Lifetime warranty of the three-electric system of new energy vehicles has gradually become a trend.

A few days ago, Lingpao Motor upgraded the \"8-year/150,000 km three-electric system warranty\" clause in the original T03 owner's rights and interests to the \"three-electric system lifetime warranty\". At this point, the T03 model of Leaprun Automobile has officially implemented the lifelong warranty policy of the three-electric system. The reporter learned that, in addition to zero-run vehicles, many car companies, including GAC New Energy, Chery New Energy, etc., have already introduced a lifetime warranty policy for the three-electric system as early as this time.

As the new energy vehicle market gradually matures, the quality of the three-electric system has become a decisive factor for the high-quality development of the entire vehicle. With technological progress and accumulation of experience, the overall level of my country's new energy vehicle three-electric system has been continuously improved. However, compared with the core components of traditional fuel vehicles, the application of the three-electric system in the vehicle is still \"low age\", and consumers will inevitably have doubts. The competition in the new energy vehicle market continues to intensify. In addition to product strength, the importance of car companies' after-sales service has also begun to become prominent. However, the reporter found after understanding that the three-electric system's lifetime warranty policy sounds beautiful, and it may still be in an ideal state in terms of actual operation. This also shows from the other hand that the promotion of new energy vehicles still has a long way to go.

Lifetime Warranty of Sandian System has gradually become a trend

\"The first to eat crab\" is Chery New Energy, which is the first domestic auto company with its own brand to launch a lifetime warranty on the three-electric system. Last year, Chery New Energy stipulated that Tiggo e, Arrizo e and 2019 Little Ant vehicles can enjoy three electric systems including power battery (cell), drive motor (including motor controller), and vehicle controller. Free lifetime warranty. At that time, this move caused quite a stir in the industry and the market.

After Chery New Energy, more and more car companies have begun to introduce a lifetime warranty policy for the three-electric system. In April of this year, BAIC New Energy announced the launch of a three-electric system lifetime warranty policy for all models. All the first private car owners who purchase BEIJING's new energy vehicles after January 1, 2020 will enjoy the battery, motor, electronic control and core Lifetime free warranty of integrated electrical components. The models covered by this policy are EU7, EU5, EX5, EX3, EC5, EC3 and LITE. As a result, BAIC New Energy has become the first car company in the country to implement a lifetime warranty for the three-electric system of all models.

In June of this year, GAC New Energy’s latest masterpiece, Ian V, was officially launched. Like Ian S and Ian LX, this car also enjoys the lifelong warranty of the three-electric system. In addition, JAC New Energy also followed the trend this year, stating that all users who order iEV6E only need to pay a 99 yuan deposit and pick up the car to enjoy the three-electric system lifetime warranty and six major gifts.

Regarding the trend of more and more car companies starting to join the army of life-long warranty for the three-electric system, Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the National Passenger Car Market Information Joint Council, told reporters: \"Under the current market environment, no new energy car company is I am willing to fall behind.\" He believes that no one can predict the specific situation of future technological development, so companies are not daring to make judgments about the future of electric vehicles in the next 10 years. The introduction of the three-electric system lifetime warranty policy is basically \"Bite your head\". In the short term, this after-sales policy can attract consumers to buy cars and increase sales.

The reporter learned that although car companies have introduced a lifetime warranty policy for the three-electric system, there are differences in the restrictions they stipulate. For example, Chery New Energy proposed that it must be the first non-operating owner of the three models; GAC New Energy requires that the annual mileage of Aian S should not exceed 30,000 kilometers, and it can only be enjoyed by the first owner.

The weight to attract consumers to buy a car?

For electric vehicles, the three-electric system is like the \"three big pieces\" commonly known on traditional fuel vehicles. The three-electric system fundamentally determines whether the performance of electric vehicles is excellent and whether the experience is good. According to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in July this year, the production and sales of new energy vehicles in my country were 100,000 and 98,000 respectively, an increase of 15.6% and 19.3% year-on-year. It is reported that this is the first time that my country's new energy vehicle production and sales have achieved growth this year. Coupled with the fact that foreign-funded enterprises have made efforts in this field, the pressure facing the industry can be imagined.

According to industry insiders, many auto companies have introduced lifetime warranty policies for the three-electric system, which are more to stimulate consumption and attract consumers to buy cars during the epidemic. Cui Dongshu also believes that this move is intended to enhance consumer confidence. It's no wonder that some people questioned that car companies are more like superficial articles.

\"Objectively speaking, for many users who buy new energy vehicles, a car will be replaced after three to five years. They may not be particularly concerned about the lifetime warranty.\" In Cui Dongshu’s view, the three-electric system lifetime warranty policy It is not clear what effect it can play in essence, and its effect to impress consumers may not be very obvious. He said: \"Now, when consumers buy new energy vehicles, they are more concerned about product performance and driving range. If companies do a good job of after-sales service for 3 to 5 years, they can achieve the first level of consumer use of new energy vehicles. This expectation is required. At present, the new energy automobile industry is developing rapidly, and everyone is not sure about the status of future model products.\"

However, some people in the industry hold different views. Although there are some restrictions on the lifetime warranty policy of the three-electric system of auto companies, such as private users, first car purchase, regular maintenance at 4S shops, etc., for consumers, after all, they can enjoy such after-sales service, buying and using cars. Can be more at ease. From another perspective, car companies dare to make promises is a manifestation of more confidence in their own technical level, product quality and service capabilities. This measure is also a good way to make after-sales profit for 4S stores. For car companies, consumers and 4S shops, the lifetime warranty of the three-electric system is actually a \"win-win-win\" policy.

In addition, the cost of the three-electric system accounts for about half or more of the entire vehicle. Once the warranty period is exceeded (for example, the Tesla Model 3 is 8 years/150,000 kilometers), the replacement and maintenance of related parts, especially the power battery, can be Not a small number. It can be seen that the lifetime warranty policy of the three-electric system is potentially saving a sum of money for consumers.

An auto parts enterprise person who asked not to be named told reporters that most of the sales of new energy vehicles were previously contributed by major customers, such as shared travel platforms and taxi companies, and the proportion of private purchases was small. The introduction of the three-electric system lifetime warranty policy also reflects from the side that ordinary consumers still do not approve of electric vehicles. He believes that as a consumable, a car is a lifelong maintenance of the key three-electric system, which is contrary to product attributes and does not conform to commercial laws.

According to data released by the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration, in 2018, my country has recalled about 135,700 new energy vehicles. From 2015 to 2018, the number of complaints about new energy vehicles in my country continued to rise, with more than 70% being quality complaints, of which 64% were battery complaints and 18% were electric motors. Regarding the challenges facing the development of the new energy automobile industry, Fu Bingfeng, executive vice president and secretary-general of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, said that the current industry's focus is on the two major issues that cannot be ignored, safety and cost. In fact, they are closely related to the three-electric system.

Consumers are more concerned about how to implement

Xiao Zhang, a car owner who has been paying attention to the new energy vehicle market, said in an interview with reporters that the direction of the three-electric system's lifetime warranty policy is good, but the operating space is too large. For ordinary consumers, it is often when buying a car. It is easy to say that after the product has a problem, it is particularly difficult to handle. In fact, long before the launch of this initiative, although most new energy automobile companies claimed that their three-electric system enjoys an 8-year/150,000 km warranty, the substantial reduction in vehicle continuity in winter is not within this scope. He believes that there are many \"word games\" in the quality assurance commitments of car companies, which are not so beautiful in fact, just listen to them.

Xiao Zhang also told reporters that in the three-electric system's lifetime warranty policy, motors and electronic control are not the focus, and generally there will be no major problems. Lifetime warranty is of course better; the most important thing is the power battery. For power batteries, how is the scope of the lifetime warranty clear? How do car companies fulfill their promises? These are the focus of consumers' attention. Many consumers believe that there are many new energy vehicle warranty commitments, including: whether it is recognized by the manufacturer within the warranty period, must be maintained at the manufacturer’s designated place, the vehicle must be “normal use”, etc. These are basically the manufacturers have the final say, consumers have no right to speak.

For example, the three-electric system of Chery New Energy has a lifetime warranty for three designated models. Private car users need to be designated. Operating vehicles cannot enjoy this policy. In addition, regular maintenance must be carried out in accordance with the manufacturer’s \"Product Manual\". Factory spare parts, and vehicles scrapped or major accidents are not entitled to lifetime warranty. Therefore, car owners must go to the 4S shop for maintenance regularly. At present, manufacturers can only use maintenance records as the relevant basis.

For consumers of new energy vehicles, what they are most concerned about is how to define battery degradation. As we all know, as the number of charge and discharge increases, power batteries will inevitably attenuate. \"Take the mobile phone battery for example. At first, it can be used for two days when it is fully charged in 1 hour, and then it will not be used for a day when it is fully charged in 3 hours. How to define this attenuation?\" Battery attenuation is not the battery attenuation considered by manufacturers, and their judgment criteria are different from those of consumers. He worries that now the driving range of the vehicle is only more than 100 kilometers. After sending it to the 4S shop for inspection, it is said that the battery capacity is still 80%, which is not covered by the warranty, or it can be restored to 80% after maintenance. The vehicle may be hit again in a week. Back to its original form\".

The reporter learned that the current vehicle warranty commitments in the industry are actually aimed at reducing the continued driving capacity to a certain limit within the warranty period, generally 80%. However, not all manufacturers have clearly informed consumers of this promise. In addition, generally speaking, the service life of new energy vehicle batteries is 5 to 8 years. my country's new energy vehicles have been put on the market around 2012, which means that since 2017, many vehicles have entered the battery replacement period.

New energy vehicle after-sales usher in the strictest supervision

Xiao Zhang told reporters that the additional terms of the warranty for some models are only responsible for replacing parts, but consumers need to pay for their own working hours. In his view, such a policy will certainly not last long. If, like Lexus, the maintenance cost is included in the price of the car when consumers buy a car, this will increase the cost of car purchase for consumers. What Xiao Zhang is even more worried about is that under the current bad market situation, if some new energy car companies go bankrupt, what will happen to after-sales service?

In fact, Article 28 of the \"Responsibilities for Repair, Replacement, and Return of Household Auto Products (Revised Draft for Comment)\" stipulates that in the event of bankruptcy, merger, division, or change of operators, their three guarantees will be implemented in accordance with relevant laws and regulations. The \"relevant laws and regulations\" mentioned here generally refer to the \"Consumer Rights Protection Law\" and the \"Tort Liability Law\".

In fact, the quality assurance issue of new energy vehicles has attracted the attention of relevant departments. The State Administration for Market Regulation issued the \"Regulations on Responsibilities for Repair, Replacement and Return of Household Auto Products (Revised Draft for Comment)\" on March 14, 2019, which is considered to be the most stringent supervision for new energy vehicles. For the first time, this regulation proposes to include the power batteries and motors of pure electric vehicles into the scope of the three packs. When consumers find serious quality problems with batteries or motors, they can return the vehicle. At the same time, the regulation also revised the new energy vehicle return and replacement compensation fees and the three-guarantee time limit, and promoted the establishment of a third-party settlement mechanism for family car product liability disputes.

Some people in the industry even put out \"vaccination\" in advance, hoping that consumers will look down on marketing promises such as \"lifetime warranty\" and not use this as a reference element for car purchase. However, experts said that the \"Regulations on Responsibilities for Repair, Replacement, and Return of Household Car Products (Revised Draft)\" plan to learn from mature foreign practices to promote the establishment of a third-party dispute settlement mechanism for three-guarantees of new energy vehicles. , Solve the problems of consumer complaints, identification, and handling.

Parts suppliers face new challenges

Cao Guangping, an independent researcher in the new energy automobile industry, told reporters that for the lifetime warranty policy of the three-electric system, companies and users need to pay attention to the following aspects: First, the underwriting of auto companies to users is based on the underwriting of the three-electric system suppliers. The premise; the second is that the supplier’s underwriting is based on the product quality and technical level, and the third is that there is a strong technical correlation between the battery lifetime warranty and battery cycle life.

In this sense, the launch of the three-electric system's lifetime warranty requires not only a strong supply chain system to support, but also the automakers themselves. For example, when Chery New Energy launched the lifetime warranty of the three-electric system, the publicity point it launched was the internationally leading Yaskawa Electric, Chery Qida battery and the three-electric core technology of the independent electronic control system. GAC New Energy Aeon V, which enjoys the lifelong warranty of the three-electric system, is equipped with a high-performance permanent magnet synchronous motor with a maximum power of 135kW and a peak torque of 350N·m. It is reported that GAC New Energy has built a complete R&D management system, enabling the four servers of GAC Silicon Valley R&D Center, GAC Research Institute, GAC New Energy, and battery suppliers to monitor vehicle status 24 hours a day.

Kaizhong Precision is a supplier of spare parts for the three-electric system. The relevant staff of the company told the reporter that the lifetime warranty policy of the three-electric system has a greater impact on some products, such as high-voltage connectors and bus bars. The reason is that this kind of parts involves sealing and insulation, which will increase the cost of the whole vehicle. However, he also revealed that when developing these products, customers will take the life cycle into consideration. In addition, components such as motors are more prone to problems due to sealing, especially in high temperature and high pressure conditions, which require high weather resistance of the sealing material, otherwise it is prone to failure. In the products produced by Kaizhong Precision and involve lifetime warranty, the time is generally 10 years.

Cao Guangping believes that the lifetime warranty of the Sanden system is a policy that is more favorable to users. At present, Tesla, Toyota and other car companies have made some technological breakthroughs in battery life extension. Domestic car companies and component suppliers still have a certain gap in this regard. As far as possible to improve the battery life cycle mileage, this indicator is a \"crown\" that companies are competing for. He suggested that car companies with aspirations should do more in-depth research on battery life extension technology and apply it to the market in order to be more conducive to fulfilling various promises to users. (China Car News/Zhao Qiong)