Introduction

Introduction

This time, the basic foundation of L60 is stable, but it is definitely not time to "pop the champagne" yet.

Having been in the industry for over five years and participated in over a hundred new car launches, both big and small, there are not many events that still excite me both physically and psychologically.

The launch of Enjoy L60 is one of them.

There are countless viewpoints I want to express about this product because it is too important. It's not an exaggeration to say that if the protagonist of today's article becomes a so-called "hit", many challenges faced by NIO, which has been in the vortex of controversy and doubts since its inception, will be easily resolved.

And when Enjoy officially debuted in Shanghai on May 15th of this year, L60 garnered the attention and even small bookings from a large number of potential customers with its presale price of 219,900 yuan.

However, the Chinese auto market is incredibly competitive, and fierce competitors are ruthlessly playing their cards, even resorting to betraying their own early customers.

Precisely based on this background, sitting on the high-speed rail to the event venue in Hefei, I couldn't stop thinking about two slightly heart-wrenching questions: "After more than 120 days of waiting, how many loyal customers will insist on buying Enjoy L60? Or, how many delicious and high-quality 'preys' can Enjoy L60 snatch from this thorny forest?"

It's full of unknowns.

Fortunately, thankfully, on the evening of September 19th, as Ai Tiecheng stood under the spotlight and calmly unveiled the full veil of Enjoy L60, I gradually had a clearer answer in my heart.

"This time, it gave almost everything it could."

Price is always the best weapon

"From the very first day of our establishment, we had a clear plan: starting from the high-end market, accumulating capabilities in technology, supply chain, manufacturing, quality, charging and swapping networks, sales, after-sales service, and more. At the right time, we would launch a brand for the mass market to serve a wider range of users and contribute more to a sustainable future. In early 2021, we put this plan into action. After three years of hard work, today, Enjoy meets you."

I believe many readers still vividly remember Li Bin's words on May 15th, explaining why Enjoy came into being.

As the first product under this brand, I can confidently say that with NIO's decade-long experience in car manufacturing behind it, Enjoy L60 deserves the title of "born mature".

Backed by this confidence, earlier this month, in Qiandaohu, where the temperature reached nearly 40 degrees Celsius, I experienced Enjoy L60 in-depth for the first time.

Rationally and objectively speaking, whether it's static or dynamic, my biggest impression is: "It's well-balanced and tailored for family users." In simpler terms, "Enjoy L60 comprehensively benchmarks Tesla Model Y."

The exterior design is exquisite, the interior materials are sincere, the passenger space is unusually spacious, the actual range is very close to the claimed range, the overall energy consumption is impressive, the driving feel meets expectations, the intelligent cockpit and driving experience are excellent, and the energy replenishment system is second in the industry...

Although the protagonist of today's article is not perfect and has some shortcomings criticized by the outside world, such as the MacPherson strut front suspension, the lack of a front trunk, and the somewhat unnecessary rear entertainment screen, what's precious is that in this era where competitors blindly stack features and rely on brute force, Enjoy L60 demonstrates intelligent trade-offs and balance.

Without exaggeration, in terms of product strength alone, Enjoy L60 is already qualified to compete with Tesla Model Y. On this basis, price is its absolute "killer feature".

In fact, just this week, a "folk spoiler" circulated online, hinting at a price of 209,900 yuan. Earlier, during NIO's second-quarter earnings call, Li Bin also engaged in "expectation management" by stating that the final pricing would not be too low and would still guarantee a positive gross margin per vehicle.

Yet when the official answer was revealed, it still brought sufficient surprise.

"The starting price of Enjoy L60 is 206,900 yuan, which drops to 149,900 yuan when adopting the BaaS (Battery as a Service) scheme. Additionally, owners of the Genesis Edition can enjoy various benefits worth over 40,000 yuan."

Frankly speaking, this "combination punch" is quite formidable.

It's worth noting that the current starting price of Tesla Model Y is 249,900 yuan. Put another way, even if this American EV maker continues to lower its official prices, Enjoy L60 has nothing to fear. In my view, the stance remains the same: "To penetrate the mainstream market, price is always the best weapon."

Based on the above criteria, the protagonist of today's article has undoubtedly found the key to sales success.

And worth sharing is that Enjoy L60 continues NIO's tradition of "burying the good stuff inside," hiding many easter eggs worth sharing.

Due to space limitations, I won't go into detail about each one. However, I would like to urge interested individuals to visit an Enjoy store in your city and try it out for yourselves. I believe you'll understand what I'm talking about.

Another subtle point is that during the over two-hour launch event, Ai Tiecheng spoke throughout, and the figure of "that man" was nowhere to be seen.

Perhaps such a change is also sending a strong signal to the entire industry: "Enjoy is Enjoy, NIO is NIO, and they should not be confused."

Nevertheless, even without Li Bin's presence, the foundation of Enjoy L60 is stable.

Internal and external pressures and challenges

The foundation is stable, but Enjoy L60 is definitely not at a point where it can indiscriminately "pop the champagne." There are two reasons for this, both internal and external.

Firstly, based on the final pricing of this product, coupled with its sincere product strength and the density of its channels with hundreds of stores opening simultaneously, there's no need to worry about orders. However, precisely because of this, the delivery speed of Enjoy L60 faces increasingly stringent challenges.

In other words, production capacity must not falter. The painful lesson of NIO ET5 is still fresh in memory, and I sincerely hope that this time Enjoy L60 can excel in manufacturing. Since NIO boasts about how advanced its "second factory" is every day, please don't disappoint many users again.

Let me repeat the important thing three times: "Ensure supply, ensure supply, ensure supply!"

However, during NIO's second-quarter earnings call, Li Bin mentioned: "Starting from September, there will be some deliveries of Enjoy L60, but the volume won't be significant. Most deliveries this year will occur in the fourth quarter, with a total delivery target of 20,000 units, and 10,000 units in December alone."

Frankly speaking, this pace is absolutely unacceptable. From now on, this new force in the automotive industry must try every means to ensure that Enjoy L60 rolls off the production line as soon as possible.

By the way, here's an interesting fact: Xiaomi SU7, which has been selling like hotcakes this year, achieved over 10,000 deliveries in just 32 days. Enjoy L60 is NIO's 12th product launch. Why shouldn't its production capacity be impressive? As an observer, I really don't want to see a potentially hit product hindered by environmental factors that could have been overcome.

After all, past experience tells us that "opportunities are fleeting, and once the first-mover advantage is lost, one will be embroiled in a battle with latecomers."

So, who are they?

They are the ZEEKR 7X, which will be launched on September 20th; the Zhidie R7, which will be launched on September 24th; the AITO M7, which will be launched on September 26th; and, of course, the refreshed Tesla Model Y, which is expected in the first quarter of next year. Each of them is formidable.

If Enjoy L60 can be said to have no weaknesses, the above four mid-sized EV SUVs can also be described as "fully armed." In fact, in many hardware aspects, they may even surpass Enjoy L60. As for pricing, following Enjoy L60's strategy, it's not impossible for them to "kill a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of their own."

And this is precisely another reason why the protagonist of today's article is not yet qualified to celebrate with "champagne" in advance.

It can be foreseen that if Enjoy L60 makes any mistakes or deviations in subsequent deliveries, these lurking competitors will surely rush in to grab a share of the pie. Unfortunately, the automotive industry, especially electric vehicle manufacturing in China, is a ruthless game of survival of the fittest.

"I'm very excited now, and the orders have exploded."

Shortly after the Enjoy L60 launch event, through Li Bin's personal video account, Ai Tiecheng shared this information with the public. Although specific numbers were not disclosed, it was undoubtedly a boost to confidence.

In response, I would say: "If you want to wear the crown, you must bear its weight. Sleep in the factory and supervise the production yourself."

As I write this, I'm approaching the end, and I'd like to leave you with two questions.

Firstly, how many monthly deliveries of Enjoy L60 would you consider a win?

In my opinion, "less than 8,000 units per month is failing, 10,000 units per month is passing, 15,000 units per month is good, and over 20,000 units per month is excellent."

Secondly, do you think the arrival of Enjoy L60 will erode the market share of NIO ES6 and EC6?

Regarding the answer, I can only say: "It would be a lie to say it won't happen at all, but for this new force in the automotive industry, the most critical task at hand is to achieve greater economies of scale as quickly as possible. After all, whether it's a black cat or a white cat, a good cat is the one that catches mice. If these three SUVs can consistently deliver over 30,000 units per month combined, the so-called internal competition and cannibalization can be ignored."

And as you continue reading this, I've already started my exclusive interview with Li Bin and Ai Tiecheng. After a night of fermentation and contemplation, I've accumulated many more questions I want to ask them...