Cao Yang did not choose to develop Xingchen Automobile's sports car with reference to the Bugatti Veyron, not because its price was too expensive.

Cao Yang did not agree to consider the Gallardo as a benchmark for Lamborghini, not because it was an entry-level sports car or because of its all-aluminum body.

In fact, the most fundamental reason is that Cao Yang already has the answer in his heart for sports cars.

Counting on the Xingchen Automobile Research Institute to develop sports cars, Cao Yang knew that it was unrealistic.

So he was ready to personally "participate" and directly set all the requirements for this car.

Then the research institute will complete part of the development tasks step by step.

Of course, listen to Zeng Tingting and Huan Yongxiang's report first, it's not just boring or to see other people's jokes.

Instead, I want to have a comprehensive understanding of the sports car market in 2005, and also compare it with some information in my mind in time.

So that the next step is to have a clearer pricing and advertising strategy.

"For a sports car to do well, power is definitely very important."

"We already have W12 engines in development, and continue to expand to W16 engine development, and the input-output ratio is very low."

"With this energy, we might as well think about powertrain development from other perspectives."

"For example, is it possible to equip the W12 engine with a hybrid system and equip the front and rear wheels of the sports car with an electric motor, so that the acceleration performance can be more extreme?"

As soon as Cao Yang said this, Zeng Tingting and Huan Yongxiang were stunned.

Hybrid system?

Using a hybrid system in a sports car?

This is something that no one has ever done before.

Isn't this something that Toyota and Honda are doing with companies that pursue low fuel consumption?

It doesn't seem to be a high-end thing.

"Mr. Cao, as far as I know, the best-selling sports cars on the market all use large-displacement engines."

"Whether it's the W16 engine, or the V12 and W12 engines, none of them have anything to do with the hybrid system."

"For example, the hybrid systems of Toyota and Honda are also developed in conjunction with 2.5L or 2.0L, or even 1.8L and 1.5L naturally aspirated engines to achieve better fuel performance in economy cars."

"This is a system for sports cars......"

Obviously, Huan Yongxiang is not optimistic about the use of hybrid systems in sports cars.

In order to develop this sports car, he also made a lot of preparations.

I am also familiar with the situation on the market.

However, with Cao Yang, a boss with a God's perspective, in front of him, he obviously said that there was no way to change Cao Yang's mind.

"Our W12 engine itself is already the pinnacle of the era of internal combustion engines, except for the W16 engine, which has better parameters than him, and can no longer find an opponent."

"With the hybrid system, the electric motor can output high torque at low rpm, which allows us to concentrate on optimizing the performance of the combustion engine at higher rpm."

"The result is an excellent engine performance over the entire rev range, with a peak torque of more than 900 Nm."

"So as to match or even surpass the performance of the W16 engine used on the Bugatti Veyron."

"The most important thing is that we can take this opportunity to start moving into hybrid systems and start producing batteries for hybrids."

"In the future, these things will definitely have broader application prospects."

In Cao Yang's mind, the LaFerrari launched by Ferrari in 2013 is obviously the best sports car.

Ferrari's flagship supercar, which was used to replace the Ferrari Enzo, was limited to 499 units.

It sets a new benchmark for supercars with exceptional performance, aerodynamic efficiency and handling.

The car accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 3 seconds.

The 0-200 km/h acceleration time is also less than 7 seconds.

0-300km/h in just 15 seconds.

Regardless of the speed limit, it has a top speed of more than 350 km/h.

Although compared to the Bugatti Veyron's exaggerated speed of 407 km/h, there is still a little bit of a gap.

But for the consumer, or for actual use, the difference simply doesn't make sense.

Because ordinary consumers drive, how can they drive to 407km/h?

Even on the German Autobahn, where there is no speed limit, you can't see this scene.

A maximum speed of 350km/h is enough!

"Mr. Cao, in the long run, the development prospect of pure electric vehicles or hybrid vehicles is worth looking forward to."

"But I think the next 10 years, or even 15 years, should still be the world of fuel vehicles."

"Especially in the field of supercars, without surging engines, it always gives people a feeling that it is not so good."

Although Zeng Tingting felt that what Cao Yang said seemed to be very reasonable, it was obviously very difficult for the inherent concept to be turned around immediately.

"Our sports car of Xingchen Automobile wants to set a new benchmark for supercars."

"This performance is even better than that of Ferrari Enzo, and even close to the Bugatti Veyron, which can give us plenty of pricing space."

"People sell tens of millions, if we set a price of three million, it is definitely very cost-effective, right?"

"But for Xingchen Automobile, as long as consumers can accept that it can produce three million-level models, this is enough."

Cao Yang did not plan to operate Xingchen Motors into an existence of the level of Rolls-Royce.

That doesn't make much sense, and it's not as difficult as it gets.

As long as it can be done to the extent of Porsche, it is enough.

With the rapid development of China's economy, the market space for luxury cars in the future is still very broad.

The small goal of an annual output of 1 million may be reached in five or six years.

It is not impossible to further challenge higher goals in the future.

At that time, even if Xingchen Automobile had an annual output of one or two million vehicles, its annual turnover would not be lower than that of other international giants with an annual output of seven or eight million models.

After all, the unit price of each car is not a level.

"Mr. Cao, three million is actually very high."

Zeng Tingting thought that she was going to sell a 3 million car to a consumer at that time, and she was under a lot of pressure.

So I couldn't help but interject on the side.

"That's right, 3 million is indeed a very high price."

"But our Star No. 3 sports car, the real benchmark model is the classic Ferrari Enzo in the sports car world."

"With all aspects of performance surpassing Ferrari Enzo, I believe there will be no problem selling 999 cars."

When Cao Yang said this, Zeng Tingting did not refute it again.

If the performance of Xingchen III can really reach the point of surpassing Ferrari Enzo and the shape is also very beautiful, then the price of 3 million is really not high.

After all, the parts used in sports cars are all produced in small batches, and the cost is very high.

The use of various new technology parts has made the cost of parts high.

In this case, if it is sold too cheaply, not only will it not have any effect on sales, but it will also lead to a large area of losses for the company.

This is clearly inappropriate.

"Mr. Cao, the design of various parts of this Xingchen No. 3 should be very different from that of ordinary cars."

"Could we consider recruiting some engineers from the European sports car companies to work on the design?"

Although Huan Yongxiang knew that Cao Yang would definitely participate in the model design in an all-round way, he couldn't find Cao Yang for any job, right?

Therefore, he still wants to find some engineers with sports car design experience to join the team, so that everyone will not be like headless flies, not knowing how to work hard.

"If you feel the need, go for recruitment."

"However, the experience of those people can only be used as a reference."

"In fact, if you just want to know how to design a sports car, it may be more convenient to recruit people from Toyota, Honda and Nissan."

"On the one hand, these people are easier to manage and are more willing to come to work in Huaxia."

"On the other hand, the cost will be much cheaper."

It's not that Cao Yang is reluctant to spend money, but he just doesn't want the situation of unequal pay for equal work to be too obvious.

At this time, you have to poach a few engineers from famous companies such as Ferrari or Porsche, even the most ordinary engineers, if the annual salary does not reach the level of millions, it is estimated that it will be difficult to find the right person.

However, most of the domestic engineers are still at the level of 100,000 yuan per year.

Now suddenly there is a job that is not very different from himself, but his salary is ten times that of himself.

So what do you think in your heart?

Relatively speaking, the cost of Dongying people will definitely be lower.

"Purely from a technical point of view, the performance of the sports cars of Dongying car companies is also good."

"It's just that the brand power is a little bit worse."

"But in the field of R&D, it doesn't matter."

Huan Yongxiang immediately agreed.

The boss has spoken, and if you don't agree, you have to agree.

Soon what Cao Yang said made sense, and he didn't have any reason to refute it.

"Mr. Cao, then our sales department will readjust the report of the kick-off meeting in the direction you said?"

"Is it possible to release some news appropriately, so that we can continue to maintain the heat of our Xingchen car."

"It can also further enhance the style of the coupe model of Ziweixing."

Zeng Tingting is now considering not only cooperating with the research institute to develop new models, but also focusing on how to sell Ziweixing, which is about to enter mass production.

After all, according to the current situation, although the price has not been finalized, it must be more than 500,000.

This price is really not cheap.

"No problem, I will also provide some renderings at that time, and cooperate with the sales department to carry out some preliminary publicity."

Constantly releasing various news to maintain the popularity of Xingchen Automobile, this is the general direction set by Cao Yang himself.

So he naturally has no opinion on Zeng Tingting's proposal.

Soon, the launch meeting of Xingchen No. 2 and Xingchen No. 3 was officially held within Xingchen Automobile.

Although some people inside already know that Xingchen No. 2 is a large SUV Wenqu Xing, Xingchen No. 3 is a sports car Leo.

But the follow-up also needs to send a quote or something, in order to keep it as confidential as possible, the code must still be used when communicating with each other.

It's just that the code of Xingchen Automobile is more straightforward.

……

"Big brother, you're still amazing!"

"Next to the Nanshan Industrial Park, we have invested in a hot stamping production line and a stamping line with four doors and two covers for Xingchen Automobile."

"Now it seems that by the time Xingchen No. 2 and Xingchen No. 3 are mass-produced, our production line will be at full capacity, and we need to consider adding a hot stamping production line."

The new model has been officially launched, and as a purchasing department, it is necessary to grasp the production capacity of key components.

After all, it takes a certain amount of time to invest in a new production line or plant.

If it's too late, you won't be able to catch up.

So although it has not yet been determined how many hot stamping parts will eventually be used for Xingchen 2 and Xingchen 3.

But the number of hot-stamped parts on each car will not be less than that of the Xingchen One, which is certain.

Even the kick-off meeting of Xingchen No. 3 specifically mentioned the integrated hot stamping and forming technology of the door knocker.

This means that the entire reinforcing parts around the cockpit are hot-stamped and formed.

At that time, it will definitely be possible to increase the capacity load of Yangcheng Huaqiang plant to a satisfactory point.

"Mr. Cao has never treated people badly."

"Since they arranged for someone to inform us to build a new factory, it shows that Nanshan Group already has a more thorough plan within it."

"It's just that some people don't necessarily want to speed us up in advance."

Guo Shuyin's mentality is relatively stable.

When the purchasing department of Xingchen Automobile asked them to confirm the production capacity, he was just relieved in his heart.

"Now BYD is also preparing to use some hot-stamping parts on next year's S6 facelift model."

"Geely and Chery also have this demand, big brother, we are about to invest in a new hot stamping production line near the magic capital, is it almost finalized?"

Now Yangcheng Huaqiang Factory, hot stamping technology is already well-known in China.

In addition to the models of Great Wall Motors and Xingchen Motors, several other factories have basically determined the use of their hot stamping parts.

This is definitely a very good sign.

"There should be a conclusion this month."

"If the orders of Modu Volkswagen and Modu General cannot be determined, we will directly go to buy land to build a hot stamping factory, and the risk is still relatively large."

"It's better to add a production line directly in Yangcheng."

Guo Shuyin is not such a radical person.

Although hot stamping technology is very popular now, after all, except for Great Wall Motors, the others have not yet been mass-produced.

Huaqiang factory did not make much money in this field.

Even most of the investment in plant equipment has not been recovered.

Continuing to expand the factory meant that you had to continue to find bank loans.

This made Guo Shuyin also feel a trace of pressure.

"I'll start going to various customers next week to finalize the orders for the new models."

Guo Shufu didn't bother anymore and was ready to go out in person to implement the order.

……

"Mr. Cheng, can your W12 engine be successfully developed this year?"

Although the engine fell off the chain, the responsibility is not on Yongxiang.

But this will certainly affect the development schedule of Stars-2 and Stars-3.

It can even affect everyone's confidence in development.

Therefore, after the kick-off meeting, Huan Yongxiang soon came to Nanshan Engine alone to confirm the research and development progress of the W12 engine.

"The prototype has been produced, and the parameters in all aspects are very good."

"This engine is definitely not worse than Volkswagen's W12, and it is not weak at all compared to the V12 of other manufacturers."

"But now it's the development of the crankshaft parts for this engine, and there are some details that need to be improved."

"Otherwise, the engine will not meet the design requirements in terms of noise and durability."

For Huan Yongxiang, Cheng Tao naturally has nothing to hide.

The W12 engine is a splicing product using two Nanshan 3.0T turbocharged engines.

As a crankshaft shared by two 3.0T, it is the most critical component of the W12.

The machining process requirements for crankshafts are also very high.

There is a bit of a gap in accuracy, which will affect the lifespan.

"Our Xingchen-2 and Xingchen-3 will only need to use W12 engines in the second half of next year."

"However, the high-performance version of Xingchen No. 1 will always be pushed out by Cao in the first half of next year."

"You'll have to hurry."

After listening to Cheng Tao's words, Huan Yongxiang also had some confidence in his heart.

Although the W12 engine has not been developed, the overall progress is still good.

At present, the remaining difficulties should also have the opportunity to be solved within half a year.

Then he wasn't very worried.

"Let's try to use the latest five-axis CNC lathe developed by Nanshan Equipment to process this crankshaft, and at the same time discuss with Nanshan Special Steel to improve the composition of the crankshaft special steel."

"There should be hope that these problems will be solved within this year."

"If it really doesn't work, we will report to Mr. Cao again and ask for support."

Cheng Tao naturally knows why Yongxiang pays so much attention to the research and development progress of the W12 engine.

As the main engine of the Stars 2 and 3, the W12 is of undoubted importance.

"If there is anything that needs the cooperation of the research institute, you have to say it directly."

"As long as there are no problems with the powertrain and no problems with the appearance of the model, our new model will be more than half successful."

The daily task of Huan Yongxiang is to confirm the supply and development of major parts one by one.

As for the specific design tasks, he didn't need to do it.

You can't let him be a vice president of R&D to draw, right?

……

"Mr. Cao, in the past few days, Nanshan Gearbox has been discussing whether to start the development of 9AT or 10AT."

"Although the current plans of Xingchen 2 and Xingchen 3 are to use 8AT automatic transmissions, as a technical reserve, 9AT or 10AT may need to be involved sooner or later."

"Now the development of the 8AT automatic transmission has been basically completed, and the follow-up is just a targeted improvement."

"We can already free up some R&D personnel to carry out technical research on 9AT or 10AT."

Ji Hua struggled for a few days, and finally prepared to talk to Cao Yang.

As a gearbox expert, he actually knows the research and development of 9AT and 10AT, which is of little significance from a practical point of view.

Although in theory, multi-speed gearboxes have a lot of advantages.

They have better hardware for lower fuel consumption, faster acceleration and smoother shifting.

However, the multi-gear gearbox will increase a large number of internal components, and the requirements for the hydraulic and electronic control system are also higher.

In addition to higher manufacturing and R&D costs, there are also more points of failure.

In addition, the internal components are more complex, but the limitations of the enclosure size result in the need to compress the volume of the internal components, and components such as smaller gear sets and clutch plates cause the transmission to withstand less torque.

Therefore, when high torque is involved, the engine output is often reduced due to the mechanism that protects the gearbox.

The most important thing is that whether it is a 9AT or a 10AT, there is almost no chance to use so many gears in the actual driving process.

This is where Ji Hua is most entangled.

"There is actually no essential performance difference between the 9AT and the 10AT, but for some people who don't know much about cars, they think that the more gears, the better."

"Since we want to do research, we will definitely do 10AT research directly."

"However, with the 8AT automatic transmission, the demand for 10AT is very weak in a short period of time, and even if we develop it, there is no need to put it into use so quickly."

"In this way, Nanshan Transmission can start the research of 10AT automatic transmission, and the goal is to complete all technical research and development and mass production preparations before 2010."

What Ji Hua is entangled in, Cao Yang can see it clearly at a glance.

However, because of this, he gave instructions very directly.

Whether a piece of equipment is actually useful or not is not the most important thing.

The most important thing is that consumers feel that it is useful and that consumers feel good.

That's enough.

At that time, the flagship model of Xingchen Automobile will be equipped with a W12 engine and a 10AT automatic transmission, and this powertrain will be able to satisfy many people.

That's enough.

As for the actual working conditions under which the 10AT can be used, it is no longer important.

It's like building a house in the countryside, you have to build four or five floors, or even five or six floors, at every turn.

In fact, there may only be two layers that are often used.

The rest was built there for others to see.

If you talk to people from a practical point of view, there is no need to build so high, I don't think many people will listen.

"If it's 2010, then there's no problem."

"However, the cost of 8AT has doubled compared to 6AT, and I estimate that the cost of 10AT may rise significantly on the basis of 8AT."

Ji Hua's reminder, Cao Yang didn't care very much.

If you can afford a 10AT model, will you care about the cost of 10,000 or 20,000?

At least for a few years after the 10AT came out, everyone didn't care.

In the future, there will be more models, and the cost of 10AT will naturally be reduced.

"We have enough time to develop the product first, and then slowly improve the cost."

According to Cao Yang's memory, the Ford F150 Raptor pickup truck, which debuted at the 2016 North American Auto Show, was theoretically the first model to be equipped with a 10-speed automatic transmission.

The reason why I say that it is theoretical, is because on the same day, the LC model of the Lexus equipped with a 10-speed automatic transmission was also unveiled at the North American Auto Show.

In other words, whether it is the 10AT provided by Aisin to Lexus or the 10AT developed by Ford itself, it is normal for it to enter mass production in 2016.

Under the influence of Cao Yang's butterfly, maybe their 10AT schedule will be advanced.

But at most, it's two or three years in advance.

With the goal of launching a production version of the 10AT in 2010, there is enough time.

(End of chapter)