On Nov. 6, Geely Galaxy hosted the Global User Music Carnival and Geely Xingyuan Million Delivery Fan Benefit Release Event in Hangzhou. Within 24 months of launch, cumulative sales of Geely Xingyuan broke 1 million units, making it the fastest NEV globally to achieve 1 million sales. On the same day, the new models of the Xingyuan STAR Limited Edition Series, STAR Ace and STAR Chill, were launched with a limited-time benefit price of 88,800 yuan, and the Million-User Fan Benefit Rights were launched simultaneously.

What is the concept of 1 million units? On average, less than one car is sold per minute. In the A0-class pure electric small car market, the weight of this number is worth looking closely. Launched in October 2024, it won the sales champion title for all categories in the Chinese auto market in 2025. In the first half of 2026, cumulative sales reached 249,418 units, a YoY growth of 21%, reclaiming the title of the most popular car in the Chinese market. The pace in the second half of the year continued to accelerate, with monthly sales in August and September continuously breaking 60,000 units, and sales in October breaking 70,000 units, setting a new all-time high for a single month. Without brand, energy, or class limitations, ranking first as a sales champion without qualifiers indicates that the user base of this car has moved beyond the single persona of "first-time buyers with limited budget" and entered a broader mainstream consumption segment.

Performance in overseas markets provides another dimension of observation. Xingyuan has landed in more than 30 countries globally, ranking TOP 2 in exports of Chinese NEV hatchbacks in H1 2026. Thailand EV sales champion, Egypt A-B class pure EV sales champion for two consecutive months, Mexico top 2 in all-category pure EV for three consecutive months, and Australia H1 2026, champion Hatchback EV sales for two consecutive months after launch. These market distributions share a common characteristic: they are mostly not emerging markets relying on low prices for volume, but regions with mature car consumption habits and clear requirements for product quality and safety standards. For an A0-class pure electric small car to stand firm in these markets, it relies not just on the cost-performance ratio on the spec sheet, but on the reputation for reliability after long-term use.

Reliability is exactly the most noteworthy information in this launch event. Geely Xingyuan, in joint with CATARC, conducted actual tests on an in-service user vehicle driven 220,000 km. Under comprehensive road conditions with eco mode on and AC off, the realized range achievement rate of this car was 99.7%. The moose test score was 78.1 km/h, better than most new cars in the same class. After 6 major battery extreme serial tests, the battery health was 91.19%, far exceeding the national standard of 70% at 200,000 km.

The significance of these data lies in that they answer the one question most concerning A0-class pure electric small car users: after a few years of driving, can this car maintain its original state? Range degradation, loose chassis, and battery safety are the most common pain points in long-term use of small EVs. The test of a 220,000 km in-service vehicle is more persuasive than any lab new car test, because it does not test design limits, but rather manufacturing consistency and long-term durability.

From an industry perspective, the A0-class pure electric small car market has experienced a transition from "low-price commuting" to "quality travel" in the past few years. Early products focused on range and price as core selling points, and consumer expectations for space, safety, and intelligence were not high. However, as young users became the main buyers, their demand for small cars has upgraded from "sufficient" to "good to use"—design must have recognizability, space must be able to carry, intelligence cannot be absent, and safety cannot be compromised.

Xingyuan's entry point is precisely this round of consumption upgrade: rear-engine rear-drive layout, multi-link independent suspension, Lotus tuning, CATL cells, Shendun Battery Safety System. These configurations are not common in A0-class small cars, but they determine the experience ceiling for the vehicle in long-term use. The achievement of 2 million units in 2 years indicates that consumers in the A0-class market are willing to pay for quality, on the condition that the product can make quality perceptible and verifiable.

Xingyuan after 1 million units faces changing problems. Initial rapid growth could rely on category dividends and differentiated positioning, but when the base expands to the 1 million level, subsequent growth will depend more on the pace of product iteration, the depth of user operations, and the efficiency of overseas market expansion.

The launch of the STAR Limited Series and Fan Benefit Rights is using personalized configurations and user benefits to maintain product freshness; "Our Xingyuan" Charitable Project Season 3 entering Yunnan Wa Mountains is using brand storytelling to build emotional connection with users. Whether these actions can support the next 1 million units depends on whether Xingyuan can, while maintaining stable quality, continuously respond to changes in user demand. Speed has been proven, but durability needs more time to verify.

The launch event in Hangzhou on November 6 is most easily remembered for "one million in two years, selling one unit in less than a minute". But if you read it only as a speed record, you miss the true weight of this matter.

1 million units is not a marketing node, but a responsibility threshold — it means that for the next five to eight years, 1 million families will continue to pay for this car's durability, residual value, after-sales service, and sense of safety. Running fast is for communication; enduring is for business. What Xingyuan truly deserves to be deconstructed is how it ran to this number.

I. It did not turn small cars into "cut-spec cars"

In the A0-class market, there is a long-term unwritten rule: set the price first, then cut specs backwards. Xingyuan's approach is the opposite — set the experience first, then squeeze costs forward. Rear-wheel drive, front MacPherson struts, rear multi-link, CATL cells plus liquid cooling temperature control, electric front trunk, automotive-grade robots. Looking at each individually they are "upgrading", together they point to one thing: it refuses to admit "an 80,000-yuan car should just do".

The points here need to be clarified. The past competition logic of A0-class was "who is cheaper", essentially making the car smaller, the cost thinner, and defaulting the user as someone who only looks at price. Xingyuan switched to a new algorithm: do "excess" in engineering to exchange for the user's psychological feeling of "not losing out". A first-time young buyer gets a car that doesn't lose face, a family second-car buyer gets space and chassis without compromise — the same car, simultaneously catching the dignity and practicality of two types of people.

This is a dimensionality reduction on the product definition level, not a compromise on the benefit level. When the industry universally uses "another drop of five thousand" to exchange for scale, Xingyuan proved the other path is still valid: making the product look like it's not this price level is more moving than making the price look like it's not this level.

This logic also has a spillover effect. Thailand's top-selling EV, Egypt's consecutive two months A&B segment pure EV sales champion, Mexico's consecutive three months all-category pure EV second, Australia's two months on market consecutive Hatchback pure EV champion — the common point of these titles is they all fall in niche segments, none won by absolute low price. The first stage of Chinese small cars going overseas was price arbitrage; this batch of Xingyuan cars enters the standard output phase: redefine local people's psychological expectations of a small car using "high spec + controllable cost". Its significance for followers is pulling "Chinese small cars" out of cheap symbols, into a option that can be compared seriously.

II. Bringing "durability" to the forefront is the smartest move in this million-unit round

The convention of marketing is talking about the 1,000th kilometer of a new car, Xingyuan talks about the 220,000th kilometer. A 310km Dream Edition vehicle in service with 220,000 kilometers was field-tested by CATARC: range achievement rate 99.7%, battery health 91.19% — national standards require 70% for 200,000 kilometers; elk test 78.1 km/h.

The value of these three sets of numbers is not in the numbers themselves, but in how they answer the question A0-class users most want to ask but are most reluctant to voice: after five years of driving, what remains of this car.

People buying small cars and people buying B-class cars have completely different usage logics. The former often use one car for two things — commute plus family, long replacement cycle, high usage intensity, extremely low tolerance for one major repair. For them, smart cockpit is a bonus, reliability is the passing line. Xingyuan made the passing line into marketing material, effectively moving after-sales risk to the front as brand assets.

The harder layer lies in timing. A million units means the quality base is magnified a hundred times; any batch problem will escalate to million-level public opinion. To dare do a public "field test of vehicles in service" at this node is essentially a self-imposed pressure bet — it is not unaware of the risk, but treats risk as endorsement.

However, this endorsement must be paired with a measure of clarity. The phrase "World's fastest new energy vehicle to reach 1 million sales" needs to be seen by the standard: how is the statistical period calculated, whether exports are counted, by calendar month or fiscal year, where are category boundaries drawn. Fewer qualifiers, higher gold content; more qualifiers, more caution. The truly hard fact is only one sentence — in this market of global competition, it once took the all-category sales number one limit-free energy, limit-free class. This champion, no qualifiers.

III. The Ceiling of Emotional Value, and the Challenge of the Second Million

STAR Ace and STAR Chill, 88,800 CNY limited-time benefit price, three car colors, Milk, Salt, and Rice interior, equipped with electric front trunk and EVA Robot, plus badges, IP merchandise, charging discounts, milk tea vouchers.

Here we need to pour a little cold water. Car colors, IP co-branding, lotteries, are low-cost, high-perception operations. They can bring topics, but are hard to settle into brand assets. Today giving Capybara, tomorrow others give LinaBell, users remember the doll, not the car. Truly long-term value design is another matter: benefits fully opened to million existing users, not just giving sugar to new buyers. A car sold to 1 million units, no longer handles "fans", but "public" — fans need surprise, public needs not to be abandoned. So the score of this fan-favoring benefit, should not be placed on "gave what", but on "do old owners have a share". This time, it passed.

But passing is not safety. The answer to the first million is already written, the question of the second million has just appeared.

Firstly, the arms race in intelligent driving is sinking. In the 80,000-level market next year, assisted driving will likely become the new passing line, while Xingyuan's current advantage items focus on chassis and powertrain, not intelligent driving.

Secondly, October single month exceeded 70,000 units, production capacity, channels, delivery and service consistency will be tested exponentially. Users after 1 million units have less patience than before the first million.

Thirdly, single-product dependency. The Galaxy brand needs a more complete product matrix to catch the traffic brought by Xingyuan, otherwise the ceiling of this car is the ceiling of the whole series.

So my judgment is: the first million relied on redefining product; the second million must rely on redefining system.

One million units rolling off the line, most worth remembering is not "fastest", but it proves one thing: in a market where everyone is calculating costs, making the product look like "not this price level" is still the most effective growth method. Xingyuan didn't win speed; it won by making the words "small car", for the first time, not carry a derogatory meaning.

I've worked in the auto industry for 20 years, haven't been convinced by many "bestsellers", but this time counts as one

Let me set the scene first. On November 6th, Hangzhou, Geely Galaxy hosted a Global User Music Carnival, and also held a "Million Milestone" celebration for Xingyuan. To be honest, this "Press Conference + Concert + Fan Event" triple combo setup, I've seen too many of these in recent years, usually meaning two things: either the product is genuinely good, or they feel insecure inside and need the hype to cover up.

This time, Xingyuan belongs to the former category.

Let's talk about that number that left me stunned

Listed in October 2024, it took 24 months—exactly two years—to break 1 million units, averaging less than one minute to sell a car. What's a minute like? You haven't even sat in the dealership seat warm enough before the tea cools down, while others have already driven their new cars away. Globally, the New Energy Vehicle that achieved 1 million sales the fastest is this one. This isn't me hyping it, the accounts speak for themselves.

And it's not the "firework-type" competitor that sprints hard one month then fizzes out the next. In 2025, it took the Best-Selling Vehicle Award across all categories in China; in the first half of 2026, it sold 249,418 units, a 21% year-over-year increase, continuing to be the best-selling car in the Chinese market. The second half was even crazier: August and September saw single-month sales break 60,000 for two months in a row, October hit 70,000 directly, refreshing its own single-month record again. Pay attention, the "Sales Champion" tag has no qualifiers—no brand limit, no fuel type limit, no class limit. It lines up with fuel-powered, joint-venture, and luxury cars, standing at the front. Doing this in an A0-class small car is quite rare.

When selling abroad, it didn't falter either

Australia, UK, France... now it has reached over 30 countries globally. From January to June 2026, it ranked second on China's export list for New Energy Hatchbacks. Let me read out a few highlights from its overseas record: Sales Champion for EVs in Thailand, A/B-level pure EV sales champion in Egypt for two consecutive months, ranked second in all-category pure EVs in Mexico for three consecutive months, Australia market launched just two months ago, already took the Hatchback pure EV champion title consecutively. In the past, saying "Made in China Intelligence" sounded a bit like empty slogans. Now these cars are really running on their streets. The gold content of this million figure has spread from domestic to overseas.

Million is a milestone, how does Geely plan to "fulfill the vow"

This time released two STAR Limited Edition Series versions, one called STAR Ace, one called STAR Chill, limited-time special price 88,800 yuan. Ace offered Worry-Free Green, Pepsi Orange, Flowing Light Silver three colors, Chill paired with Creamy Salt Rice interior set. Both cars came with a unique electric frunk in its class, and also included an EVA robot—I can't say if this thing is practical, but young people definitely eat this up. Buying the car also gives 3,000 yuan Super Trade-in Subsidy, plus a limited-time STAR Exclusive Gift Box claimed to be worth 4,099 yuan.

They also did something for fan love: All owners can draw lots on Geely Galaxy App, prizes include Grandpa Doesn't Make Tea milk tea vouchers, Million Sales Commemorative Badge, In-car Ecological Premium Products, Capybara healing-themed merchandise, and Charging Service Fee Discount Coupons. Inviting 1 million people to drink milk tea, frankly, is a posture, but a posture willing to put in this effort is better than just holding oneself high. Geely also said STAR series will continue to change styles and launch new experiences, not letting users chasing the new wait too long.

What I truly admire is having the courage to pull a "old car" on stage for a real test

Anyone can fill out a spec sheet, pretty as it looks, it doesn't count. This time Geely partnered with China Automotive Technology and Research Center to pull a 310 km Dream Edition that the owner actually drove 220,000 km from the road for real testing—note it's an active vehicle, not a display car in the showroom, this is the car's most real look. Result, I list three numbers for you to savor: Eco mode, A/C off, combined driving conditions, range achievement rate 99.7%; Moose Test achieved 78.1 km/h, this handling stability is stronger than many same-class new cars; after driving 220,000 km, battery health state still remains 91.19%, while the National Standard requires for 200,000 km to be "not less than 70%", it exceeds by over 20 percentage points.

It comes standard with CATL cells plus liquid cooling temperature control, the battery, motor, and electronics foundation is stable; chassis is rear-motor rear-wheel drive, front MacPherson rear multi-link independent suspension, plus Lotus involved in tuning, so driven for so long it still holds steady. For the battery, they added a full set of Extreme Serial Tests—battery health state, high-temp baking, seawater soaking, low-temp charging/discharging, underbody impact, dual needle puncture, six tests passed consecutively, all green. Plus God Shield Battery Safety System, Eye-shaped aluminum alloy battery protection compartment, Double Well-shaped rear subframe these physical hard protections, coupled with liquid cooling temperature control and BMS 3.0 Battery Doctor watching temperature and health state. One sentence: Speed is the surface, this "old car" didn't break down, that's the core.

Finally, let's talk about something less "commercial"

Selling a million cars equals a million ways of living. Geely has a "Our Xingyuan" charity project, which was a wish made with owners when it launched. The first two seasons were in Liangshan, Sichuan and Qiannan, Guizhou, building basketball courts and soccer fields for children with owners. This season went to Masan Village, Ximeng County, Pu'er, Yunnan. There is a "Little Sparrow Choir", a group of Wa ethnic children wanting to sing their hometown songs to big stages. Geely donated a "Our Xingyuan Music Classroom", and also brought these children to Hangzhou, performed together on stage with Lang Lang, Lang Lang also gave them face-to-face lessons and held a masterclass.

I'm not good at speaking sentimental words. But a car seller who can remember the user's small wish from the beginning until today and actually makes it happen, in the auto industry, is rarer than holding ten press conferences.

Standing at the one million hurdle, Xingyuan wants to run towards the next one million. I've worked in this line for 20 years, seen too many saying "User First" on their lips. Xingyuan this time at least put together "Fast, Steady, No Tricks"—as for whether the next million can be held, I'll keep watching, next time I'll chat with everyone again.

On November 6, the Geely Galaxy Global User Music Carnival and Geely Xingyuan Million-Sale Milestone Fan Appreciation Event was held in Hangzhou. Within 24 months of launch, Geely Xingyuan cumulative sales exceeded 1 million units, selling one vehicle in less than a minute, becoming the fastest new energy vehicle globally to reach one million sales. With the posture of a phenomenal hit, it has rewritten the competitive landscape of the global pure electric compact car market.

In response to the trust and expectations of 1 million users, Geely Xingyuan launched new versions of the STAR Limited Series - STAR Ace and STAR Chill, with a limited-time rights price of 88,800 Yuan; simultaneously, the "Million-Sale Fan Appreciation Rights" were also released at the conference. Users logging into the Geely Galaxy App to participate in the draw have the chance to win gifts such as Grandpa Doesn't Brew Tea milk tea vouchers, Geely Xingyuan Million-Sale Commemorative Badges, Geely Xingyuan In-Vehicle Ecosystem Practical Products, Capybara Healing IP Merchandise, and more. Geely Xingyuan responds to the trust and expectations of 1 million users with continuously refreshed product value and always-online user rights.

From Hit to Benchmark: 2 Years, 1 Million Sales, Geely Xingyuan Redefines "Global Speed"

Launched in October 2024, Geely Xingyuan cumulative sales exceeded 1 million units in just two years, selling one vehicle in less than a minute. The choice of 1 million users has solidified the reputation of the "National Super Car", and also set a new benchmark for the global compact car market.

Geely Xingyuan's leadership is not an accident of monthly peaks, but a stable performance spanning multiple sales cycles. After winning the sales champion for all categories in the Chinese auto market in 2025, Geely Xingyuan sold 249,418 units in the first half of 2026, a year-on-year increase of 21%, consecutively retaining the title of best-selling vehicle in the Chinese market. Entering the second half of the year, Geely Xingyuan's sales pace continues to accelerate, with monthly sales exceeding 60,000 units consecutively in August and September, and surging past 70,000 units in October, setting a new historical high for monthly sales. Regardless of brand, energy type, or level, Geely Xingyuan has always maintained the role of a sales champion without any qualifiers, dominating the Chinese auto market.

Moreover, the lead in the domestic market extends to global recognition. Australia, UK, France... Geely Xingyuan has landed in over 30 countries globally, ranking TOP2 in Chinese new energy hatchback exports from January to June 2026. It has successively won the electric vehicle sales champion in Thailand, the A & B class pure electric sales champion in Egypt for 2 consecutive months, the all-category pure electric second place in Mexico for 3 consecutive months, and in Australia, after just two months on the market, consecutively retained the Hatchback pure electric sales champion title. Geely Xingyuan galloping on the streets globally has become a new global business card for "Chinese Intelligent Manufacturing", extending the gold content of the million sales from domestic to overseas.

Million Milestone New Beginning: Two STAR Limited Series Versions Launch, Million Fan Appreciation Rights Released Simultaneously

1 Million Units Represent 1 Million Beautiful Lifestyle Choices. At this conference, the two new STAR Limited Series versions launched by Geely Xingyuan directly respond to the personalized needs of young users. Among them, STAR Ace offers three car colors: Carefree Green, Pepsi Orange, and Flowing Silver; STAR Chill adopts Milky Salt Beige car color paired with brand new interior. Both new versions are equipped with the class-exclusive electric front trunk and EVA Robot simultaneously, integrating personal expression and daily convenience into the driving experience. Regarding purchase rights, users purchasing the two new versions can enjoy a 3,000 Yuan Super Trade-in Subsidy, and can enjoy a STAR Exclusive Gift Package worth 4,099 Yuan for a limited time.

While launching the all-new versions, Geely Xingyuan also released "Million-Sale Fan Appreciation Rights" simultaneously: All 1 million users can log into the Geely Galaxy App to participate in the draw, covering Grandpa Doesn't Brew Tea milk tea vouchers, Geely Xingyuan Million-Sale Commemorative Badges, Geely Xingyuan In-Vehicle Ecosystem Products, Capybara Healing IP Merchandise, and Charging Service Fee Discount Vouchers, etc. Meeting personalized needs and caring for the details of daily driving has become the way Geely Xingyuan interacts with users for a long time.

Worth noting is that around constantly changing aesthetic preferences and travel scenarios, the Geely Xingyuan STAR Limited Series will continue to refresh, launching more new versions and new experiences, allowing every lifestyle to find a matching choice.

220,000 Kilometers In-Service Vehicle Test: Long-term Reliability is the True Quality Backbone of "Million Sales"

Visible configurations can be chased, but invisible skills cannot be mastered quickly. The confidence to refresh the global sales speed comes from product quality that can withstand dual tests of time and mileage. Geely Xingyuan, in collaboration with CATARC, conducted a real test on a 310km Dream Edition in-service vehicle driven by a user for 220,000 kilometers, focusing the inspection on the real condition after long-term user usage.

Under comprehensive road conditions in energy-saving mode with air conditioning off, this in-service vehicle with 220,000 kilometers driven had a verified range achievement rate of 99.7%. Geely Xingyuan is standardly equipped with CATL battery cells and liquid-cooled temperature control systems across the entire series, verifying the stability support of the three-electric system. The 78.1 km/h result in the Moose Test indicates control stability superior to most new cars in the same class; under the support of rear-engine rear-drive layout, front MacPherson and rear multi-link independent suspension, and Lotus tuning, Geely Xingyuan demonstrates chassis skills that remain stable and controllable even after long-term use.

Focusing on long-term vehicle battery safety, the in-service vehicle simultaneously underwent six battery extreme serial tests, covering battery health at the pack level, high-temperature baking, seawater immersion, and vehicle level low-temperature charging/discharging, bottom impact, and dual-pin puncture. Test results show that after 220,000 kilometers of high-intensity use, Geely Xingyuan battery health is 91.19%, far exceeding the national standard of 70% for 200,000 kilometers; its installed ShenDun Battery Safety System's safety design under multiple severe conditions has been systematically verified. The O-shaped aluminum alloy battery protection compartment and dual-well-shaped rear subframe physical reinforcement protection, coordinated with the liquid-cooled temperature control system and BMS 3.0 Battery Doctor responsible for temperature management and status monitoring, build multiple guarantees from structure to operation.

From the initial launch, with disruptive user insights and product definitions, it first raised the standards for the entire A0-class compact car category, to gaining 1 million user recognition in 2 years. Geely Xingyuan supports "High Quality and Affordable Price" with long-term reliability and cross-class experience, leading the A0-class pure electric compact cars towards a new era.

55 seconds is the current production cycle for a Xingyuan at the Geely Xiangtan manufacturing base.

On October 20, the 1 millionth Geely Xingyuan vehicle rolled off the production line.

Counting from the global launch in October 2024, it took 24 months.

The conventional experience in the global automotive industry is that it takes 3 to 5 years for a single model to reach 1 million units in production from launch. Many brands still rely on accumulating multiple generations.

Xingyuan compressed the cycle to two years, refreshing the global speed record for a single model reaching 1 million units on the production line.

Selling Faster and Faster

New model ramp-up is usually fast first then steady, but Xingyuan is the reverse.

In May last year, it reached 200,000 units 7 months after launch, breaking the fastest delivery record in its class.

In March this year, it broke 600,000 units, the second 200,000 increment took 10 months. In August this year, it crossed 800,000 units, the third 200,000 increment compressed to 5 months.

By October, it broke 1 million units, the last 200,000 units took only about 2 months.

The time for increments continued to narrow, forming a contrast with the gradual rhythm of traditional automakers releasing capacity first, then laying out channels, and finally accumulating reputation.

Terminal data confirms simultaneously.

From August to September this year, Xingyuan consecutive two months monthly sales broke 60,000 units, currently the only model in the domestic car market maintaining this rhythm.

As of July this year, consecutive 16 months champion of Chinese full-category models monthly sales; last year won the full-category annual sales champion.

A0-class pure electric segment market share exceeded 30%, 1 out of every 3 electric cars sold in the same class is a Xingyuan.

At least three forces are behind this curve.

On the capacity end, the production line beat at the Xiangtan base was gradually compressed to 55 seconds per unit from the initial launch. The release of backlog orders in the early stage provided supply conditions for acceleration in the later stage.

On the demand end, product reputation diffusion and channel sinking occurred simultaneously.

On the market end, the overall expansion of the A0-class pure electric also provided external thrust.

Capacity organization, order management, channel rhythm, every item is affecting the actual form of ramp-up. Xingyuan maintained the synchronization of demand release and supply ramp-up within 24 months.

The difficulty of this synchronization lies in: most models always have one end that can't keep up between capacity and demand, while Xingyuan showed no obvious rhythm interruption within two years.

Definition First

The A0-class pure electric market has long had an inertia: entry-level means cut specs, commuter means just enough.

Under the logic of low-price competition, front-wheel drive plus torsion beam, small capacity battery, and basic infotainment are common solutions for this price range.

Xingyuan's approach uses cross-class specifications to pull 'just enough' to a benchmark, but this judgment needs to be broken down: which specifications truly change purchase decisions, and which are just bonus items on the product manual.

From the architecture level, Xingyuan is built based on the GEA global native architecture, all series rear-engine rear-drive plus rear multi-link independent suspension.

At the same price level, it is generally front-engine front-drive plus torsion beam. This combination rewrote the driving control baseline for small cars.

Moose test dry ground 80.7km/h, 130km/h high-speed Fishhook test passed, turning radius 4.95m.

Rear-drive independent suspension requires the whole vehicle to be redesigned from the architecture level in terms of handling stability, ride comfort, and space layout. This is the hardest part of Xingyuan's product definition to be replicated in the short term.

Three-electric systems and smart cockpit constitute the second layer of product cognition. All series standard CATL cells, range covers 310 to 480km, 11-in-1 smart electric drive comprehensive efficiency 89.2%, all series standard liquid cooling temperature control system.

God Shield battery safety system forms a multi-layer structure from cells to battery pack to vehicle protection, side pole impact test cell zero intrusion.

Galaxy Flyme Auto system and 14.6-inch central control screen downgraded to entry models, Flyme Auto users have accumulated over 2.8 million.

In terms of space, 85% utilization rate and 70L front trunk are the two most recognizable memory points in the A0-class market, no need to expand on the rest.

But the formation of 1 million units cannot be solely attributed to cross-class specifications.

Pricing range 61,800 to 91,800 Yuan, Geely's channel coverage in the A0-class market, last year's new energy vehicles going to rural areas and purchase tax policy environment, as well as configuration gaps of same-class competitors in the early stage of Xingyuan launch, are actual variables of sales ramp-up.

Xingyuan used cross-class specifications to establish clear product cognition and lowered the consumer decision threshold.

And price, channels, and market timing determine how much sales this cognition can convert.

Once the standard was out, same-class models followed to optimize specifications, A0-class small cars shifted from low-price involution to quality competition.

Xingyuan established cognition advantage within the window period, competitors need time to follow up, both describe market status of different time periods.

Global Progress

Xingyuan has landed in over 30 countries and regions globally.

Thailand market won electric vehicle sales champion, single week at auto show won 3,300 orders; Australia launch first month won pure electric market sales champion.

Jordan pure electric model sales first, Mexico pure electric market second, Brazil two months after launch sales broke 2,300 units.

First half of this year, Xingyuan ranked second in Chinese new energy hatchback exports. Since August, Australian, UK, France markets successively developed.

Beyond numbers, the method of going overseas is also changing.

Traditional car exports are mainly trade-based output, products sold overseas, channels and after-sales depend on local partners.

Xingyuan's overseas launch relies on Geely's global R&D and manufacturing system.

GEA architecture native development for global market, Sino-German joint calibration covers driving environments of different scenarios, product considers multi-market regulations and road conditions adaptation in R&D stage.

On the manufacturing end, Xiangtan base manages manufacturing standards and supply chain organization separately for export models: export model quality inspection process, parts batch traceability and domestic model line separation management. CATL cells and other core parts rely on global supply system to guarantee overseas delivery.

These facts indicate that what Xingyuan exports is not just whole vehicles, but also product definition processes, manufacturing standards, and supply chain organization methods.

But system output is a relatively high-intensity judgment, needs to distinguish levels.

Product R&D globalization, unified manufacturing standards, global supply chain organization belong to system capability output; while overseas channel depth, after-sales service system, localization production and brand cognition construction, Xingyuan is still in the initial stage.

Xingyuan's overseas launch shows signs of transition from product export to system output, product definition and manufacturing standards come first, channels and after-sales system still following up.

Whether this transition can be completed depends on the actual progress of overseas channel layout and localization operations in the next two to three years. Export sales volume itself cannot explain all problems.

Final Words

24 months 1 million units is a speed record, but speed itself is not the finish line.

1 million units off the line means Xingyuan entered a new stage of scale, and also means greater tests have just begun.

Whether overseas global over 30 countries and regions channel depth, after-sales system, brand cognition can keep up with sales rhythm, whether localization production is put on the agenda.

Where is the sales ceiling of domestic A0-class market, after same-class competitors follow up with specs, how to continuously iterate differentiation advantage, price band whether facing squeeze from above and below.

At least at this time node, Xingyuan speed proved two things.

The scale space of entry-level pure electric market is far from fully released. When product power truly crosses the 'just enough' threshold, mass market demand elasticity exceeds industry expectations.

China new energy competitiveness is shifting from single product price-performance ratio, to combination of supply chain efficiency, product definition capability, and rapid iteration response capability.

On October 20, the 1 millionth mass-produced unit of Geely Xingyuan officially rolled off the line at the Geely Automobile Xiangtan Manufacturing Base. From the 1st unit to the 1 millionth, Geely Xingyuan took only 24 months, with an average of 1 unit rolling off every 55 seconds. With the momentum of a "phenomenal hit", it refreshed the record for the speed of rolling off 1 million units in the global automotive market.

From its launch in 2024, Geely Xingyuan focused on users' real pain points and reshaped the standards for A0-class pure electric small cars with "five disruptive innovations" in space, intelligence, range, handling, and safety. Features like the 70L front trunk, CATL battery cells, and rear-wheel drive independent suspension are standard across the series. Product configurations prioritize user experience and are centered around high-frequency usage scenarios. Once these standards were set, competitors followed and optimized. Consequently, A0-class small cars have moved from "good enough" to "high quality and good value". The roll-off of 1 million units is the joint crystallization of Geely Xingyuan's system strength, product strength, and user trust, and also a powerful witness of "Chinese Smart Manufacturing" driving to the center of the world stage.

Achieving 1 Million Unit Roll-off in 24 Months, Geely Xingyuan Refreshes Global Acceleration

Looking at the global automotive market, a scale of 1 million units usually takes three to five years or even longer, and is mostly an accumulation of multiple models under a brand. From the 1st to the 1 millionth unit, Geely Xingyuan achieved a scale of 1 million units for a single model in just 24 months, writing a new coordinate for Chinese brands in the history of the global automotive industry.

As a leader in the A0-class small car market, Geely Xingyuan has ranked as the sales champion in all categories without qualifiers since its global launch, thanks to its solid product strength and continuously accumulated user reputation. It has become a "phenomenal" hit product in the Chinese car market. In 2025, it topped the sales champion of all category models. In the first half of 2026, cumulative sales exceeded 249,000 vehicles, with a year-on-year growth of 21%, ranking first in sales of all market models in the first half. Entering the second half, Geely Xingyuan's explosive power became even more astonishing. Sales broke 60,000 for two consecutive months in August and September, making it the only model on the current market to achieve sales over 60,000 for two consecutive months. It not only achieved a breakthrough lead in the A0-class pure electric track, but also continued to top the sales chart of all categories in the Chinese car market. Nowadays, the visibility of Geely Xingyuan on the streets continues to increase. Relying on the "high quality and good value" product experience, it has gained the trust of one million users and is becoming the preferred "national iconic car" for more and more people.

While leading the domestic market, the globalization landscape of Geely Xingyuan is also accelerating. Currently, Geely Xingyuan has launched in more than 30 countries around the world, successively achieving the title of Thailand's electric vehicle sales champion, Jordan's number one pure electric car, and Mexico's number two pure electric car. In August this year, Geely Xingyuan expanded into European and Oceania markets such as Australia, the United Kingdom, and France, becoming one of the top 2 exports of Chinese new energy hatchback models in the first half of 2026. Geely Xingyuan galloping on the streets around the world is becoming a shiny new business card for "Chinese Smart Manufacturing".

Geely's Globalization System Strength, Manufacturing Support for Geely Xingyuan's "1 Million Unit Secret"

"Rolling off 1 million units in 24 months" is not only a breakthrough in speed but also a concentrated examination and fulfillment of Geely's global system strength and global standard manufacturing strength.

Relying on Geely Group's 40 years of underlying technical accumulation and globalization system capabilities, the Geely Galaxy brand has won the favor of over 2.7 million users globally. From the globalization of new energy native architecture at the R&D end to multi-base collaboration and rapid production capacity climb at the manufacturing end; from stable support of core components at the supply chain end to domestic service networks and localization layout in more than 30 overseas countries at the market end, the scaled delivery of Geely Xingyuan at the 1 million-unit level is essentially the accumulation and release of the entire system capability of Geely Galaxy.

As the core carrier of this system strength, having cultivated Hunan for twenty years, the Geely Automobile Xiangtan Manufacturing Base has spawned multiple million-unit models successively. It has now been upgraded to a global manufacturing base that attaches equal importance to new energy vehicles and export vehicles. Under the double-shift production mode, the factory can roll off one complete vehicle on average every 55 seconds. In 2025, automotive production and sales exceeded 640,000 units/sets, creating a new historical high. The intelligent manufacturing system and full-process quality control provide solid guarantees for the quality consistency of Geely Xingyuan's million units. The record of "rolling off 1 million units in 24 months" is not only a manifestation of speed but also a commitment to quality.

Geely Xingyuan 200,000 km In-Service Vehicle Strict Test, Good Quality Withstands Inspection

As the king of sales in all categories, Geely Xingyuan's confidence has never relied on paper parameters but on solid actual product experience. To verify issues most concerned by users such as durability and reliability, Geely Xingyuan cooperated with the China Automotive Technology and Research Center, using a user vehicle with a mileage of 200,000 km to conduct strict tests on range and handling. Test data proves that Geely Xingyuan's reliable quality can withstand the dual test of time and mileage.

After 200,000 km, the range remains solid. This 310 km Dream Edition first-generation Xingyuan, supported by CATL battery cells standard across the series and full-link energy management of the liquid cooling temperature control system, after driving 60% urban roads and 40% highway viaducts, achieved a tested range of 309 km, with a range achievement rate of 99.7%. The performance is almost indistinguishable from a new car.

After 200,000 km, handling remains stable. Benefiting from rear-wheel drive + multi-link independent suspension and Lotus tuning technology support, this Geely Xingyuan that has served for 200,000 km achieved a Moose Test score of 78.1 km/h, which is very close to the 80.7 km/h score at the new car stage, demonstrating good body stability and controllability.

200,000 km is the yardstick to test a vehicle's long-term quality. Geely Xingyuan's product quality has not declined significantly due to mileage growth, and stability during long-term use is clearly visible. For users, choosing Geely Xingyuan is also choosing a quality certainty that can withstand long-term use.

From the 1st unit to the 1 millionth, the 24-month leap witnesses the rise of a phenomenon-level model, and even more, a global legend written by a Chinese brand with system strength, product strength, and user sincerity. In the future, it is expected that Geely Xingyuan will continue to center on user needs, refresh the value standards of pure electric small cars with continuously advancing champion product strength, live up to every choice and trust, and embark on a wonderful new journey with global users.

There is quite an interesting phenomenon.

In 2026, the new energy vehicle market has become so competitive that everyone can see it.

New cars are released almost every month. Some brands are eager to roll out a completely new model within half a year, pile on various configurations, set a price that looks sincere, and the whole process flows smoothly.

But when you really check the reviews of those cars—range exaggeration, breakdowns in winter, loose chassis, and hit-or-miss quality control—you will find that speed in car manufacturing seems inherently at odds with quality.

So when I saw the Chery Fengyun T7 launch, what interested me most was not its price.

However, the price was indeed surprising, the official guide price is from 97,900 yuan to 118,900 yuan. If participating in an early trade-in, it starts from as low as 94,900 yuan.

What truly made me think it was worth discussing is the term they used: "Slow and steady builds a good car".

Saying "slow" in 2026 is rebellious in itself.

Research and development of Fengyun T7 took three years.

What does that mean? Some new power brands nowadays can complete a project from initiation to the whole vehicle in over a year.

In today's industry rhythm, three years can almost be described as "luxurious".

But the Chery brand is interesting. It has been the number 1 exporter of Chinese passenger cars for 23 consecutive years, selling over 20 million cars globally. Its logic is indeed different from brands that only focus on the domestic market.

Fengyun T7 is taking a path of "go overseas first, then return to China".

The overseas version Lepas L6, which shares the same platform, has already launched in markets like South Africa and Thailand.

It has appeared at the Milan Design Week and has been reported by overseas media.

It is not built in Wuhu, Anhui, and then modified for foreigners. Instead, since the first day of R&D, the design was deduced according to the needs of the global market.

For example, safety standards.

Fengyun T7 directly targets not current Chinese standards, but the 2026 version of E-NCAP, the harshest crash test in Europe three years from now.

Nine airbags are provided, which is quite an investment within its class.

Another example is chassis tuning.

In Chery's chassis team, there is a lead figure, a former Maserati chassis tuning expert, who specializes in tuning for speeds above 160 km/h.

Why must it be above 160? Because speed limits on European highways are the norm, you need the car to remain stable under such conditions.

This "global-oriented" mindset is reflected in many details.

Thai right-hand drive users prefer a heavier steering feel, so the steering force was increased by one level during tuning.

In places like Indonesia with bumpy roads, the steering feel is weighted even further and the centering feedback is optimized.

In the Nordic countries with long periods of polar night, interior lighting and charging backlights were specially optimized.

Overall, adaptations were made for more than 80 local habits.

These details may not seem earth-shattering individually, but together they reflect an attitude towards car manufacturing: not building a car that only runs in China, but a car that can run in any corner of the Earth.

Aiming for this goal, the verification mileage for Fengyun T7 is 1.45 million km, with 81 vehicles running repeatedly in five extreme environments.

High temperature, extreme cold, high humidity, high salinity. After covering all of these, it continued on actual roads in Europe, Australia/New Zealand, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.

Brazil's gravel roads, Mexico's cobblestone roads, Southeast Asian rainy season roads with 500 mm standing water—all must be run on actual vehicles.

It is not just about simulating with equipment in a lab and calling it a day.

Chery calls this "slow and steady". I think essentially it is "risk pre-positioning", solving problems before the launch, rather than waiting for users to find issues on the road to fix them later.

To be honest, there are really not many brands in the industry doing this now.

On one hand, there is capital pressure, and products must be launched and monetized as soon as possible.

On the other hand, competition is too fierce; whoever takes one step later loses market share to others.

In today's industry where "nothing is stronger than speed" has almost become a creed, slowing down requires strong conviction.

But interestingly, over the past two years we have seen too many cases of quality issues caused by rushing to launch, from battery safety to loss of control in smart driving to chassis fractures, constantly emerging.

MIIT also publicly criticized the issue of "radical innovation designs applied to vehicles without sufficient experimental verification" earlier this year.

Between speed and slowness, there are actually no absolute advantages or disadvantages.

But if I had to choose a car to drive for several years with my family, traveling everywhere, I would most likely choose the one that went through the "slow" process.

Fengyun T7 is priced in the 100,000 yuan range. The entire series is equipped with a 65 kWh battery, 600 km range, heat pump air conditioning, and AGS intelligent grille.

To be honest, in this class, there are not many cars on the market that can achieve this level of safety configuration and range.

It is not a strategy that uses low configurations to lower the threshold, making you tempted but actually unaffordable. Instead, it completes basic values like range and safety, then creates a gradient in intelligence and comfort.

At the end of the day, a "global car" is not a marketing concept; it is a methodology.

It is about whether you are willing to spend three years on R&D, willing to drive the car to the world's harshest roads for verification, willing to do a round of tuning specifically for the steering feel of a right-hand drive market.

Users may never see these things, but they determine whether this car is still a trouble-free car after three or five years of driving.

Fengyun T7 is not an impressive model; the design won't make your heart beat at first sight, and the configuration is not the top tier.

But there is something reassuring about it: all the homework that needs to be done has been done.

This is worth more than anything in the 2026 Chinese automotive market.

On July 16, I arrived at the event site at the GAC Trumpchi factory. Watching the moment the 30 millionth vehicle slowly drove onto the stage, the first word that came to mind was "GAC Acceleration".

Many people think of GAC as "steady", but achieving a leap from 0 to 30 million in 29 years cannot be summarized simply as "steady".

Behind this lies the continuous acceleration within a steady foundation, the speed of transformation and lane switching, the speed of technology implementation, and the speed of global layout.

30 million units is a solid report card handed in after GAC's entire system capabilities accelerated.

(1) Full Matrix of New Energy Debuts, It Is the Acceleration of Transformation and Lane Switching

This vehicle delivery ceremony had a detail worth noting, linking multiple global production bases to sync. From the 29,999,995th to the 29,999,999th unit, GAC Honda e:N P7, GAC Toyota E-Prino 7, Qijing GT7, GAC Aion N60, GAC Hyper S600 went offline sequentially, with the finale being the 30 millionth unit, a Right-Hand Drive GAC Trumpchi M8 PHEV.

A full-color new energy matrix, covering joint venture and independent brands, covering sedans, SUVs, and MPVs, even using exported right-hand drive models as milestone carriers. This is not an intentionally arranged sense of ritual, but a true portrayal of GAC's comprehensive acceleration in electrification and intelligence transformation.

Handing over the key of the 30 millionth vehicle to Thai owner Tony Jaa, this action itself is a declaration of overseas success. Behind the 132% export growth in the first half of this year lies the accelerated implementation of GAC's global layout, an upgrade from Chinese automobile brands exporting products to exporting systems, and the user base of 30 million has already extended from the domestic market to the global market.

(2) Concentrated Technology Implementation, It Is the Acceleration of Long-term Growth

Many say GAC is low-key, but R&D investment numbers never lie: So far, GAC Group's cumulative R&D investment exceeds 62 billion yuan, and the global R&D team size exceeds 6,800 people. Long-term technical deep plowing has now reached the explosive period of concentrated implementation.

In the power field, the Xingyuan Power System built by the "National Excellent Engineer Team" covers three technology routes: extended-range, plug-in hybrid, and super dual-engine. Each power unit has undergone 100,000 hours of bench and vehicle verification, equivalent to over 10 million kilometers, and is being quickly installed into more mass-produced models; in the power battery field, Quark Electric Drive motor highest efficiency breaks through 99%, reaching industry top levels, the fully solid-state battery pilot production line has been built, continuously attacking industry pain points such as super-fast charging and low-temperature range; in the intelligent networking field, the Xingling Architecture connects six systems such as intelligent driving, cockpit, power, achieving "one brain unified command", comprehensive performance improved by 40%, Xinghe Smart Cockpit achieves endpoint-cloud integration, and jointly builds an AI intelligent ecosystem with top partners such as Huawei and CATL.

More importantly, while accelerating, the bottom line of quality is not lost. From the extreme environment test of "Five Highs, One Mountain, One Dust" to the systematic verification of over 1,500 verification sub-items, to the Mag Battery accumulating 1.5 million vehicles installed, and the Xingling Safety Guard System protecting nearly 2 million users, and the industry-first "Three Responsibilities" service guarantee, GAC's acceleration has always been built on the bottom line of quality and safety.

(3) Service System Follow-up, It Is the Acceleration of System Capability

Front-end products run fast, and the back-end service system is also accelerating in sync. To accommodate the rapidly growing user volume, GAC has comprehensively upgraded on the service side.

On the organizational level, the GAC Group established a dedicated user insight department, regularly held "User Full Mic" activities, established a closed-loop user request processing mechanism for the whole process, ensuring every user voice gets a response; on the channel level, accelerating sinking into counties, planning to add 1,000 county-authorized stores within the year, letting service reach more users; service response launched "Super Butler", achieving 5-second response, 2-hour request completion; charging ecosystem built a "9 Verticals, 10 Horizontals" network, covering 31 provinces and 213 cities nationwide, self-operated charging piles exceed 27,000, realizing "there is always a station within a straight line 1 km" in core urban areas.

From user communication to channel coverage, from after-sales response to charging support, the accelerated improvement of the full-cycle service system allows the trust of 30 million users to continue to settle, and also solidifies the foundation for the next round of growth.

(4) Kung Fu Review

29 years, 30 million units, after watching this event, my biggest feeling is: "GAC Acceleration" is an acceleration of accumulated strength released in a burst.

This is a steady acceleration of the entire system coordination from products, technology to services and globalization. In the past, when we talked about GAC, we always said it was steady, solid, and quality-first; but looking back from the 30 million node, this steadiness is accumulating strength for acceleration.

30 million is not the end, but a new starting line for GAC's acceleration. When technical reserves enter the mass production explosion period, when globalization layout enters the harvest period, when new energy transformation enters the deep water zone, the GAC in the future will only run faster.

From the birth of the first Phoenix brand sedan in 1958 to the delivery of the IM LS9 on May 28, 2026, SAIC Group has taken nearly 70 years to achieve the delivery of 100 million cars, becoming the first Chinese automotive group to accumulate production and sales of over 100 million units.

For a single group to enter the '100 Million Club', such an achievement, only a few century-old giants like General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Volkswagen, etc. have achieved this internationally so far.

For an automotive group, the delivery of 100 million cars is not only an achievement of the group itself, but also concerns the development and changes of the entire automotive industry, witnessing the rise of China's automotive manufacturing from nothing to something, and then to strength. Through SAIC's 100 millionth new vehicle delivery, this process is fully presented.

On the day of the delivery ceremony, Dragon TV broadcast live the entire delivery process of SAIC Group from the 99,999,996th to the 100,000,010th new vehicle. From Shanghai to Liuzhou, Shaanxi, from China to the UK, Indonesia, Singapore, SAIC's product delivery spreads all over the globe. Behind this, there are products and services of SAIC Group that span over 170 countries and regions, and its cumulative overseas sales have exceeded 7 million units.

In addition, the new vehicles cover more than 10 vehicle brands and 19 models under its umbrella: Shangjie Z7, Huajing S, Roewe M7 Black Horse Edition, MG4 Semi-Solid State Battery Version, Wuling Starlight 560, Maxus eDeliver 5, Hongyan i Jieshi, Yuejin Danna T1, Sunwin Pure Electric City Bus, as well as Volkswagen ID. ERA 9X, Audi E7X, Cadillac Kaiweide, Buick Zhijing E7, Buick Zhijing Family...... From independent brands to joint ventures, from fuel cars to new energy, fusion, transformation, and innovation are deeply intertwined in SAIC's growth experience, achieving the systemic strength of China's automotive industry.

Achieving the First 10 Million

SAIC Used Half a Century

In 1955, the Shanghai Internal Combustion Engine Parts Manufacturing Company was established, and Shanghai's automotive industry started from here. In 1958, workers used hammers to hammer out the first 'Phoenix' sedan, achieving a zero breakthrough in Shanghai sedan manufacturing.

In the following few years, SAIC was solving the challenge of China's automotive industry from nothing to something. In an era lacking large presses, precision machine tools, and automation equipment, production methods were nearly primitive. Most complex parts and car body appearances were completely chewed out by workers based on experience and naked eye, purely by hand. Therefore, Shanghai Auto's initial annual production was only a few thousand units, far from a modern industrial system.

Until the successful assembly of the first Santana in 1983, it brought possibilities for SAIC to start joint venture cooperation. And it took SAIC about 6 years to truly drive China's automotive industry towards scaled assembly lines.

In 1978, the state approved Shanghai to introduce sedan projects in the form of 'Sino-Foreign Joint Ventures', but by 1982, when negotiations entered the deep water zone, the joint venture project was on the verge of failure.

First, the impact of ideology, 'Should sedan joint ventures be launched' faced huge controversy; second, the 'Productivity Theory' of the early 1980s prioritized the production of means of production such as heavy trucks over sedans. Volkswagen Germany also clearly stated that joint venture products must be sold in the Chinese local market, causing many to worry that foreigners' high-end goods would eat into the domestic market, 'Inviting wolves into the house'. In addition, facing Germany's overwhelming automotive industry strength, everyone understood that the entry of joint venture models would inevitably deal a fatal blow to the domestically produced cars made by hand at that time. People worried that this would kill China's own automotive brands.

Facing a series of opposing voices, one sentence stated 'Launching sedan joint ventures can allow our automotive industry to take 20 years less detours.' His critical statement eventually allowed Shanghai Auto at the time to withstand pressure, signing a pilot assembly (CKD) agreement with Volkswagen Germany at the end of 1982, leading to the successful launch of the first Santana.

Even so, before the official signing in 1984, SAIC Volkswagen (then Shanghai Volkswagen), Chinese and German sides still conducted long-term tug-of-war on details such as investment ratio, profit distribution, technology transfer, localization rate, and even food standards for foreign employees. At that time, China had only recently promulgated the 'Law on Chinese-Foreign Joint Ventures', and many supporting industrial and commercial, tax systems were blank.

By assembling foreign models and introducing modern automotive manufacturing standards wholesale, Shanghai Auto embarked on a difficult yet far-reaching road. The localization rate of early Santanas was only 2.7%. At that time, Germans' requirements for parts quality were strict to the point of being stereotypical, and samples sent by domestic supporting factories for inspection were almost wiped out. Facing huge international public opinion pressure, Shanghai established the Santana Car Localization Consortium in 1988, starting a localization assault campaign lasting more than 10 years.

It was precisely this set of standards that allowed Chinese workers to see strict process management, modern painting processes, and quality control systems for the first time, and more thoroughly changed the traditional concept of domestic automotive manufacturing: Cars are not 'hammered' out, but 'built' based on strict standard processes.

With the experience of SAIC Volkswagen, Shanghai GM, established in 1997, took only 23 months to build a factory and produce cars, simultaneously building China's first joint venture professional automotive design and R&D center, creating 'Shanghai Speed'.

Relying on the strong dual engines of SAIC Volkswagen and SAIC General Motors, SAIC's production and sales finally embarked on the fast lane. Around 2003, SAIC Group finally welcomed the first 10 million cumulative production and sales, taking 48 years.

Nearly half a century of time is the construction process of China's automotive industry from nothing to something. By the late 1990s, the localization rate of Santana exceeded 90%. In this process, Shanghai Auto used nearly cruel Volkswagen VW standards to hand-in-hand teach domestic electronic, mechanical, rubber, glass, and other supporting factories to establish quality management systems, almost reshaping China's local automotive parts supply chain, laying an important foundation for the development of subsequent automotive brands.

From 10 Million to 100 Million

SAIC Acceleration

After crossing the threshold of 10 million, the Chinese automotive market welcomed the Golden Decade, and SAIC's production and sales curve changed directly from linear growth to exponential takeoff.

In 2001, China officially joined the WTO, and SAIC Volkswagen and SAIC General Motors welcomed the golden period of localization transformation during this period. A large number of global models, advanced processes, and management experiences were seamlessly delivered to China, and SAIC Group arrived at the moment of harvesting dividends. Also starting in 2001, the state explicitly proposed in official documents for the first time 'Encouraging sedans to enter residents' homes', sedans began to enter ordinary households from official vehicle consumption.

Accompanying the acceleration of China's urbanization process and the development of the real estate market, China birthed the largest middle-class group in human history. From policy, capital to the comprehensive rise of the national economy, all drove the explosion of demand in China's automotive market. Santana and Passat of SAIC Volkswagen, Excelle of SAIC General Motors, and later Wuling Light which almost ruled China's micro car market were all phenomenon-level national god cars of this time.

Joint venture dividends brought technology spillover, and also stimulated the awakening of independent brands like Geely, Chery, Great Wall, etc. In this decade, private car companies tore open the household car market below 100,000 yuan with high cost-performance ratios. Facing the pressure from independent brands, SAIC launched the Roewe brand in 2006, starting the exploration of independence by traditional giants.

It was precisely these blockbusters and explorations that hit the rhythm of the times that SAIC completed the raw accumulation of production and sales scale. By December 2010, SAIC Group's cumulative production and sales exceeded the 20 million mark, and became the first automotive giant in China's automotive history with annual production and sales exceeding 3 million units that year.

The strong contrast between 48 years and 7 years is the hardest core footnote for the Chinese automotive market welcoming the 'Golden Explosion Period' in the first decade of the 21st century.

Entering the second decade of the 21st century, China became the world's largest automotive market. The three carriages under SAIC — SAIC Volkswagen, SAIC General Motors, SAIC-GM-Wuling — exploded comprehensively. From 2010 to 2014, in just four years, SAIC completed a three-stage jump from 20 million to 50 million.

That was the golden age of China's automotive market gushing, where SAIC relied on the dual heroes of joint ventures and Wuling god cars advancing together, running out of scale dividends, where the joint venture dividends and scale effects of the traditional fuel era reached the peak.

And from 50 million to today's peak of 100 million, SAIC experienced a difficult transformation of joint venture dividends receding and the domestic market being extremely involution. Although joint venture dividends receded, relying on the two-line efforts of independent brand share soaring to nearly 70% and overseas cumulative delivery exceeding 7 million, SAIC ran the second 50 million with higher quality in the storm of new energy involution.

Especially after SAIC launched the world's first internet car Roewe RX5 in 2015, new energy and going global became a brand new accelerator. By May 2026, achieving 100 million units, SAIC's average annual production and sales in the past nearly 10 years have been maintained at a high level of 4 million to 7 million.

Borrowing the explosion of independent brands, globalization strategy, and the comprehensive succession of new energy and intelligence, SAIC reached another sales peak again. This is SAIC's 3.0 era.

From Santana to IM LS9

The Transformation of the 100 Millionth Vehicle

In the brilliant starlight of global relay delivery, the focus of the 100 millionth delivery is fixed inside the main hall of Shanghai North Bund World Living Room, where IM LS9 Hyper shone onto the stage.

If Santana and Wuling Hongguang were early myths of SAIC Group, then in the intelligent era, IM LS9 has undoubtedly become the representative work of SAIC's independent high-endization.

The IM LS9 launched at the end of last year is the flagship model with the highest positioning in SAIC Group's independent product sequence, positioned in the 300,000 yuan market, but benchmarking against the million-level executive cabin. SAIC piled all the most cutting-edge chassis and power technologies that can represent 'New Quality Productive Forces' onto the IM LS9 — SAIC's ace technology Lizard Digital Chassis 3.0; next-generation intelligent driving hardware, 520-line super-vision LiDAR and NVIDIA Thor chip; next-generation three-electrics — full-domain 800V high-voltage platform and Star Super Range Extender. In addition, LS9 also comprehensively pre-embedded redundant capabilities for L3 and above high-level intelligent driving continuous evolution.

Even more interestingly, SAIC's 100 millionth user, Momenta CEO Cao Xudong, is exactly SAIC's core strategic partner in the intelligent driving field. The person who understands LS9 intelligent driving best spent money to become its car owner.

Just a few years ago, the discussion about smart car 'Soul and Body' was in a very tense state, and this new car delivery between SAIC and Cao Xudong gave a perfect answer sheet.

At the delivery ceremony, Cao Xudong stated that SAIC is not only Momenta's customer, but also its earliest core lead investor. IM Motors, as the most critical flagship brand for SAIC Group's transformation, directly became Momenta's 'top base camp' for cutting-edge algorithms. Deep business binding and capital fusion made the two enterprises become a community of emerging OEM and supplier cooperation.

IM LS9 is precisely the product of these two top teams performing their duties and highly integrating. IM LS9 is equipped with Momenta's end-to-end large model algorithm, while SAIC endowed it with a powerful Lizard Digital Chassis and industrial smart manufacturing body. When Cao Xudong held the steering wheel of IM LS9, from a partner to becoming a SAIC car owner, it also indirectly indicated that no one swallows the other. The landing of IM LS9 is the result of the deep integration and symbiosis of intelligent driving technology and manufacturing strength.

Cao Xudong has been promoting the overseas landing of intelligent driving's 'Can drive anywhere globally'. And SAIC itself is the leading head of Chinese car companies going global. Handing the 100 millionth car to him also indicated SAIC's future strategic ambition in intelligent overseas output, to further bundle with Momenta and go global together.

The 100 millionth car is not only an endpoint, but also a brand new starting point for two Chinese top forces combining to output global intelligence. SAIC's global relay delivery of the full brand matrix witnesses its deep industrial chain system built over more than 70 years and leading innovation chain layout. The next 100 million era will certainly arrive at a faster speed.

From the birth of the first Phoenix brand sedan in 1958 to the delivery of the IM LS9 on May 28, 2026, SAIC Group has taken nearly 70 years to achieve the delivery of 100 million cars, becoming the first Chinese automotive group to accumulate production and sales of over 100 million units.

For a single group to enter the '100 Million Club', such an achievement, only a few century-old giants like General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Volkswagen, etc. have achieved this internationally so far.

For an automotive group, the delivery of 100 million cars is not only an achievement of the group itself, but also concerns the development and changes of the entire automotive industry, witnessing the rise of China's automotive manufacturing from nothing to something, and then to strength. Through SAIC's 100 millionth new vehicle delivery, this process is fully presented.

On the day of the delivery ceremony, Dragon TV broadcast live the entire delivery process of SAIC Group from the 99,999,996th to the 100,000,010th new vehicle. From Shanghai to Liuzhou, Shaanxi, from China to the UK, Indonesia, Singapore, SAIC's product delivery spreads all over the globe. Behind this, there are products and services of SAIC Group that span over 170 countries and regions, and its cumulative overseas sales have exceeded 7 million units.

In addition, the new vehicles cover more than 10 vehicle brands and 19 models under its umbrella: Shangjie Z7, Huajing S, Roewe M7 Black Horse Edition, MG4 Semi-Solid State Battery Version, Wuling Starlight 560, Maxus eDeliver 5, Hongyan i Jieshi, Yuejin Danna T1, Sunwin Pure Electric City Bus, as well as Volkswagen ID. ERA 9X, Audi E7X, Cadillac Kaiweide, Buick Zhijing E7, Buick Zhijing Family...... From independent brands to joint ventures, from fuel cars to new energy, fusion, transformation, and innovation are deeply intertwined in SAIC's growth experience, achieving the systemic strength of China's automotive industry.

Achieving the First 10 Million

SAIC Used Half a Century

In 1955, the Shanghai Internal Combustion Engine Parts Manufacturing Company was established, and Shanghai's automotive industry started from here. In 1958, workers used hammers to hammer out the first 'Phoenix' sedan, achieving a zero breakthrough in Shanghai sedan manufacturing.

In the following few years, SAIC was solving the challenge of China's automotive industry from nothing to something. In an era lacking large presses, precision machine tools, and automation equipment, production methods were nearly primitive. Most complex parts and car body appearances were completely chewed out by workers based on experience and naked eye, purely by hand. Therefore, Shanghai Auto's initial annual production was only a few thousand units, far from a modern industrial system.

Until the successful assembly of the first Santana in 1983, it brought possibilities for SAIC to start joint venture cooperation. And it took SAIC about 6 years to truly drive China's automotive industry towards scaled assembly lines.

In 1978, the state approved Shanghai to introduce sedan projects in the form of 'Sino-Foreign Joint Ventures', but by 1982, when negotiations entered the deep water zone, the joint venture project was on the verge of failure.

First, the impact of ideology, 'Should sedan joint ventures be launched' faced huge controversy; second, the 'Productivity Theory' of the early 1980s prioritized the production of means of production such as heavy trucks over sedans. Volkswagen Germany also clearly stated that joint venture products must be sold in the Chinese local market, causing many to worry that foreigners' high-end goods would eat into the domestic market, 'Inviting wolves into the house'. In addition, facing Germany's overwhelming automotive industry strength, everyone understood that the entry of joint venture models would inevitably deal a fatal blow to the domestically produced cars made by hand at that time. People worried that this would kill China's own automotive brands.

Facing a series of opposing voices, one sentence stated 'Launching sedan joint ventures can allow our automotive industry to take 20 years less detours.' His critical statement eventually allowed Shanghai Auto at the time to withstand pressure, signing a pilot assembly (CKD) agreement with Volkswagen Germany at the end of 1982, leading to the successful launch of the first Santana.

Even so, before the official signing in 1984, SAIC Volkswagen (then Shanghai Volkswagen), Chinese and German sides still conducted long-term tug-of-war on details such as investment ratio, profit distribution, technology transfer, localization rate, and even food standards for foreign employees. At that time, China had only recently promulgated the 'Law on Chinese-Foreign Joint Ventures', and many supporting industrial and commercial, tax systems were blank.

By assembling foreign models and introducing modern automotive manufacturing standards wholesale, Shanghai Auto embarked on a difficult yet far-reaching road. The localization rate of early Santanas was only 2.7%. At that time, Germans' requirements for parts quality were strict to the point of being stereotypical, and samples sent by domestic supporting factories for inspection were almost wiped out. Facing huge international public opinion pressure, Shanghai established the Santana Car Localization Consortium in 1988, starting a localization assault campaign lasting more than 10 years.

It was precisely this set of standards that allowed Chinese workers to see strict process management, modern painting processes, and quality control systems for the first time, and more thoroughly changed the traditional concept of domestic automotive manufacturing: Cars are not 'hammered' out, but 'built' based on strict standard processes.

With the experience of SAIC Volkswagen, Shanghai GM, established in 1997, took only 23 months to build a factory and produce cars, simultaneously building China's first joint venture professional automotive design and R&D center, creating 'Shanghai Speed'.

Relying on the strong dual engines of SAIC Volkswagen and SAIC General Motors, SAIC's production and sales finally embarked on the fast lane. Around 2003, SAIC Group finally welcomed the first 10 million cumulative production and sales, taking 48 years.

Nearly half a century of time is the construction process of China's automotive industry from nothing to something. By the late 1990s, the localization rate of Santana exceeded 90%. In this process, Shanghai Auto used nearly cruel Volkswagen VW standards to hand-in-hand teach domestic electronic, mechanical, rubber, glass, and other supporting factories to establish quality management systems, almost reshaping China's local automotive parts supply chain, laying an important foundation for the development of subsequent automotive brands.

From 10 Million to 100 Million

SAIC Acceleration

After crossing the threshold of 10 million, the Chinese automotive market welcomed the Golden Decade, and SAIC's production and sales curve changed directly from linear growth to exponential takeoff.

In 2001, China officially joined the WTO, and SAIC Volkswagen and SAIC General Motors welcomed the golden period of localization transformation during this period. A large number of global models, advanced processes, and management experiences were seamlessly delivered to China, and SAIC Group arrived at the moment of harvesting dividends. Also starting in 2001, the state explicitly proposed in official documents for the first time 'Encouraging sedans to enter residents' homes', sedans began to enter ordinary households from official vehicle consumption.

Accompanying the acceleration of China's urbanization process and the development of the real estate market, China birthed the largest middle-class group in human history. From policy, capital to the comprehensive rise of the national economy, all drove the explosion of demand in China's automotive market. Santana and Passat of SAIC Volkswagen, Excelle of SAIC General Motors, and later Wuling Light which almost ruled China's micro car market were all phenomenon-level national god cars of this time.

Joint venture dividends brought technology spillover, and also stimulated the awakening of independent brands like Geely, Chery, Great Wall, etc. In this decade, private car companies tore open the household car market below 100,000 yuan with high cost-performance ratios. Facing the pressure from independent brands, SAIC launched the Roewe brand in 2006, starting the exploration of independence by traditional giants.

It was precisely these blockbusters and explorations that hit the rhythm of the times that SAIC completed the raw accumulation of production and sales scale. By December 2010, SAIC Group's cumulative production and sales exceeded the 20 million mark, and became the first automotive giant in China's automotive history with annual production and sales exceeding 3 million units that year.

The strong contrast between 48 years and 7 years is the hardest core footnote for the Chinese automotive market welcoming the 'Golden Explosion Period' in the first decade of the 21st century.

Entering the second decade of the 21st century, China became the world's largest automotive market. The three carriages under SAIC — SAIC Volkswagen, SAIC General Motors, SAIC-GM-Wuling — exploded comprehensively. From 2010 to 2014, in just four years, SAIC completed a three-stage jump from 20 million to 50 million.

That was the golden age of China's automotive market gushing, where SAIC relied on the dual heroes of joint ventures and Wuling god cars advancing together, running out of scale dividends, where the joint venture dividends and scale effects of the traditional fuel era reached the peak.

And from 50 million to today's peak of 100 million, SAIC experienced a difficult transformation of joint venture dividends receding and the domestic market being extremely involution. Although joint venture dividends receded, relying on the two-line efforts of independent brand share soaring to nearly 70% and overseas cumulative delivery exceeding 7 million, SAIC ran the second 50 million with higher quality in the storm of new energy involution.

Especially after SAIC launched the world's first internet car Roewe RX5 in 2015, new energy and going global became a brand new accelerator. By May 2026, achieving 100 million units, SAIC's average annual production and sales in the past nearly 10 years have been maintained at a high level of 4 million to 7 million.

Borrowing the explosion of independent brands, globalization strategy, and the comprehensive succession of new energy and intelligence, SAIC reached another sales peak again. This is SAIC's 3.0 era.

From Santana to IM LS9

The Transformation of the 100 Millionth Vehicle

In the brilliant starlight of global relay delivery, the focus of the 100 millionth delivery is fixed inside the main hall of Shanghai North Bund World Living Room, where IM LS9 Hyper shone onto the stage.

If Santana and Wuling Hongguang were early myths of SAIC Group, then in the intelligent era, IM LS9 has undoubtedly become the representative work of SAIC's independent high-endization.

The IM LS9 launched at the end of last year is the flagship model with the highest positioning in SAIC Group's independent product sequence, positioned in the 300,000 yuan market, but benchmarking against the million-level executive cabin. SAIC piled all the most cutting-edge chassis and power technologies that can represent 'New Quality Productive Forces' onto the IM LS9 — SAIC's ace technology Lizard Digital Chassis 3.0; next-generation intelligent driving hardware, 520-line super-vision LiDAR and NVIDIA Thor chip; next-generation three-electrics — full-domain 800V high-voltage platform and Star Super Range Extender. In addition, LS9 also comprehensively pre-embedded redundant capabilities for L3 and above high-level intelligent driving continuous evolution.

Even more interestingly, SAIC's 100 millionth user, Momenta CEO Cao Xudong, is exactly SAIC's core strategic partner in the intelligent driving field. The person who understands LS9 intelligent driving best spent money to become its car owner.

Just a few years ago, the discussion about smart car 'Soul and Body' was in a very tense state, and this new car delivery between SAIC and Cao Xudong gave a perfect answer sheet.

At the delivery ceremony, Cao Xudong stated that SAIC is not only Momenta's customer, but also its earliest core lead investor. IM Motors, as the most critical flagship brand for SAIC Group's transformation, directly became Momenta's 'top base camp' for cutting-edge algorithms. Deep business binding and capital fusion made the two enterprises become a community of emerging OEM and supplier cooperation.

IM LS9 is precisely the product of these two top teams performing their duties and highly integrating. IM LS9 is equipped with Momenta's end-to-end large model algorithm, while SAIC endowed it with a powerful Lizard Digital Chassis and industrial smart manufacturing body. When Cao Xudong held the steering wheel of IM LS9, from a partner to becoming a SAIC car owner, it also indirectly indicated that no one swallows the other. The landing of IM LS9 is the result of the deep integration and symbiosis of intelligent driving technology and manufacturing strength.

Cao Xudong has been promoting the overseas landing of intelligent driving's 'Can drive anywhere globally'. And SAIC itself is the leading head of Chinese car companies going global. Handing the 100 millionth car to him also indicated SAIC's future strategic ambition in intelligent overseas output, to further bundle with Momenta and go global together.

The 100 millionth car is not only an endpoint, but also a brand new starting point for two Chinese top forces combining to output global intelligence. SAIC's global relay delivery of the full brand matrix witnesses its deep industrial chain system built over more than 70 years and leading innovation chain layout. The next 100 million era will certainly arrive at a faster speed.