"The development of the joint venture requires the joint efforts of both Chinese and foreign parties, and we will try our best to strive to launch global synchronous models to the majority of Chinese consumers. ”

Tianjin Automobile executives used media channels to put pressure on Toyota, Xiali 2000 belongs to Toyota's previous generation of models, in the increasingly fierce competition in the product power is limited, there is no hope of big sales.

As the saying goes, three years old looks old, and a child can roughly see the development potential of his life at the age of three. In the same way, in the automotive field, there is a saying that March is set for life. If a new model does not sell well in the first three months, it will not have a good future in the market.

The new launch of the new car must represent the most advanced technology at the time, if the start is not good, then wait for the price reduction promotion. If it's useless to promote, you can only look forward to the next model.

Five months after its listing, Xiali 2000 launched an official price reduction promotion, and the price of the whole series was reduced by 5,000 yuan in order to make a breakthrough in the market. However, the effect was still limited, and the sales of Xiali 2000 did not improve much.

Within Tianjin Automobile, the Chinese side has always hoped that Toyota can bring the Corolla model to China for production, and this model that is destined to sell well is comparable to the existence of Santana. However, Toyota has always refused, saying that it must first do a good job in the small car market before starting to consider compact cars.

In fact, Toyota's strategic focus is no longer on Tianjin Automobile, and since Akio Toyoda took office, Toyota intends to find new partners in China.

I have always felt that Jinqi, who has been on Toyota's thigh, does not know, but now Toyota has a relationship with FAW and is ready to get rid of Jinqi and start anew.

"Zhu Sang, FAW is the most powerful automobile company in China, and we at Toyota Motor are interested in strengthening cooperation with you. Only by combining strong and strong can we be invincible in the market. ”

Zhu Tianfeng didn't expect that it was Toyota that took the initiative to come to the door to discuss cooperation.

In the Chinese market, Volkswagen firmly controls the majority of China's sedan market by virtue of its first-mover advantage, and General Motors has also begun to exert force with the help of SAIC, becoming a force to be reckoned with in the market.

Toyota, as a latecomer, must develop unconventionally if it wants to catch up with Volkswagen and GM.

Akio Toyoda invited Zhu Tianfeng to open a secret meeting to discuss the possibility of cooperation between Toyota and FAW.

"We at FAW will not refuse strong partners, but if the new brand wants to make a difference in the Chinese market, it must show more sincerity. ”

Now it is Toyota that takes the initiative to come to the door, so Zhu Tianfeng has more initiative.

Volkswagen's attitude towards FAW has become more and more hawkish, the previously negotiated technology transfer has been terminated for unknown reasons, and the Germans now position FAW as a major assembly plant. FAW has not been able to extract any useful technology from Volkswagen in recent years, and the Germans' control of technology has reached its peak.

In the field of key engines and transmissions for automobiles, FAW has not benefited from the joint venture with Volkswagen. The engine used by Xiaohongqi is still a product purchased by FAW, which originally wanted Volkswagen to provide the power system, but was categorically rejected by the Germans.

Together with Volkswagen, I made a lot of money, but the technology was not obtained, and the market for technology could not be realized.

"In the past two years, the Chinese market has proven its strong development potential, and we at Toyota intend to enter China with a more positive attitude. The two trump cards, the flower crown and the crown, we intend to put them in the Chinese market. ”

The Crown sedan is the earliest well-known high-end luxury sedan in China, and before Audi and BMW entered China, the Crown was the favorite car of many senior leaders. Needless to say, the newly renewed ninth-generation Corolla is calling for wind and rain in the global market, which is in line with China's mid-level car market.

"If you work with FAW and you launch these two models, then I think the new joint venture will definitely become a leader in the Chinese market. ”

As soon as Akio Toyoda's words fell, Zhu Tianfeng knew that Toyota really wanted to bring housekeeping products to China. If FAW can take Toyota, it will be able to balance Volkswagen, and second, it will have a lucrative joint venture.

No matter how you look at it, the cooperation between FAW and Toyota is a perfect match.

However, although he was excited, Zhu Tianfeng still wanted to get more things from Toyota, and these were alternatives that could not be obtained from Volkswagen.

"The joint venture is attractive, but Toyota already has two major partners in China, and the State Council should not approve a third joint venture. Even if the policy is bypassed, the mere promise of joint ventures to launch new models will not impress our vetting officials in the capital, who want to see more favorable conditions for the development of China's auto industry. ”

"I understand your Chinese desire for automotive technology, otherwise I would not have asked GM and Ford to implement technical goals." Xiaohongqi is the main independent brand of your FAW, if we cooperate with Toyota, we are willing to send engineers to help develop the next generation of Xiaohongqi car. ”

Before coming, Akio Toyoda had seen the company's internal references and knew where FAW's pain points were.

Sure enough, when Toyota proposed to support FAW in the field of technology, Zhu Tianfeng's face moved slightly, which was the result he had been looking forward to for many years.

Over the years, FAW Xiaohongqi has been developing in a patchwork and has not been able to have a clear and scientific research and development process. If you can get Toyota's technical guidance, then Xiaohongqi can be revitalized and become a real big brother among independent brands. Although FAW is the leader of domestic automobiles, it is very backward in terms of independent research and development capabilities. In order to make a joint venture with Volkswagen, many old employees retired early, resulting in a shortage of R&D strength.

In the past two years, with the joint venture brand launching a large number of global synchronous mid-to-high-end cars, the sales of Xiaohongqi, priced at more than 200,000 yuan, have been declining, which has brought great pressure to Zhu Tianfeng.

"As for the restrictions on the two joint ventures, as long as you FAW merges and reorganizes our joint venture partners, you can naturally replace the quota. Shuchuan Automobile's strength is limited, and if they can join the FAW family, I think they will be very happy. ”

Shuchuan Automobile is located in the southwest and is a local state-owned enterprise, and Toyota has launched the production of Coaster minibuses. It can be said that Toyota controlled this automobile company by virtue of its technological superiority, and they are nothing without Toyota. Faced with the double pressure of Toyota and FAW, Shuchuan Automobile can only obediently obey the mercy.

"If FAW succeeds in restructuring Shuchuan Automobile, then we Toyota will also come up with a domineering off-road vehicle in its production. The western region of China has many mountain bends, which is the area where off-road vehicles can show their strengths. Now that the Mitsubishi Pajero has been banned from imports by China, Toyota will usher in a period of market vacuum development and become the new favorite of Chinese consumers. ”

Step by step, Akio Toyoda took the pulse of FAW and put forward conditions that Zhu Tianfeng could not refuse.

There are three models of sedans and off-road vehicles, and the one-time investment is more than that of Volkswagen, and it seems that Toyota is really determined to do a big job in the Chinese market, and Zhu Tianfeng immediately made a decision and Toyota is ready to establish a joint venture.

As the leader of the Japanese brand, Toyota is much more powerful than Mazda, which FAW is approaching. As for Mazda Motors, FAW and the company had a good negotiating relationship, and the other side expressed its determination to enter China. It's just that Mazda is constrained by Ford and will not be able to make a choice for a while.

If all goes well, FAW will become the most powerful auto group in China in the future, with Volkswagen and Toyota, two foreign giants, and Audi and Mazda behind it. Thinking of this, Zhu Tianfeng couldn't help but rejoice that he had caught up with a good opportunity, and FAW would carry it forward in his own hands and become an unrivaled big brother in the domestic automobile industry.

Mazda Motor, which Zhu Tianfeng is concerned about, is now sending a delegation to Jiangzhou to inspect the Zhonghua Group, which is highly respected by its major shareholder, Ford Motor.

Mazda is known as a technology maniac among Japanese brands, and when the global auto giants have abandoned the background of rotary engines, Mazda is still tirelessly investing huge amounts of research and development in rotary engines.

If it weren't for the transfer of technology and export parts to Haima Motors, Mazda would have almost faced the risk of going bankrupt and being completely acquired by Ford. Although Ford Motor now holds more than 30% of the shares, Mazda still has the right to speak.

Focusing on young sports, Mazda is looking for a positioning for its own product innovation, and the new Mazda6 is a new generation of products born under this guiding ideology.

Since the beginning of the management crisis in 1996, Mazda has welcomed foreign CEOs and managers sent by Ford. The foreign CEO has made a drastic effort to reduce costs within Mazda, but there has been friction with the Japanese management. In less than five years, Mazda has welcomed three foreign CEOs, and it is expected that this turmoil will continue.

Takashi Yamauchi is a veteran of Mazda, and he has been promoted through the ranks since he first started working at Mazda, and is now the head of the Japanese delegation.

At first, he was very resistant to the instructions from Ford: Ford hoped that Mazda would choose a joint venture with Zhonghua Group, but he was forced to shirk it for a long time under pressure from major shareholders, and finally had no choice but to come to China.

As one of the leaders of Mazda's local strength in Japan, Takashi Yamauchi has a strong voice within the company.

Honda has set a good example for Japanese brands, and entering China can look for the next blue ocean. In this context, Mazda also wants to enter China to seek joint ventures, but in terms of the choice of joint venture partners, foreign CEOs want to choose Zhonghua Group, while local forces prefer FAW Group.

In order to make a more rational choice, Takashi Yamauchi led a delegation to Jiangzhou to see and evaluate the development potential of Zhonghua Group with his own eyes.

When they came to Jiangzhou, the representatives of Mazda were shocked by the modern factory of Zhonghua Group. Compared with Haima and FAW, it seems to be ahead of the times, and it surpasses each other in terms of factory layout and production equipment. Even compared to Mazda's headquarters plant in Japan, it is at the leading level of hardware.

"When did China have such an advanced car factory? It's rare to see such a big investment. ”

"It's no wonder that BMW Germany chose this partner, because the value of fixed assets here is very high. If you build a joint venture, you can save a lot of money. ”

……

Members of the Japanese delegation were whispering in Japanese.

"We welcome new partners to enter, as long as there are strong foreign manufacturers are our potential partners. Mazda's tireless pursuit of technology is consistent with the R&D spirit advocated by our company, and the two sides have a strong commonality. ”

Ford recommended Mazda to come, and Han Hao came forward as the host to receive the Japanese guests.

"Before we came, we always thought that you mainly produce micro cars, and you should be relatively backward in terms of hardware. I didn't expect to come to the field, but I saw a different scene. In recent years, China's automobile industry has developed rapidly, and it cannot be looked at with old eyes. ”

Takashi Yamauchi responded politely.

The highlight of the visit is the Automobile Research Institute, which is the proudest place of Zhonghua Group.

While other domestic manufacturers are still using the production workshop as a selling point, Zhonghua Group has taken the lead in putting R&D in the first place.

From the newly developed Pangu 1.6L engine to the pure electric QQ sedan, everything about Zhonghua Group shows that it is different from Haima and even FAW, and this enterprise has strong technical research and development strength. In common with Mazda, both Mazda and Mazda share a fanatical pursuit of technology.

As an expert in the automotive industry, Takashi Yamauchi knew that in time, the hope of China's future cars would be born here.

He had always rejected Ford's behavior of pulling a match, and now it seemed that his voice of opposition was much weaker.

FAW has the incomparable strength in China, and in the future, whether it is the mechanism, organizational structure or value concept, it is the existence of surpassing its domestic counterparts.

If he really wanted to choose a joint venture partner between these two targets, Yamauchi felt that he could not make up his mind for a while.

Back at the hotel, the Japanese delegation held a closed-door discussion meeting.

"When I saw Chunghwa Group, I felt a sense of familiarity, just like what I saw and heard when I visited Hyundai Motor. Many foreign technicians have returned, and enterprises have begun to catch up in the core field of engines, and they will become the object of fear unconsciously. ”

A gray-haired technologist talks.

"From a technical point of view, if you invest in Zhonghua Group, it will be less than in FAW, because there are many ready-made production facilities here. With a slight modification, it can meet the requirements of our Mazda sedan production line. ”

"We have to consider the policy of the Chinese government, and FAW obviously has more political resources than China. If Chung Hwa Group is not treated by the government in the future, we will be reduced to a marginal brand in the market. But if you cooperate with FAW, there will never be such a political risk. ”

……

In the delegation, those who support FAW and Zhonghua are divided into two factions of opinion, and they are evenly matched.

"I suggest waiting and seeing how the market changes for a while and then making a decision after China actually joins the TO. There is too much fog now, and when the fog clears, we can see more clearly where our shadow falls. ”

As the head of the regiment, Takashi Yamauchi decided Mazda's attitude and waited for a while.

The choice is two-sided, and when Mazda picks China, China also has the right to pick them.

Mazda, as a third-rate Japanese brand, is indeed limited in strength compared to the first-class Toyota and the second-rate Honda and Nissan.

Therefore, some people within the Chunghwa Group have also put forward different views on the intention of cooperation with Mazda.

"Mazda doesn't have any punch products right now, and the new generation of products they and Ford have not yet developed on the car-sharing platform. They can't get good models from joint ventures with us, especially in terms of technology transfer, and Mazda is already a puppet of Ford. ”

"You can't do a joint venture for the sake of a joint venture, you have to see what benefits the joint venture can bring. If it's just a joint venture foundry, then it's not interesting. Unless Mazda promises to give us tangible benefits in terms of technology, I don't see any good options for Mazda. ”

……

BMW belongs to the Zhonghua Group to take the initiative, and now Mazda is passively looking for the door, which has a different meaning.

As the first company to take the initiative to throw an olive branch to the Zhonghua Group, Han Hao believes that it is worth seriously considering one or two, even if Mazda is a third-rate Japanese enterprise, it still greatly exceeds the existing technical level of the Zhonghua Group.