Reference News Network, September 16 report: According to the U.S. Consumer News & Business Channel website on September 13, Germany recently held one of the world's largest auto exhibitions. In the heart of Europe's automotive industry, rising Chinese electric vehicle companies are trying to overshadow some of the biggest European car brands on their home turf.

Major companies gathered at the International Motor Show Munich (IAA), setting up large booths to showcase their latest models and technologies. Some of these large booths belong to Chinese electric vehicle companies, highlighting their ambition to expand beyond China.

Europe has become a focus for Asian automakers. In this market, traditional automakers are lagging in the development of electric vehicles, although they are accelerating the launch of new models. At the same time, Tesla, long seen as the leader in the electric vehicle market, has experienced a decline in sales in the region.

The report states that despite tariffs from the EU, these companies from the world's second-largest economy are responding to increasingly fierce competition by setting aggressive sales and expansion targets.

Xiao Peng, CEO of XPeng Motors Technology Co., Ltd., said in an interview with Consumer News & Business Channel: "XPeng Motors is currently growing faster than expected globally."

Chinese automakers who gave interviews to the Consumer News & Business Channel at the Munich Auto Show expressed ambitious expansion plans. Xiao Peng stated in the interview that the company plans to launch its Mona series targeting the mass market in Europe next year.

At the same time, Guangzhou Automobile Group is aiming for rapid growth in its European sales. Wei Haigang, General Manager of Guangzhou Automobile International, said the company's goal is to sell about 3,000 cars in Europe this year. Guangzhou Automobile Group also announced plans to introduce two electric vehicles to Europe.

The report indicates that Chinese automakers have made initial inroads into the European market. According to data from JLT Business Consulting in the UK, the market share of Chinese car brands in Europe nearly doubled compared to the same period in 2024 this year.

Murtaza Ali, Senior Analyst at "Contrast" Technology Market Research Company, said: "The strong presence of Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers at the IAA Munich shows their increasing ambition and confidence in the European market."

The report states that many Chinese automakers position themselves as technology companies, like Tesla, and their cars reflect this.

Many electric vehicles are equipped with large screens featuring cool interfaces and voice assistants. To attract consumers, some companies have added smart in-car devices. This is a way for Chinese automakers to differentiate themselves from traditional brands.

Ali said: "The chances of success for Chinese automakers are high, especially since they have advantages in price, battery technology, and production scale."

The report states that traditional automakers tried to demonstrate their strength at this exhibition. Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz occupied the largest booths. Mercedes-Benz even filled every inch of space at the entrance of the venue with advertisements.

Like Chinese companies, BMW places great emphasis on technology and vigorously promotes its "super brain" architecture, which replaces hardware with a central computing platform. BMW launched the iX3 at this exhibition and jointly announced an advanced driver assistance system developed with chipmaker Qualcomm.

Volkswagen and French automaker Renault also showcased some new electric vehicles.

The report says that although the product offensive was intense, people still worry that European companies are moving too slowly. BMW's new iX3 is still based on an electric vehicle platform first introduced two years ago. Meanwhile, Chinese automakers have quickly released updated models.

Professor Tammy Madsen from the Levi School of Business at Santa Clara University said regarding BMW: "Adherence to traditional architectures and a strategy of incremental improvements has slowed its ability to build and leverage a powerful electric vehicle ecosystem, causing it to fall behind rapidly advancing competitors."

The report states that although European automakers have a long brand history and their CEOs acknowledge and welcome this competition, Chinese automakers have not slowed down. (Translated by Lu Di)

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7550555201662255659/

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