[Autohome News] The new (|) (B9) will be launched on July 9. Since it was first introduced to China in 2007, it has gained the trust of 2.50 million users in China. This generation of products can also be said to be the biggest change in Maiteng’s history, but it will also face the most severe market test. So before the price is announced, let’s talk about the new generation of Maiteng and see if it can continue the brilliance of its predecessors.
Before talking about the new Maiteng, I would like to ask you to make a simple poll. Have you ever driven or ridden a Maiteng model before?
This poll is not to see how many people have never touched the Maiteng at all, but to awaken some memories of you and the Maiteng. Was it ever your first choice after making your first pot of gold? Or a reliable partner when you went on a trip with family/friends? Or a tool that can be in front of you on time and delivered to your destination when needed?
In 2007, the Maiteng B6 arrived in China.
"2011, Maiteng B7"
"2016, Maiteng B8"
In the past 17 years, Maiteng has been synonymous with success, safety, and comfort. Of course, these symbols may exist more in the minds of the post-70s, post-80s, and post-90s. How will the post-95s or even post-00s perceive Maiteng? In fact, I am also quite curious.
"2024, Maiteng B9"
It just so happened that we recently welcomed three colleagues born after 2000, and I also asked them for their opinions. Dai, who was born in 2003, bluntly said that this car is a car that his parents particularly like, and he doesn’t really feel much about it. Although the new Maiteng after the replacement has changed a lot, it is still not within his consideration. Yue, who was born in 2000, has driven the current Maiteng before. In his opinion, the comprehensiveness of the current Maiteng impresses him deeply, and the standard shape is very right. The new Maiteng is a little radical, but it has lost its proper temperament. Sun, who was born in 2002, thinks that the current Maiteng is a little boring, and the new generation of Maiteng has become more interesting. He will also pay attention to it.
Unexpectedly, I simply interviewed three people and got three different answers. It seems that for Maiteng, whether to change or not, and how to change, is really a big issue. Of course, this is also one of the issues that many traditional brands will encounter, so we will not discuss it. In short, the new generation of Maiteng has chosen to change, and it is a major change. Let’s take a look together.
◆ What changes have been made to the new Maiteng?
In fact, at first glance, the new Maiteng still feels a strong family style, but in terms of details, you can still see the efforts made by the new Maiteng. For example, the front face has added a through-type light strip and can light up the LOGO, and the fog lamp area has also adopted a more sporty shape. Coupled with the application of matrix headlights, the younger effect is quite significant.
The length of the new Maiteng body has also been lengthened by 34mm, but the wheelbase remains unchanged, with a length, width and height of 4990/1854/1487mm and a wheelbase of 2871mm. The newly designed rim has a good visual effect, with a size of 19 inches, which is expected to be exclusive to the top. A through taillight + lighting LOGO is added to the tail to echo the front face, and the reflective strip running through below can widen the visual effect.
The car is the focus of the new Maiteng upgrade. The addition of the 11.6-inch passenger screen allows it to keep up with the needs of the new era. Before, we experienced the trial version, and the market version is expected to be adjusted to some extent. I think this configuration should be better than overuse. If the use effect is not good, it is better to save some costs to benefit, and look forward to its actual use effect.
In addition, the new Maiteng will also be equipped with 8155 chip, 15-inch central control screen, 10.25-inch LCD instrument, AR-HUD head-up display and iFLYTEK intelligent voice system, etc. The sense of technology is still significantly improved compared to the current Maiteng. The car seats have also been optimized, and the front seats have added leg supports. At the same time, the overall filling is also more sufficient. However, heating, ventilation and other functions may still need to be selected. This is something I would like to complain about, but whether it really needs to be selected and how the price is. We should wait for the official listing before evaluating it.
The main change in the power part of the new Maiteng is the replacement of the current 1.4T engine by the 1.5T engine, which has a maximum power of 160 horsepower and a maximum power of 220 horsepower for the 2.0T engine. The transmission system is matched with a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission.
◆ Familiar opponents have turned the table
Next, let’s take a look at the market. Although new energy is developing rapidly and the internal roll is serious, it is not difficult to find that it has become the last frontier for pure fuel vehicles after entering the medium-sized car market. Judging from the sales volume of nearly half a year, Maiteng and its brother model Passat have taken the top two places, and only one new energy product, Tesla Model 3, has made the list in the top ten. The advantage is very obvious.
However, behind the seemingly solid market position, there are actually more unexpected price concessions. In early July, the news that Toyota Camry only needs to 120,000 suddenly came out on the Internet, and then we found through investigation that there are 4S stores that have already dropped the offer below 130,000, but it is a very small number. Click on "120,000 Camry" to view the details. On the eve of the replacement of Maiteng, the old Maiteng also has a discount of about 50,000 yuan, and the starting price has also dropped to within 150,000.
This also reminds me of the Citroen C6, which launched a price war in early 2023. At that time, the most classic evaluation was: "200,000 C6 is old-fashioned, 120,000 C6 is calm and atmospheric". This also reflects that as long as the price is right, there is no car that cannot be sold. Of course, as a new product of replacement, the new Maiteng will not show its cards when it comes up.
"Quote of SAIC Volkswagen 4S Store in Beijing"
"Quote of GAC Honda 4S Store in Beijing"
However, it is not difficult to see through the table that the old opponents of the new Maiteng have now taken out their cards, and the starting price of the Passat that is about to be replaced is only 110,900, while the Accord that was replaced in 2023 has now dropped to 104,800, and the new Camry that was listed in March this year has also begun to have a significant discount, which will pose a big test for the pricing of the new Maiteng.
◆ Strange opponents are pressing
Although we used to frame the competitors of fuel vehicles in fuel vehicles, with the development of new energy technologies, the boundaries between pure fuel vehicles and new energy vehicles are gradually blurring, and consumers are more concerned about who can give more at the same price. So if your budget is within 200,000, there are the following models available in the new energy market.
"BYD seal"Oh, yeah."
"BYD Han"Oh, yeah."
"Dark blue SL03"Oh, yeah."
"Galaxy E8"Oh, yeah."
For example, BYD Seal and Han, deep blue SL03 and Galaxy E8, although there are many medium and large cars, the overall price range is relatively high overlap with Maiteng. Because of the different power forms, they have natural advantages in energy consumption, and our Chinese brands have always been able to lead overseas brands in terms of configuration. The new Maiteng is difficult to take advantage of in terms of product power. As the influence of Chinese brands in the new energy market gradually increases, Volkswagen’s brand power advantage is also gradually weakening. So if the new Maiteng wants to continue to maintain its advantage in the mid-sized car market, competitors in the new energy market cannot be ignored.
Here to say more, in December last year, FAW-Volkswagen launched the ID.7 VIZZION model, priced at 223,000 yuan. Its original mission was to succeed Maiteng in the pure electric market, but it has not been able to conquer domestic consumers. At present, its monthly average sales are only a few hundred units. If you want to turn around, it is expected that you need a significant discount.
However, as we mentioned in the article, the key to the new Maiteng to maintain its position depends on the price. How much do you think is appropriate? In my personal opinion, the new Maiteng starts at 13.XX million, which can definitely detonate the market (although impossible, but it is also cool to think about); 15.XX million, which can feel the sincerity (including the rights and interests may have a play); 17.XX million, if you want to buy it, you can buy it at a reliable dealer discount (the most likely price is expected to be announced).
Full text summary:
I’ve been watching the European Cup recently. Looking at the tired figures of veterans such as C Ronaldo, Modric and Belgium’s golden generation, compared with the vitality of new generation players such as Mbappe, Yamal and Saka, I can’t help but feel that the hero is late. This feeling also brings me into the new generation of Maiteng. Although the past is glorious, it shows some incompetence in the face of the rapid change of market environment. So what kind of price will the new generation of Maiteng announce? Let’s look forward to the official announcement on July 9. (Text/Autohome Guo Chen)
