Behind 30 Million Units, GAC Uses "Hard Skills" to Outpace Industry Shifts

On July 16, a right-hand drive Trumpchi M8 PHEV slowly drove off the production line. GAC Group thus became the fifth domestic automobile manufacturing group to reach the milestone of 30 million vehicles rolling off the production line, after FAW, SAIC, Dongfeng, and Changan.

On this day, China's automotive market was undergoing unprecedented deep adjustments. Data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed that the penetration rate of new energy vehicles reached 49.6% in the first half of the year, surging to 58.5% in June; the market share of independent brand passenger cars climbed to 71.8%; car exports broke through 5.096 million vehicles, up 65.3% year-on-year. The fuel vehicle market was shrinking rapidly, joint venture brands were significantly impacted, and an era of "cool domestic market, hot international market" with reconstructed patterns was approaching.

In such an uncertain year, the answer sheet turned in by GAC was: 773,100 vehicles sold in the first half of the year, an increase of 2.35% year-on-year, new energy vehicle sales increased by 68.8% year-on-year, independent brand exports reached 121,500 vehicles, a sharp increase of 132% year-on-year. The numbers themselves might not be stunning, but against the background of the industry bearing pressure overall and most automotive companies achieving only 30% to 40% of their sales targets, this stability stands out particularly.

How were the 30 million "saved up"?

"Quality is the bottom line that GAC will never yield." Feng Xingya, Chairman of GAC Group, said this on the spot. Perhaps this is the most direct footnote to the trust of 30 million users.

In an industry where price wars have evolved from "racing on price" to "racing on bosses", GAC chose a path that appears less trendy: continuously adding to quality verification. Before each new model launches, it must undergo at least "two winters and one summer" of on-site road tests; the regular development cycle lasts up to 21 months; from Turpan's 60°C high temperature to Hulunbuir's -40°C extreme cold, from high humidity and high salt spray to mountain dust, "Five Highs, One Mountain, One Dust" full-environment assessment covers various extreme scenarios users might encounter.

These "hard skills" have formed support in the data: Magazine Battery cumulative installations reached 1.5 million units, safe driving mileage exceeded 160 billion kilometers; the Astral Security Guard System has served nearly 2 million users, cumulatively preventing potential accidents 6.28 million times. At the end of 2025, GAC also pioneered the independent brand "Three Responsibilities" policy in the industry: responsibility for spontaneous combustion of the three-electric system, responsibility for battery decay exceeding limits, responsibility for intelligent parking accidents, extending quality commitments to the entire lifecycle of vehicle use.

"30 million users' trust is essentially about holding the bottom line of 'quality not yielded' in manufacturing." An industry observer commented. In the phase where China's automotive market shifts from increment to stock, the core standard for user choice is returning to the essence of the product, and GAC has verified this simple logic over 29 years.

Transformation is not a slogan, it is the models rolling off the line

The special significance of the 30 million vehicles rolling off the line ceremony is: it is not a solo act of one car. At the event site, GAC's global multi-site production bases were connected synchronously, and GAC Honda P7, GAC Toyota Binyue 7, QiJing GT7, GAC Aion N60, GAC Hyper S600 were sequentially rolled off the line as the 29,999,995th to the 29,999,999th vehicles. Six models, covering six brands, all pointing to new energy and intelligence.

And the 30 millionth vehicle—the right-hand drive Trumpchi M8 PHEV—was ultimately delivered to a Thai owner, international kung fu superstar Tony Jaa. This choice itself is a signal: GAC's goals have long not been limited to the domestic market. Currently, GAC's international business expansion is very rapid, covering 110 countries and regions in five major blocks: Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Americas, Europe, etc., building over 746 sales and service outlets and 7 overseas production plants. Independent brand exports in the first half of the year reached 121,500 vehicles, almost equaling the full year's level last year.

In the context where joint venture brands generally face transition pains, GAC promotes dual-line transformation of joint ventures and independent brands, forming a synergistic and complementary new energy matrix. GAC Toyota Binyue 7 delivered over 10,000 units cumulatively in 3 months since launch; GAC and Huawei Qiankun jointly created the high-end brand "QiJing", the first model QiJing GT7 equipped with Huawei Qiankun Intelligent Driving ADS 5, 24-hour large fixed orders broke through 5,200 units. So far, GAC's cumulative R&D investment exceeded 62 billion yuan, with a global R&D team of over 6,800 people, and these investments are being converted from technical reserves to product competitiveness.

Turn "User-Centric" into a closed loop

If quality is GAC's background color, then user thinking is the line running through it.

Feng Xingya stated at the event site: "In the past, we always stood from an engineer's perspective to polish technology, today, we must stand completely from the user's perspective." To this end, GAC established a dedicated user insight department, promoting full-process change from problem discovery to resolution; regularly held "User Open Mic" activities, allowing R&D and product leaders to directly face daily user pain points.

At the service end, GAC plans to build 1,000 new county-level authorized stores this year; online launched "Super Steward" service, promising 5-second response, 2-hour completion; targeting new energy replenishment pain points, built "9 Vertical, 10 Horizontal" replenishment network, covering 213 cities nationwide, core urban areas achieving "one station every straight 1 kilometer", self-owned charging piles exceeded 27,000 units.

From "selling products" to "operating users" is the transformation direction commonly shouted by the industry. GAC's practice shows that user operations are not marketing talk, but a systematic engineering project from organizational structure to service network.

After 30 million, where is GAC heading?

From its establishment in 1997 to the current 30 million vehicles rolling off the line, GAC has walked 29 years. These 29 years just witnessed the complete context of China's automotive industry from joint venture start, independent growth to new energy global breakthrough.

Standing at the new starting point of 30 million, GAC announced the launch of "Renewal Gratitude Season": GAC Honda, GAC Toyota, GAC Trumpchi, GAC Aion, GAC Hyper, and QiJing six brands, from new purchase, trade-in to increased purchase launched unique feedback policies.

Towards 2030, GAC's goal is to enter 120 countries and regions worldwide, build over 2,000 overseas outlets, and achieve annual sales of 1 million vehicles.

In the competition logic transformation of the automotive industry from "comparing horsepower" to "competing on computing power", from "configuration stacking" to "technology system", GAC's 30 million answer sheets may have provided an answer worth thinking about: no matter how dramatic industry changes are, quality, this "hard skill", is ultimately the final reason users vote with their feet.