Xpeng, a Chinese manufacturer of electric vehicles (EVs), unveiled on Sunday a brand-new vehicle-making platform that it developed internally. According to the company, this new platform will cut development and manufacturing costs for its upcoming models.
Brian Gu, the president of Xpeng, told reporters in Shanghai on Sunday that the Smart Electric Platform Architecture (SEPA) 2.0 will help the company cut the costs of powertrain systems, including batteries, by 25% and those of intelligent driving systems by 50% by the end of 2024.
He stated that these savings would give Xpeng an advantage over its rivals in a market that is becoming increasingly competitive.
Gu stated, “A number of players have been launching aggressive price cuts since the beginning of this year…”
“The emphasis on the ability of offering alluring items at reasonable costs turns out to be significantly more significant.”
According to the company, Xpeng will construct its G6 SUV, which will make its debut at the Shanghai auto show on Tuesday as the first model built on the SEPA 2.0.
The company added that the architecture includes front- and rear-integrated aluminium die casting technologies as well as the incorporation of battery packs into the vehicle’s body, both of which will increase manufacturing efficiency and reduce vehicle weight.
Tesla (TSLA.O), a rival of Xpeng, manufactures large single pieces of vehicle underbodies using massive casting machines, also known as giga presses. It started using a front-casting part in its Texas plant in 2022 and has been producing its Model Y since 2020 with a single-piece rear casting part.
In an effort to increase demand, Tesla reduced prices worldwide, including in China, in January. In March, Tesla’s chief executive officer stated that scale demand was constrained by affordability.
More than 40 Chinese automakers have followed Tesla’s lead and joined what analysts called a price war, lowering the prices of their best-selling models to maintain their market share.
He Xiaopeng, the chief executive of Xpeng, also stated on Sunday that for an automaker to have a chance of remaining in business for more than a decade, annual global sales must reach 3 million units.
In the first quarter of the year, Xpeng’s car sales dropped nearly 50%, falling behind the overall EV market in China.
