Chapter 715: The Future of Electric Vehicles

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"Developing a new car from scratch takes a lot of time and money. Austin, Rover, MG and Red Star, even with Rover's existing technology and car lineup, 12 models are enough for us to work hard for a long time. At the same time, they also cover the mainstream models that are currently popular in the world. Wait until we get a foothold in the automotive industry and get our debt below 20% before we look at expanding into new series and models. ”

“… That is to say, in the next three to five years, or even longer, the main task of Red Star Rover is to improve the enterprise management system, keep up with the trend of the times for the research and development of 12 models, and repay debts. ”

After a pause, he saw Peter Cyril nodding knowingly, "Who still has a problem?"

"Now that many car companies are planning the research and development of electric vehicles, should we start research in advance in this area?" asked Lauren Cunningham, chief engineer.

"The key battery technology for electric vehicles is far from meeting the standards of the market, and it is not necessary at present, and there is not enough money and energy to focus on it. The task of the engineering department of Red Star Rover is to do a good job in the development and tuning of the engine and chassis. ”

Guo Shouyun did not merge Rover's engine R&D and production, as well as chassis R&D and production, into Hunan Torch. The technical strength of Hunan torch is weak, and its foundation is in China. Forcibly merging with Rover's engineering department, which has a strong technical accumulation, is too cumbersome to integrate and will take a lot of time. It is better to leave it to Rover, specializing in the development and production of diesel and gasoline car engines, as well as chassis.

As for the Hunan torch, Guo Shouyun also thought about it. Accumulating engine technology and chassis technology from scratch, with China's existing scientific research level and technical capabilities, even if it takes ten years, it may not be possible to catch up with the old Europe, Japan, South Korea and the United States, which have accumulated strong technological powers.

In this case, we should learn from BYD, overtake in corners, and press 'Bao' on the research and development of batteries and electric drive systems. In this, everyone's starting point is the same, now high investment in research, and when the electric vehicle market breaks out in 20 years, Red Star Rover will be able to take the initiative.

After asking again, and everyone had no questions, Guo Shouyun started the next topic.

"On the issue of sales. At present, in the automobile sales industry, the dealer model occupies the mainstream. But the disadvantages of the dealer model are also obvious. For example, inventory pressure, serious internal competition, difficult process management, high assessment indicators, etc.; in order to pursue performance, they often adopt sales methods such as bundling sales, opaque prices, and frequent harassment of customers. Not only does this result in a poor user experience, but it also deals with the dealer's own interests first, rather than the goodwill and future of the car brand. ”

“… A company's brand and goodwill take more than a decade, or even decades, to build. But in the case of destruction, it may only take a few days, or even a few hours. We want to reduce this probability as much as possible. Therefore, in the future, we will establish our own directly operated stores! Of course, considering that the investment in opening a direct store is high and it will take time, we will temporarily adopt two models: direct sales and distributors. However, I hope that we will be able to expand the scale of our directly operated stores in the shortest possible time. … Bo Ruituo?"

“Boss！”

"I have already told you about the development model of direct stores in China, and this time the European side is still expanding in a cascade model of large cities, medium-sized cities and small cities. ”

"Boss, are you going to start now?"

"Yes!"

"However, most of our current car series will not be launched until next year, and if we start to expand the scale of our directly operated stores now, I am afraid that it will cause a certain amount of waste. ”

"I know that. But I'd rather have the shop wait for the car than the car wait. In addition, the car distribution system in Europe is relatively well-established. Unlike Huaxia, most of the directly operated stores need to be built by ourselves. The European region is dominated by acquisitions. With the amount of money we have now, you can measure specific acquisition targets to reach out, and then notify me when you have the results. ”

Bo Ruituo nodded clearly.

"Okay, that's all I have to say, who has a problem?"

Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads.

"Since it's all right. Then I hope that you can restructure the departments you lead according to the content of the meeting just now. Every other month I will ask you about your respective results, and if you do well, I will not be stingy with rewards, and you will have your share in equity and options. But if you guys can't meet my requirements for a quarter in a row, then sorry, please leave, Red Star Rover doesn't need lazy executives. This is what I ask of you, and I want you to demand such standards from your subordinates. … Guys, do you understand?"

Facing the majestic gaze of the big boss, these people who have worked hard in the workplace for many years invariably feel a heavy pressure.

They understand that Red Star Rover is very different from the company they have worked for before. There is more emphasis on efficiency and wolf culture here.

"Understood!"

"Okay, I'll see how you perform. Bo Ruituo, you stay for a while, and the others can leave. ”

Everyone didn't dare to stay longer, and after packing up their things, they turned around and left the conference room.

"I think you're not in good shape, don't make yourself too tired. We still have a lot of time!" Guo Shouyun turned his head and said after there were only two people left in the room.

"I know. But Rover has so many things to do, and there are so many things that even if he wants to rest, he doesn't have a chance. Fortunately, I got used to this kind of life when I was in Breco. Bo Ruituo laughed.

"It's good that you know it in your heart!" After a pause, Guo Shouyun organized his language, "The reason why I left you alone this time." I mainly want to discuss the issue of Hunan Torch with you. According to our previous plan, Hunan Torch will be a leader in the research and development of ignition systems, engine systems, brake systems and air conditioning systems and spare parts. But I think that target is a bit out of place after we acquired Rover. ”

“… The reason is very simple, compared with Rover, which has strong technology accumulation, Huaxia's industry, especially the mechanical processing and technology research and development system of the automotive industry, is very weak, and it is a waste of money and unnecessary to catch up from scratch. Therefore, my plan is to remove the research and development of the engine system from the research and development system of Hunan Torch, and put money and energy on the vehicle battery and electric drive system. ”

"Wouldn't you say that it's too early to do research in this area, and with Rover's technology accumulation and European R&D strength, wouldn't it be more appropriate to place the research on automotive batteries and electric drive systems here?" said Bo Ruituo with a slight frown.

"I said it early because I didn't want to distract Rover before they were out of the quagmire. As for the research and development of automotive batteries and battery drive systems, we will place them in Europe. Guo Shouyun smiled, "It is precisely because Europe has too strong technology accumulation in internal combustion engines and machining that this is an advantage that they are proud of." Do you think they would be willing to give up that advantage and instead focus on electric vehicles that haven't proven to be viable?"

Bo Ruituo pondered for a moment and shook his head slightly.

When a company occupies an absolute advantage in a field, it will instinctively become proud and rigid, and the vigilance and attention to new things will be reduced, and the good swimmer will die of drowning. The prime example is the mobile phone industry, where Motorola, Nokia, and BlackBerry never imagined they would be disrupted by Apple's epoch-making mobile phone innovations.

In fact, Apple's first-generation iPhone wasn't great. Motorola and Nokia have every opportunity to use their strong mobile phone technology accumulation to do it head-on. It's a pity that the rigid system, the pride and persistence of their own strong technology accumulation, made them miss the opportunity. On the contrary, it is the grass-headed army in China that does not have any ideological baggage to chase Apple's ass plagiarism and imitation, and does everything they can, and finally becomes a giant in the world's mobile phone industry. Among the world's top ten mobile phone giants, Huaxia occupies seven seats.

The same is true for the electric vehicle industry. The key to electric vehicles is the battery, which accounts for 40% of the cost of the whole vehicle, and before his crossing, among the world's top ten automotive battery manufacturers, except for Panasonic, Samsung and LG Chem, all are Huaxia battery companies.

Among the world's well-known electric vehicle companies, the boss is Tesla, and the second is BYD. Behind NIO and a bunch of Huaxia electric vehicle companies.

Of course, BMW and Toyota are also on the list. But they're more of a hybrid. Pure electric vehicles are still Tesla and a large number of Chinese car manufacturers.

Bypassing the strong technology accumulation in engines and transmissions in old Europe and Japan, a large number of electric vehicle companies in the United States and China have risen, breaking the pattern of the global automotive industry.

Of course, in terms of vehicle manufacturing technology, even Tesla is a rough man compared to BMW and Mercedes-Benz. However, in the R&D and manufacturing of automotive batteries and the R&D of electric drive systems, China and the United States have caught up with the first-mover advantage. It is unknown whether traditional car companies such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota will be able to maintain their dominance in the automotive industry over the past few decades.

Interestingly, the international electric vehicle market in 2018 and 2019 is similar to the mobile phone market in 2007 and 2008. Elon Musk and Tesla are similar to Steve Jobs and Apple, while a large number of pure electric vehicle companies in China are similar to Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, etc. in the era of ignorance. At that time, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and old giants like Motorola and Nokia were also eyeing up. No one knows if the electric vehicle industry will have the same disruptive outcome as the mobile phone industry. But at least Alibaba, Tencent, Google, and Apple have a large number of Internet companies entering the electric vehicle industry, which cannot but make people have infinite associations!

"No one, or any company, is going to give up their strengths and focus on something that doesn't have a definite future. Not for BMW, not for Volkswagen, and not for Daimler-Benz. Of course, they thought they could rely on their technology accumulation, sales channels and brand recognition to establish their presence through acquisitions on the eve of the real start of development of electric vehicle companies. But without the accumulation in the early stage, the lack of a clear development direction and firm determination, how can they stay ahead in the face of the ever-changing new technology?"

“… Of course, everything I'm talking about now is based on speculation. However, I would prefer to start developing for electric vehicles from now on and establish a sufficient technological advantage. Otherwise, with only the current capital of Red Star Automobile Group, although it has the opportunity to become a world-class automobile manufacturer, it is difficult, or there is not much chance at all, to surpass Volkswagen, Toyota, and Daimler-Benz to become the world's largest car company. ”

Bo Ruituo looked at him with a little surprise and admiration, and sighed: "The boss is really amazing, I originally thought that making Red Star Automobile Group one of the top ten automobile manufacturers in the world was already a success, and I never thought of surpassing Volkswagen or Toyota." ”

"If you want to do it, you have to be the best one. Otherwise, with my current identity and status, what is the point of entering a new industry!" Guo Shouyun said.

"Looks like I'm going to have to work harder. Otherwise, wouldn't you be unworthy of your current position!" Bo Ruituo said with a smile.

"I'm sure you're worthy, and you're going to be surprisingly good!"

"I hope so, too!"

……

5 September 2004, Exeter Bevan Manor, England.

Since Molly Bevan's accident, Guo Shouyun has rarely been here. It doesn't feel good to see things and think about people. However, it is the father-in-law's birthday soon, and although he has no name, his actual son-in-law naturally can't miss it.

"Yaya Toure made you a fortune with the transfer, right?"

While his attention has been on the revamp of Rover cars during this time, there have been occasional transfers to Manchester United.

In particular, the transfer fee of 22 million pounds, the news that Yaya Toure joined the Premier League giants Manchester United from Olympiacos in Greece is a rare big deal in football in 2004.

"Haha, make a small profit. There's no comparison to you, the super-rich man who bought Manchester United for £800 million. Al Bevan laughed.

Looking at the smugness in the corners of his eyes and eyebrows, you can know how happy he is now.

"That's right, Bruce. Manchester United's backline, in the centre-back position, Silvestre's ability is obviously not up to the needs of Manchester United's main team, you should bring in a younger, stronger centre-back. Also, left-back O'Shea is versatile, but well-rounded also means mediocre and you need a left-back. The quality of Kolo Toure at centre-back and Marcelo at left-back are among the best in today's football. ”

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