BYD Song L DM-i is about to debut, with a slightly reduced size, aiming for a price war

BYD's strength is obvious to all. It has won the global new energy sales championship for two consecutive years, with monthly sales stable at more than 300,000 vehicles. It is possible to hit an annual sales of 4 million vehicles this year.

Does BYD have a lot of advantages over other cars? Not really, it also has its own problems.

Take Song L as an example. This car was launched in December last year. After its launch, its monthly sales quickly reached 7,000+ units, but then began to decline. In June, its sales volume was only 3,283 units, gradually becoming mediocre.

BYD clearly needs to reflect on this result.

There are two main reasons for the decline in Song L sales. First, the starting price of 189,800 yuan is a bit expensive, which has discouraged many consumers. Second, the entire series is pure electric, which has discouraged some users who have higher requirements for battery life.

In fact, it is not just the Song L. BYD's flagship model, the Seal, has also experienced a similar situation. In June, the sales volume of the Seal EV fell below 1,000 units.

What to do? It's simple, plug-in hybrid, which is BYD's best, so there is BYD Song L DM-i.

On July 15, BYD Song L DM-i was officially released. It is expected to be launched in the third quarter and sold on Dynasty.com.

With a plug-in hybrid system, will this car stand out?

Let’s first take a look at how it differs from Song L.

Because of the fuel engine, the closed front face has been changed to a large-size grille, a style that consumers are more familiar with. In the words of netizens, its front face looks like Qin L has grown taller.

Secondly, in terms of size, the length of Song L is 4840mm and the wheelbase is 2930mm; the length of Song L DM-i is shortened to 4780mm and the wheelbase is shortened to 2782mm, and the interior space has shrunk. Compared with Song L, Song L DM-i is more like a large compact SUV.

This change is rather strange. Normally, the pure electric and plug-in hybrid models of the same car would not have such a big difference in size.

In addition, the Song L DM-i also changed the crossover shape of the Song L, and the side design of the body returned to the style of an ordinary family SUV, which was quite unexpected. In terms of appearance, it has become more mediocre.

The biggest change of Song L DM-i is the power system. It is equipped with the fifth-generation DM technology, including a 1.5L naturally aspirated engine with a maximum power of 74kW and a front single motor with a maximum power of 160kW. This power performance is not much different from the compact Song PLUS and belongs to a relatively low-end configuration.

According to the DM 5.0 technology-related data officially released by BYD at the end of May, it can achieve a minimum power-fed fuel consumption of 2.9L per 100km and a comprehensive cruising range of 2,100km.

In actual car use, consumers probably won’t be able to drive these official data, but there should be no doubt that Song L DM-i’s energy consumption control and cruising range will still be better than SUVs of the same price.

The detailed configuration information of Song L DM-i has not yet been announced. If nothing unexpected happens, this car will have good performance in intelligent driving and intelligent cockpit, at least reaching the mainstream level of cars of the same price.

Here comes the point: how much should this car be sold for its sales to turn around?

According to the current rumors, the expected selling price will be between 150,000 and 180,000 yuan, while the current Song L is priced at 189,800 to 249,800 yuan.

Based on past experience, this price seems to be quite reasonable. Generally speaking, the pure electric version of the same BYD model is more than 20,000 yuan more expensive than the plug-in hybrid version. Considering the poor market performance of Song L, it is normal for its plug-in hybrid version to adopt a lower price cut.

But it should be noted that this is just past experience. BYD may be creating a new pricing system now, and Song L DM-i is likely to be unexpectedly low-priced. Moreover, it may not be a plug-in hybrid version of Song L.

Currently, under BYD Dynasty.com, the price of the mid-size SUV Tang DM-i is 179,800-269,800 yuan, and the price of the compact SUV Song Pro is 109,800-139,800 yuan, forming a high-low combination;

Under the Haiyang.com brand, the mid-size SUV Haisheng 07 EV is priced at RMB 189,800 to RMB 239,800, and the compact SUV Song PLUS DM-i is priced at RMB 129,800 to RMB 169,800. In addition, Haiyang.com also has a Haisheng 05 that will be launched soon, which is positioned lower and corresponds to the Song Pro of Dynasty.com.

In other words, the Song L DM-i is likely to compete with the Song PLUS DM-i from Ocean Network. The starting price may further drop to 129,800 yuan, and the top-end model will be priced at around 180,000 yuan, filling the gap between Song Pro and Tang DM-i.

Judging from BYD's recent layout, it is quite possible that the Song L DM-i will be priced like this. Previously, the Qin L and Haibao 06 were launched, and the starting price was directly reduced from the estimated 120,000 yuan to 99,800 yuan, which to some extent broke the previous price system.

The price system of Dynasty SUV may also be broken by Song L DM-i.

The pricing strategy of Song L DM-i is the same as that of Qin L DM-i, which is to provide A+ level performance and services as a B-class car to attract users who "cannot afford A-class cars and cannot afford B-class cars". The wheelbase of Song L DM-i is only 2782mm, but it is officially called a medium-sized SUV. This is the reason.

After the major changes, what will be its future prospects?

First of all, it should be no problem to sell more than 5,000 units per month. Apart from other things, the DM 5.0 technology alone can attract a large number of potential users. However, the final sales level will depend on how it is priced.

If it is the 150,000 to 180,000 yuan rumored by the outside world, it may be in a passive position and cause internal friction with the Tang family, and the configuration level is not worthy of this price.

In addition, the technological gap between other manufacturers and BYD is constantly narrowing, and they can also come up with very competitive models. BYD now also has unsold models such as the Denza N7, Denza N8, and Frigate 07. Therefore, the Song L DM-i, which starts at 150,000 yuan, may not be as attractive as imagined.

If the starting price is set at 129,800 yuan, or slightly higher, and it competes with Song PLUS DM-i, the attractiveness of Song L DM-i will be greatly increased, and it will have the same "harvesting" ability as Qin L.

One thing to note is that due to the huge success in recent years, many people tend to "deify" BYD, as if BYD can handle any model. But in fact, BYD has a lot of models that are not selling well. Whether it is the Denza series mentioned above, or the Formula Leopard, Frigate, and Seal, they have not met expectations, which shows that BYD has also "missed the mark". In addition, it is also a fact that BYD cannot yet take over the market between 250,000 and 500,000 yuan.

BYD's advantage still lies in its three-electric system. Its smart cockpit and intelligent driving system are not yet top-notch, which may also become a shortcoming of Song L DM-i. If it wants to become a hit, it must have another price war to "roll up" the starting price of this mid-size SUV to around 129,800 yuan.

There is no anxiety about not increasing sales. When the price drops, the anxiety will disappear.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.