla 17,032, NIO 2,170

This article is being updated, please refresh later for more content.

's insurance registrations last week in China were higher than the previous week's 13,266, while 's were lower than the previous week's 3,345.

 

's new energy vehicles (NEVs) saw 37,141 insurance registrations in China for the week ending March 12, lower than the previous week's 38,932, according to numbers shared today by auto blogger @一路向北BYD.

Tesla vehicles saw 17,032 insurance registrations in China last week, higher than the previous week's 13,266.

NIO was 2,170 last week, down from 3,345 the week before.

registered 4,243 units last week, up from 3,222 units the previous week.

was 1,635 units last week, up from 1,421 units the week before.

BYD's premium brand Denza vehicles saw 1,853 insurance registrations last week, up from 1,808 the week before.

was 1,043 units last week, down from 1,814 units the week before.

BMW's NEVs registered 1,486 insurance units in China last week, down from 1,663 units the week before.

The past week has seen a rare price war in China's auto industry involving not only NEV makers, but traditional internal combustion engine automakers as well.

Rumors surfaced last week that BMW dealers were offering a massive subsidy for the all-electric BMW i3 in China, and that consumers who pay full price for the car can even get the model for RMB 120,000 to 180,000, less than half the retail price.

BMW insiders denied this, but sources at BMW dealers said they are indeed offering discounts, and that these measures were only introduced this month, local media Cailian reported last week.

For the BMW i3 eDrive35 L, which currently has a guide price of RMB 353,900, the price after discounts is RMB 248,000, the report said, citing BMW dealership sources.

Consumers will also receive an additional RMB 6,000 subsidy if they trade in their vehicles, the source said.

The increasing number of car companies joining the price war has led to increased consumer wait-and-see sentiment to avoid seeing price reductions shortly after purchasing a car.

Li Auto has introduced a consumer purchase price protection benefit that covers all of the company's currently available models -- Li L7, Li L8, Li L9.

For consumers who purchase these models, if the prices drops within 90 days of their order, then Li Auto will refund the difference.

The policy, which is available to consumers when they purchase the Li L7, Li L8, and Li L9, is primarily intended to make clear to them that Li Auto will not drop the prices, local media outlet The Paper said earlier today, citing salespeople from the company.

China NEV insurance registrations for week ending Mar 5: BYD 38,932, Tesla 13,266, NIO 3,345

Weekly NEV insurance registrations in China in 2023

WkBYDTeslaNIOXPengLi AutoBMWZeekrNEVNEV+ICE
03/06-03/1237,14117,0322,1701,6354,2431,4861,043988
02/27-03/0538,93213,2663,3451,4213,2221,6631,8144,109515116,238345,340
02/20-02/2639,47310,7053,3571,6855,3871,7921,8552,152401111,983331,238
02/13-02/1937,0265,9133,1741,4634,2382,2711,4431,038329100,408303,101
02/06-02/1231,4176,9633,0451,3964,0626825471,170NA85,572280,741
01/30-02/0524,2808,6431,9489752,2405935543,96411469,692267,843
01/23-01/295,2803,356427210990NA89NANA17,94592,600
01/16-01/2224,7087,4963,0081,0684,903NA657NANA67,500330,400
01/09-01/1540,42012,6542,9631,8174,5272,6871,35942023799,041438,000
01/02-01/0835,9242,1102,8181,5513,7042,1031,5112388077,000290,000

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Li Auto rolls out price protection policy amid China auto price war

The price war in China's auto industry has intensified the wait-and-see mood among car buyers, and 's move helps to allay potential consumers' concerns to some extent.

Li Auto US | Li Auto HK

(Image credit: Li Auto)

As the price war in China's auto industry continues, Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is telling consumers that it won't be cutting prices, at least they don't need to worry about it in the short term.

An image circulating on the Chinese internet on March 13 shows Li Auto rolling out a consumer price protection policy covering all of the company's currently available models -- the Li L7, Li L8 and Li L9.

For consumers who purchase these models, if the prices drop within 90 days of their order, then Li Auto will refund the difference.

The policy is in effect from March 11 to March 31, and the price reduction Li Auto refers to includes both a drop in the vehicle's official prices and the cash-off benefits the company offers, according to the image.

In a report today, local media outlet The Paper quoted Li Auto salespeople as saying the image is true.

The policy, which is available to consumers when they purchase the Li L7, Li L8 and Li L9, is primarily intended to make clear to them that Li Auto will not be dropping prices, the salesperson said.

On March 2, Li Auto founder, chairman and CEO Li Xiang said on Weibo that the price of lithium carbonate would be drastically reduced no matter what because the demand is far less than expected.

He said at the time in the comments section of that Weibo that Li Auto's models would not be reduced in price.

Notably, a wave of price cuts then began in the Chinese auto industry, with some internal combustion engine automakers starting to offer huge discounts.

The increasing number of car companies joining the price war has also led to an increased wait-and-see sentiment among consumers to avoid seeing price cuts soon after purchasing a car.

Li Auto's move will partly contribute to allaying the company's potential consumers' concerns and thus help it achieve its sales targets.

Li Auto has an internal goal of 25,000-30,000 monthly deliveries and will aim to meet that goal in the second quarter, its management said in a February 27 analyst call after announcing fourth-quarter earnings.

The company delivered 16,620 vehicles in February, up 9.77 percent from 15,141 in January and up 97.53 percent from 8,414 in the same month last year.

Li Auto guided for deliveries of 52,000 to 55,000 vehicles in the first quarter when it reported fourth-quarter earnings. The company's delivery figures for February mean it is on track to deliver 20,239 to 23,239 vehicles in March.

China auto price war: BMW dealers offer discounts of up to $14,360 for i3

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Li Auto begins deliveries of its first 5-seat SUV Li L7

has an internal goal of 25,000-30,000 monthly deliveries and will aim to meet the goal in the second quarter, its management said last month.

Li Auto US | Li Auto HK

(Image credit: Li Auto)

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) began deliveries of its new SUV, the Li L7, on March 11, a month after the model was launched.

Starting today, deliveries of the Li L7 will begin in China to meet the needs of a wider segment of family customers, the company said.

With the start of deliveries of the Li L7, Li Auto further solidifies its market position in the RMB 300,000 ($43,440) - 400,000 price range as the luxury SUV brand of choice for families, it said.

Li Auto officially made the Li L7, its first five-seat SUV, available on February 8. Its other two models currently on sale, the Li L9 and Li L8, are both six-seat models.

The Li L7 is available in Air, Pro and Max versions, with starting prices of RMB 319,800, 339,800 and 379,800 respectively.

Li Auto said at the launch of the Li L7 that deliveries of the Li L7 Pro and the Li L7 Max are expected to begin on March 1, and deliveries of the Li L7Air will begin in early April.

Today's latest development means that the start of Li L7 deliveries is 10 days later than the company had planned.

Deliveries of the Li L7 Pro and Li L7 Max were the first to begin today, with deliveries of the Li L7 Air scheduled to begin in early April, Li Auto said today.

All of Li Auto's current models are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), essentially PHEVs, which are considered to have no range anxiety and therefore have a larger total addressable market.

Li Auto delivered 16,620 vehicles in February, up 9.77 percent from 15,141 in January and up 97.53 percent from 8,414 in the same month last year, according to data it released on March 1.

Li Auto guided for first-quarter deliveries of 52,000 to 55,000 vehicles when it reported fourth-quarter earnings on February 27.

The company's delivery figures for February mean it is on track to deliver 20,239 to 23,239 vehicles in March.

Li Auto management said in an analyst call after announcing its fourth-quarter earnings that the company has an internal target of 25,000 to 30,000 monthly deliveries and will aim to achieve that target in the second quarter.

April will be the first full delivery month for the Li L7 Pro and Li L7 Max, and May will be the first full delivery month for the Air product line, its management stressed at the time.

When Li Auto launched the Li L7 on February 8, it also introduced a cheaper Air version for the Li L8.

The current starting prices for the Li L8 Air, Li L8 Pro and Li L8 Max are RMB 339,800, 359,800 and 399,800 respectively.

The Li L9 is still only available in the Max version, with a starting price of RMB 459,800.

(1 $ = RMB 6.9063)

Li Auto to build charging stations at 'NIO pace', report says

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Li Auto to build charging stations at ‘NIO pace’, report says

is aiming to build about 300 super-fast charging stations this year, and also plans to add 10,000 new charging piles this year, according to local media.

LI.US | 2015.HK

(Image credit: Li Auto)

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is starting to build out its charging infrastructure as its first all-electric model is set to be launched this year.

Li Auto's infrastructure build-out will enter the "NIO pace," with the company setting a goal of building about 300 super-fast charging stations within the year, with about 10 already deployed in highway service areas, a 36kr report today said, citing people familiar with the matter.

The move is in preparation for the launch of Li Auto's first all-electric model, which will be an all-electric MPV expected to be released by the end of 2023, and ultra-fast charging will be one of the highlights of the vehicle, according to the report.

Earlier this week, one of Li Auto's under-construction 800 V charging stations was seen at a highway service area in China, sparking widespread discussion in the Chinese community.

All of Li Auto's current models are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), which are essentially plug-in hybrids. Because these vehicles can be refueled, Li Auto has not started working on charging facilities in the past few years.

By 2025, Li Auto will have built a total of 3,000 supercharging stations, at a total cost of 10 billion yuan ($1.44 billion), Li Xiang, the company's founder, chairman and CEO, said in a media event last week.

For a company with annual revenues in the RMB 100 billion range, these costs are not as high as one might think after being spread out over five years, he said.

Li Auto is very confident about the coverage of supercharging piles along highways because China has been encouraging car companies to build supercharging stations since last year, he said.

The company's supercharging stations will be open to other models built on the 800 V platform, ensuring that each of its peer brands can also charge at a high level of efficiency, according to Li.

In China, NIO (NYSE: NIO) is one of the most aggressive car companies in building charging infrastructure.

NIO announced at NIO Day late last year that the company plans to add 400 new battery swap stations in 2023.

However, on February 21, William Li, NIO's founder, chairman and CEO, said that plan was far from enough and upped it to 1,000 stations.

"We have set a new goal of adding 1,000 new battery swap stations in 2023, for a cumulative total of more than 2,300 stations by the end of 2023," Li said in an article posted to the NIO App last month.

Of the 1,000 new stations, about 400 will be located near highway service areas or highway entrances and exits. The other 600 or so will be deployed in urban areas.

The 36kr report today quotes an NIO employee as saying that in addition to its aggressive battery swap station goal, the company also plans to add 10,000 new charging piles this year.

Those additions include superchargers and destination charging piles, covering both domestic and foreign markets, according to the report.

As of March 10, NIO had 1,321 battery swap stations in China, as well as 2,383 charging stations offering 14,054 charging piles, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.

In addition to Li Auto and NIO, their local counterpart (NYSE: XPEV) is also fast-tracking the construction of energy replenishment facilities.

On August 15, 2022, XPeng showcased its S4 Supercharging technology and announced the completion of its first S4 supercharger in Guangzhou, where it is headquartered.

This S4 fast charging pile has a maximum power of 480 kW, a maximum current of 670 A and a peak charging power of 400 kW, enabling the vehicle to obtain a CLTC range of 210 km in 5 minutes.

Last September 21, XPeng said at the G9 launch that it expects to add more than 500 S4 supercharging stations in 2023 and that the number will exceed 2,000 by 2025.

The reason for these aggressive moves is that there are limited site resources suitable for building such facilities.

Most highway service areas in China don't have much power redundancy, and after considering NIO's battery swap stations and State Grid's charging facilities, there aren't really many suitable site resources left, 36kr quoted an unnamed car company source as saying.

($1 = 6.9606 RMB)

NIO reveals aggressive plan to add 1,000 swap stations in 2023

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CATL confirms it’s negotiating new prices with EV makers

's lithium sharing program is not for price reduction purposes, but rather the company already owns some mineral resources and doesn't want to reap windfall profits, its management said.

Last month it was reported that CATL was pushing a lithium rebate program to electric vehicle (EV) makers to drive down the cost of battery purchases for a handful of customers. Now, for the first time, the power battery giant has acknowledged the move.

CATL's lithium-sharing program is not for the purpose of lowering prices, but rather the company already owns some mineral resources and doesn't want to reap windfall profits, its management said Thursday.

The company released its 2022 annual report Thursday and held an investor call afterward in which its management made those comments, according to a meeting minutes it released today.

CATL hopes to be able to share with long-term strategic customers and is moving forward with relevant communications, the company said.

On February 17, local media outlet 36kr first reported on CATL's plan, saying it was not for all customers, but for several strategic customers including (NYSE: NIO), (NASDAQ: LI), and .

The core terms of the partnership include that CATL will settle a portion of the price of power battery supply with car companies at a rate of RMB 200,000 ($28,720) per ton of lithium carbonate for the next three years.

At the same time, automakers signing the partnership will be required to commit about 80 percent of their battery purchases to CATL, according to the report.

CATL did not confirm the report at the time, though Li Auto and NIO both mentioned the program in their respective subsequent earnings calls.

In response to the rumored new pricing arrangement, Li Auto and CATL were in negotiations, the EV maker said during an analyst call following the February 27 announcement of its fourth-quarter earnings.

Whether it's lithium price concessions or battery prices linked to raw materials, it would be good news if battery prices could be brought back to a rational range, Li Auto's management said.

Asked about the topic during a conference call on March 1, NIO's management said the company is also in the process of discussions with CATL.

"Of course, we will maintain a long-term strategic relationship with CATL, and we are discussing some new pricing mechanisms with them," said William Li, NIO founder, chairman and CEO.

Battery makers also recognize that they must share the price volatility of battery materials with car companies, Li said at the time.

Back at CATL, the company's annual report, released yesterday, showed it posted a 39 percent quarter-on-quarter increase in net profit in the fourth quarter and further improved gross margins to 22.57 percent.

CATL's management, when asked about the lithium industry overhaul in Yichun, Jiangxi, said it had essentially no impact on the company, and its projects there are moving forward as planned.

The overhaul is mainly aimed at correcting the chaos in local lithium mining, which is beneficial to compliant companies in the long run, CATL's management said.

In Yichun, nicknamed the "lithium capital of Asia," local lithium miners have shut down production for an industry-wide overhaul, Yicai reported on February 26.

Analysts fear that this may bring disruption to the lithium supply, thus halting the downward trend in lithium prices. But such fears have not materialized.

Lithium carbonate prices have continued to fall over the past two weeks, with battery-grade lithium carbonate falling to RMB 367,000 per ton on March 9 and industrial-grade lithium carbonate falling to RMB 332,500 per ton, both one-year lows.

($1 = RMB6.9643)

CATL reportedly cutting battery costs significantly for some clients including NIO, Li Auto

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Chinese NEV insurance registrations for week ending Mar 5: BYD 38,932, Tesla 13,266, NIO 3,345

NIO vehicles registered 3,345 insurance units last week, down slightly from 3,357 the week before.

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Lithium carbonate prices to fall sharply as demand far below expectations, Li Auto CEO says

In January and February, insurance registrations for passenger cars in China were down more than 25 percent from a year earlier, Li Auto CEO said, citing insurance registration data.

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