A major turning point has taken place in the Chinese automobile market in 2023. This turning point began with the outbreak of smart cars and the involution of new domestic automobile plans. The best-selling models all carry excellent genes. Without exception, these excellent genes are Relying on advanced technology, dual 800 technology such as intelligent driving, large-scale integrated die-casting, integrated intelligent chassis, and 800V high voltage + 800 kilometers of battery life will become the mainstream trend and will help Chinese cars further take the lead on the new energy track.
1. Autonomous Driving Technology – Detonating the Era of Intelligent Cars
Autonomous driving technology will advance by leaps and bounds in 2023. In the first half of the year, new car manufacturing forces have successively announced plans to launch L2-level assisted intelligent driving in cities. Entering the third quarter of 2023, various car companies have pressed the accelerator button to promote assisted driving with the help of large car training models. In November 2023, the Zhijie S7 debuted with unmanned valet parking, which made us happy to see the beginning of L3 level autonomous driving. At the launch of Huawei’s smart travel solution and the pre-sale conference of the new Zhijie S7 product on November 9, 2023, Yu Chengdong announced that the Zhijie S7 will launch unmanned valet parking, support active obstacle avoidance, and be on call, but it has always been No display effect.
On November 24, a video showing the unmanned valet parking of Huawei Smart World S7 was widely circulated. No one was involved in the valet parking process. This is not an ordinary L2 level autonomous driving. In a sense, This is the L3 level of autonomous driving, or the prototype of the L3 level. The entire process autonomously completes a series of operations such as yielding to pedestrians, reversing to avoid, extreme meeting, automatic parking, and automatic pick-up. The whole process is relatively smooth. The complexity of the underground parking lot of the valet parking mall is equivalent to that of normal road driving, which makes people happy to see the shadow of L3 level autonomous driving.
On November 27, Ideal released a video of unattended parking, which can be described as a response to Huawei’s valet parking technology.
On December 4, He Xiaopeng shared a video of the internally tested X9 valet parking on Weibo. It can be seen that the progress of the leading smart car companies is catching up with each other.
2. Integrated Die-Casting Technology – Expanding to Large-Scale & All-Round
Integrated die-casting technology can improve the quality of the entire vehicle, shorten the product production cycle, ensure the absolute sealing of the interior space, and improve the passive safety and durability of the vehicle body. At present, automobile brands such as Weilai, Xiaopeng, Ideal, Wenjie, Lantu, Changan, Xiaomi, and Nezha have mass-produced or deployed integrated die-casting technology. The difference is that everyone chooses a different die-casting position, and the integrated rear body Most of them are on the front and rear floors. It is currently developing towards the integrated front and integrated side panels. Judging from the tonnage, 9000T is no longer unusual. On December 15th, Nezha Automobile went directly to 20000T. It can be said that to a certain extent, it determines the future of body-in-body integration in China. trend of change. Nezha Automobile, December 15, 2023 – Lijin Technology and Nezha Automobile, a new car-making force, jointly held the “Super-large Integrated Die-casting Equipment and Technology Strategic Cooperation Signing Ceremony”. The two parties jointly developed a 20,000-ton ultra-large die-casting unit and multiple businesses have reached in-depth strategic cooperation. The clamping force of the die-casting unit developed through this cooperation is currently the highest in the world. It is expected to expand the integrated die-casting scenario to the entire body chassis of B-class cars and larger models, creating more possibilities for integrated manufacturing.
Ji Krypton 007, the rear chassis of the body uses integrated die-casting technology to reduce the number of rear parts and improve the strength of the body.
The Wenjie M9 uses the world’s largest one-piece die-cast rear body to improve the safety of the body structure.
3. Integrated Intelligent Chassis Technology – Reduces Vehicle Energy Consumption
The integrated intelligent chassis can be regarded as a manifestation of the integration of power domains, achieving a highly integrated and efficient intelligent electric chassis. Intelligent chassis are based on power batteries. We can see the industry trend through the cooperation between CATL’s CIIC integrated intelligent chassis and car companies. CATL’s CIIC is a highly integrated electric chassis with battery/electric drive as the core and CTC (Cell to Chassis) technology. CIIC integrates batteries, electric transmission systems, suspension, brakes and other components on the chassis to achieve separation and decoupling of the upper and lower body designs, laying the foundation for rapid vehicle development. On October 31, 2022, CATL and VinFast announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding on global strategic cooperation. The two parties will cooperate on CIIC (CATL Integrated Intelligent Chassis) skateboard chassis and other projects.
On January 10, 2023, Times Intelligence, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CATL, and Nezha Automobile held a signing ceremony in Shanghai. The two parties will cooperate on the CIIC (CATL Integrated Intelligent Chassis) integrated intelligent chassis project. The first model equipped with CIIC It will be available as soon as the end of 2024.
At the 2023 International Automotive Electronics and Software Conference Dishui Lake Summit, CATL revealed that the skateboard chassis developed by its Times Intelligent Technology has achieved a technological breakthrough. The first B-class sedan in cooperation with CATL has completed winter testing in Heihe and summer testing in Turpan, achieving a battery pack efficiency of 75%, a cruising range of over 1,000 kilometers, low temperature attenuation of less than 30% at minus 7 degrees, and power consumption per 100 kilometers. 10.5kWh, achieving a charging range of 300 kilometers in 5 minutes, and the chassis supports CNCAP five-star crash requirements, and the lower body collision energy absorption is greater than 80%, and the car company should be Nezha Automobile, which previously signed a contract with CATL for integrated chassis . It can be foreseen that the cooperation between integrated intelligent chassis and foreign company VinFast in the past, and the mass production demonstration effect of Nezha Automobile next year, the CATL technology advancement of integrated intelligent chassis from both foreign and domestic wheels will surely become a trend in 2024. One of the new trends in the automotive industry.
4. Dual 800 Configuration Has Become Mainstream – 800V Fast Charging and 800Kilometers of Battery Life
800V high-voltage fast charging can increase charging speed while reducing energy consumption and improving charging conversion efficiency. The process of charging the high-voltage battery is actually the process of transporting electrical energy from the power grid to the high-voltage battery in the car. This process transports electrical energy. Electric energy is a combination of power and time, so the only way to shorten charging time is to increase charging power. Power = voltage
800 kilometers of battery life has become a new trend and is becoming an important reference in consumer psychology when purchasing pure electric vehicles, effectively alleviating range anxiety.
Through the hot-selling new energy models in 2023, we have seen the new technologies behind the sales data. These new technologies will surely become new trends in the automotive industry. Technology changes car companies, and technology achieves sales. We can predict the competition in the automotive industry. The next few years will evolve into a competition for the application of technology in automobiles. China’s smart car technology is rewriting history and leading the future on the new energy vehicle track.