Rebirth 99 to become a car giant.

Chapter 461: Civilian sports car, Jaguar’s unexpected choice
All localities will certainly welcome the expansion of investment by enterprises.

Especially when the impact of the financial crisis becomes greater and greater, everyone becomes more active in encouraging powerful companies to expand investment.

A company like Nanshan Group that has technology, understands marketing, and has competitive products is definitely a hot commodity.

Liu Tianwu has also been thinking about how to persuade Cao Yang to be bolder and expand production scale.

Unexpectedly, before he opened his mouth, there was already movement from the Nanshan Group.

"Ronald, please go and invite the heads of the bureaus related to various projects of Nanshan Group in person. I will have a meeting with them this afternoon."

"We need to arrange dedicated people to handle Nanshan Group's new projects, and all reviews must be completed in the shortest possible time."

"No matter what difficulties you have, you can raise them directly."

"Whatever I can solve, I will solve immediately."

"If I can't solve it, I will personally find someone who can solve it to coordinate."

Realizing that a huge opportunity lies in front of Yangcheng City.

How could he not catch it?
Previously, Cao Yang reminded him to set up a government affairs center. This government affairs center has now been extended from Panyu to the entire Yangcheng.

Even other prefectures and cities in Lingnan Province have begun to learn from it, and some other provinces and cities are also learning from it.

It is entirely possible to extend it to the entire China in the future.

This is definitely a very big political achievement for Liu Tianwu.

Now with this series of projects from Nanshan Group, Yangcheng's GDP growth next year will definitely be very gratifying.

When the time comes, he can take another step forward and achieve a leap in life.

He did not go to Cao Yang to explain these arrangements.

However, with Yangcheng City's active response, it was impossible for Cao Yang not to hear relevant reports.

"Mr. Cao, all our land acquisition projects are now in the process, and some land leveling work is also starting at the same time."

“In the case of building a factory on existing land, construction can begin now.”

"Yangcheng City specially dispatched a joint working group to our group. All projects that require review and communication by relevant departments can be handed over to the working group. We don't need to run it ourselves."

Mi Ying quickly reported these actions in Yangcheng City to Cao Yang.

"The awareness of service companies here in Yangcheng is relatively strong. Our group wants each project to be completed as soon as possible, and Yangcheng hopes the same. Everyone's starting point is the same."

"At that time, you will also arrange for individuals to communicate with the working group. If there is anything we need to coordinate with them regarding their food, clothing, housing and transportation, don't be frugal. Spend the money you should be willing to spend."

Give it to peach and give it to Li.

Cao Yang will definitely not take it for granted that the working group has helped Nanshan Group so much.

Some insensitive arrangements can still be satisfied as much as possible.

However, soon, he no longer had time to pay attention to these trivial matters.

Pan Jianghui brought Jaguar Land Rover's Vice President Ma Deren and R&D Director Jason Mann to Yangcheng to discuss the mass production of models at Jaguar Land Rover's Chinese factory.

Although the factory is still under construction, not a single piece of equipment has been brought in.

However, this does not mean that preparations for new models cannot be done.

Some parts suppliers also take time to prepare.

"Evoque is the most compact SUV model in the Land Rover brand. If it were made in China, it could almost reach the RMB 40-[-] level, which is very good for hitting higher sales."

R&D Director Jason Mann’s first priority is to increase Jaguar Land Rover’s sales in China.

And now Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW are all focusing on small and medium-sized SUVs to lower the threshold for consumers to buy cars, so he thought of this compact SUV that is still under development.

However, Cao Yang does not want to sell Land Rover with a price of less than 50 yuan in China.

How can someone who bought a 200 million Range Rover be embarrassed like that?

At that time, sales increased temporarily, but ultimately the brand influence declined.

So after listening to Jason Mann's words, he immediately said: "Chinese consumers like big cars. Evoque can consider focusing on markets such as Europe and Tianzhu. China will not consider domestic production for the time being."

After hearing what Cao Yang said, Maderen immediately added: "Currently, Range Rover and Discovery have the best sales in China. I think we should make these two cars domestically first?"

"In the future, the Land Rover Defender and Freelander will also be produced at the Magic City factory, which will basically meet the demand in the next few years."

"Further arrangements can be adjusted based on market changes in the past few years."

Only when Cao Yang is satisfied can he have a future.

Maderen saw this matter very thoroughly.

He is now just the global vice president of Jaguar Land Rover, and is still one step away from the president.

Whether he can cross over or not depends on whether his performance in the past year can satisfy Cao Yang.

Car companies such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW are unwilling to immediately produce some of their most high-end models in China and want to maintain imports.

But he has no worries in this regard.

Doesn’t Cao Yang think that Chinese consumers like big cars?

Then take big cars like Range Rover and Discovery and make them local.

As for whether this will lead to a slight decline in Land Rover's brand power, that doesn't matter at all.

After all, Xingchen Motors still has Zangwang and Xingtu there.

If Land Rover can highlight the brand image of Xingchen Motors, then Ma Deren feels that he may become the president in a shorter time.

"Until now, none of the domestic mass-produced SUVs has a non-load-bearing body, and none of them are true off-road vehicles in nature."

“Discover that the car’s non-load-bearing body is an important support for its strong off-road capabilities.”

“到时候我们可以把南山发动机3.0T V6、4.4T V8和W12发动机都安装在发现上面，配合6AT和8AT的变速箱，让发现的动力性能变得更强大。”

"As for the Range Rover, as the flagship model of Land Rover, it is also the best-selling model of Land Rover in China. There is no problem in bringing it to China."

"At that time, we may even consider installing Nanshan Engine's W16 engine on the Range Rover Sport to make it more powerful."

Pan Jianghui is also a person who knows how to figure out his intentions.

Combining the situation faced by Xingchen Motors and Jaguar Land Rover in China and what Cao Yang just wanted, he immediately proposed a specific localized model.

"In the past, Land Rover vehicles used engines from Ford vehicles. Now that they can be replaced with corresponding products from Nanshan engines, the power performance should be further improved. This is a good thing."

"However, previous models such as Land Rover and Range Rover used all-aluminum bodies, and this technology is still in short supply in China."

"Will our new factory be able to solve the problem of all-aluminum bodywork by then?"

Jason Mann's reaction was not slow either.

After realizing that I had just taken the wrong direction, I immediately stopped worrying.

However, he didn't want his attitude to change so quickly, so he reminded Cao Yang from the perspective of production feasibility.

"Part of the initial body parts can be imported from England. As long as the workshop of the Modu factory has flexible welding capabilities, it will be able to meet the requirements whether it is welding aluminum or steel bodies."

"Starting from the next generation of models, all Land Rover and Jaguar models will abandon the all-aluminum body and adopt a body direction similar to that of Xingchen Motors."

Cao Yang has never been very fond of the so-called all-aluminum body concept.

The formability of aluminum is not good, and the local stretchability of the plate is even worse, making it prone to cracks.

For example, because the shape of the inner panel of the engine hood is relatively complex, a special aluminum alloy is used to improve its drawing deformation performance. The elongation rate has exceeded 30%, but it is still worse than steel. Therefore, during the structural design, it is necessary to ensure that the shape does not change suddenly as much as possible. Allow the material to flow easily to avoid tearing.

This adds a lot of trouble to the design.

In addition, the springback of aluminum stamping parts is difficult to control. When designing the shape, a shape with less springback should be used as much as possible.

There is another issue that everyone is aware of but seems to have ignored, that is, aluminum is softer than steel.

Collisions and various dust adhesion during production and transportation cause defects such as bumps and scratches on the surface of parts. Therefore, measures must be taken to clean molds, equipment, environmental dust, air pollution, etc. to ensure that parts of intact.

In addition, after the aluminum body is impacted and deformed, the repair technology of aluminum products cannot keep up, so the sheet metal repair is not as good as that of the steel body, resulting in higher usage costs.

Comparing again and again, apart from the fact that aluminum is lighter than steel, Cao Yang could not find any advantages of this thing.

When it comes to lightweighting, Chinese consumers are often not too keen on it.

If you make the car too light, people will think you are cutting corners and think the car is not very good.

If the car is really too heavy, just get an engine with a larger displacement.

Anyway, Nanshan Engine has very mature technology in this area.

Those who can afford a large-displacement engine can afford the gas money.

Not to mention, in order to further improve the acceleration performance at starting, Nanshan Group will also promote hybrid systems in the future.

"Neither Mercedes-Benz nor BMW have so-called all-aluminum bodies, so the Audi A8 likes to use this thing to promote. I think it is a wise decision to restore the steel body."

Pan Jianghui expressed his support for Cao Yang's decision very directly.

Maderen also reacted immediately and said: "It is not very difficult to just change the aluminum body to a steel body. We can consider using the steel body directly on the first domestically produced car."

"At that time, based on the needs of Chinese consumers, we can also consider appropriately lengthening the wheelbase."

Maderen also specifically studied the performance of BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and other car companies in China.

He has fully realized that Chinese consumers like long wheelbase models.

Now combined with Cao Yang's wishes, he immediately put forward suggestions for improvement.

"If the appearance remains unchanged, it is indeed not very difficult to change the aluminum body to steel."

"For parts of the same shape, aluminum products can be produced, and steel products can certainly be produced as well."

R&D director Jason Mann won’t be left behind at this time.

Just change it!Anyway, the selling point of Land Rover cars is not the aluminum body, as long as the boss likes it.

However, when it came to Jaguar, everyone was a little unsure of what to propose.

After all, so far, Jaguar's sales in China have remained in the hundreds.

No matter which model it is, there is no high sales volume.

Maderen thought for a moment, then brought up the popular model and said, "Mr. Cao, Jaguar's XJ car has a business-oriented style, while the XF car is somewhat similar to the style of Ziweixing."

"I think we should make XJ domestically first to attract some Chinese business owners to buy it."

"This way we can also avoid competition with Ziweixing, and we can work together to develop the car market."

The sedan market is the largest segment of China's automobile market. Even if SUVs are growing rapidly, there is still a relatively large gap in size.

However, Nanshan Group's performance in the car field is not particularly outstanding, so Ma Deren thought about localizing the XJ to increase Nanshan Group's influence in the car field.

"XJ is indeed more suitable. This series started in 1968 and has gone through 4 generations of products."

"According to the model development schedule, our fourth-generation XJ will be officially launched globally next year."

“It is full of sporty passion, combining beauty, luxury and shocking extraordinary power.”

"In appearance, the stylish streamlined roof sweeps back, as elegant as a sharp blade in the wind."

“In terms of interiors, the beautifully crafted interior spaces meet all consumer requirements and are designed for stretching out and relaxing.”

“High-quality materials are carefully selected and handcrafted to provide maximum comfort and sensory pleasure.”

"The Jaguar XJ has excellent flexibility and excellent handling performance, and is fully worthy of the favor of Chinese consumers."

R&D Director Jason Mann is very familiar with each of the company's models.

XJ is considered a luxury model with sales volume and influence.

If it weren't for the fact that the company's boss, Cao Yang, was Chinese, Jason Man wouldn't have easily proposed to take the XJ to the Magic City factory for production.

"Mr. Cao, what they said makes sense, but for Jaguar, I think the most important thing now is not to introduce XJ or XF, but to introduce a model that everyone can remember at once."

"Let everyone have a deeper and more intuitive understanding of the Jaguar brand."

"Only when everyone recognizes the Jaguar brand can the sales of various models increase."

"Thinking about it from this perspective, I think neither XJ nor XF seems to be that suitable."

"On the contrary, it is a very niche model, which may have unexpected effects."

Zeng Tingting, who had not spoken much, stood up and spoke at this time.

As the sales director of Nanshan Group and Xingchen Automobile, Zeng Tingting's influence is still high.

So even if her proposal is different from others, Jason Man and others will not have any special opinions.

"What Minister Zeng said makes sense. For Jaguar, further building its reputation is the most important thing."

"If there is a product that can fully attract everyone's attention, it may have unexpected effects."

Pan Jianghui was even more touched by Zeng Tingting's point of view.

Each of the more successful car brands in China often has some models that people can think of immediately.

Needless to say, Spring City Volkswagen and Magic City Volkswagen, Santana, Jetta, Passat...

Many models have become popular.

Even for the rising star Yangcheng Honda, the Accord's popularity is very high.

Yangcheng Toyota's Camry is also not bad.

Even in the imperial capital Hyundai, the Elantra's name is now well-known.

Even though Land Rover belongs to the same family, everyone can think of a product like the Range Rover when it comes to it.

But if Jaguar...

For a moment, there is really no car that can be remembered so deeply that people can think of it immediately.

Zeng Tingting now wants to create a model that makes people think of Jaguar when they think of it.

This model is very important to Jaguar's development in China.

"Which Jaguar car do you think can shoulder such a responsibility?"

Cao Yang was naturally able to understand the meaning of Zeng Tingting's words.

He didn't think about it that much before. He thought that if he wanted to make it domestically, he would choose a car from XJ or XF to make it domestically.

But if you think about it carefully, in fact, these two cars may not necessarily be able to play the role of revitalizing Jaguar.

"F-TYPE, I think F-TYPE is the model most likely to bear this responsibility."

"It is the continuation of Jaguar's sports pedigree over the years and is the most beautiful, shocking and sexy sports car ever built."

"It's not that Chinese consumers don't like sports cars, it's that sports cars can easily cost more than 100 million, or even millions or tens of millions, which puts ordinary consumers away."

"I think we can completely build F-TYPE into a civilian sports car. After localizing it, we can lower the price to between 50 and 100 million."

"Even in order to make it affordable for more ordinary consumers, we can use a 2.0T engine in the lowest configuration, a 3.0T engine in the mid-range configuration, and a 4.4T engine in the high-end configuration."

“Then the model can be made in two styles, convertible and non-convertible, to fully meet the needs of various consumers.”

"By then, Jaguar F-TYPE will be the first sports car produced in China among mainstream international car brands. This is a gimmick."

"At the same time, it is also the most cost-effective model among the mainstream international luxury brands and the most cost-effective model among the sports cars on sale in China. This is also a gimmick."

"Furthermore, the emergence of this car can further promote the rise of sports cars in the Chinese automobile market and make some potential contributions to the sales of Star Sports cars in disguise."

"Of course, I also know that after Jaguar develops such a civilian sports car, people may have a little impact on its brand power."

"I don't think it's necessary!"

"The price of 50 yuan is actually not cheap in Europe and the United States."

"Besides, luxury cars such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW are also constantly exploring their prices. This is a big trend."

"As long as we can achieve our goals through the launch of this car, that will be enough."

After Zeng Tingting said this, no one immediately expressed their opinions, but were digesting what she said.

"F-TYPE just F-TYE."

"Since this is a good model to build a reputation for, we have to act quickly."

"When the construction of our Magic City factory is completed, F-TYPE will also be able to roll off the production line simultaneously."

"When the time comes, we will strive to make it a real civilian sports car so that more people can afford it."

After thinking for a while, Cao Yang felt that no other Jaguar model was more eye-catching than the F-TYPE, and was more suitable for subsequent marketing.

So I quickly agreed to Zeng Tingting's proposal.

A sports car for civilians!

It's easy to say, but it's still very difficult to do.

If independent brands such as Geely launch sports cars, it is estimated that consumers will not buy it.

But for Mercedes-Benz and BMW, the prices of the sports cars they launch are too high.

The most important thing is that without localization, the maintenance costs of these sports cars are really beyond the reach of ordinary consumers.

But after domestic production, the situation is different.

"Mr. Cao, if you want to consider speed, it is best to involve the relevant technical personnel of Nanshan Engine. After all, the mature products of Nanshan Engine will be equipped by then, and they know the relevant adjustments and modifications best."

Pan Jianghui's proposal satisfied Cao Yang very much.

To hollow out Jaguar Land Rover's R&D center, in addition to moving a large number of R&D personnel to Shanghai, we can also allow R&D personnel from companies such as Nanshan Engine, Nanshan Transmission and Nanshan Auto Parts to extend their tentacles into Jaguar Land Rover.

When the time comes, it will be very natural for these people to be transferred to the Jaguar Land Rover R&D Center, and no one can tell what they are doing.

Over time, this R&D center will naturally become a R&D center dominated by Chinese people.

Even if England is unwilling to do so, there is nothing they can do.

"Indeed, Jaguar and Land Rover will use Nanshan engine and Nanshan transmission products in the future, and even various core parts of Nanshan auto parts, which require the cooperation of relevant personnel for development."

"At that time, Mr. Rao, please coordinate and arrange a R&D team to connect with the Jaguar Land Rover R&D Center to start the localization of F-TYPE as soon as possible."

"Parts that can be produced domestically will be purchased domestically. Parts that cannot be produced domestically or cannot be kept up with the schedule will be imported from abroad first."

Now that you have thought about it, there is nothing to hesitate about.

The most critical thing is to concentrate our efforts to get the project started as quickly as possible, and to get this civilian sports car started.

"Mr. Cao, isn't the "Need for Speed" game from Autohome always relatively popular?"

"I wonder if we can consciously recommend the F-TYPE in this game. At the same time, Autohome can also promote Jaguar's sports car history so that everyone can have some intuition about this sports car. understanding?"

Zeng Tingting felt very good when she saw that Cao Yang adopted her suggestion.

When F-TYPE is launched, it will definitely bring her a stronger sense of accomplishment.

"You can just communicate with Yu Yu directly about this!"

"F-TYPE is an important model that completely established Jaguar's reputation. You're welcome to use resources that should be allocated!"

With Cao Yang's words, Zeng Tingting can naturally let go and start a big fight.

However, at this time, Dai Hanbiao came to Cao Yang and said something, which made Cao Yang realize that Nanshan Group had more ways to completely consolidate its position in the automobile industry.

(End of this chapter)