Summary of the Core Content in Plain Language
Recently, two nationally popular cars, Geely Xingyuan and BYD Qin L, which have sold over one million units each, have been publicly criticized for not meeting the actual specifications of their mass-produced vehicles compared to the standards declared by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). This incident has exposed a hidden rule within the new energy vehicle industry: in the past, it was necessary to thoroughly test a car for three years before it could be released to the market (with winter tests in Mohe to assess its cold resistance and summer tests in Turpan to test its heat tolerance, commonly referred to as “two winters and two summers”). Nowadays, the industry has become so competitive that several new models are launched within half a year at the same price range. To catch up on the market timeline, car manufacturers have compressed the traditional 36-month development cycle to just 18 or even 12 months, significantly reducing the necessary durability and extreme condition tests. As a result, problems that should have been identified during the testing phase are now passed on to the consumers who purchase the cars. Regulatory authorities have stepped in to address this issue, and a batch of cars that meet the strict standards of multiple countries around the world are being brought back to the domestic market. The industry is shifting from a focus on “who can produce a car the fastest” to “who can produce a car that remains reliable for ten years.”
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Detailed Analysis
1. Why do car manufacturers rush to compress the 3-year development cycle to 18 months?
The pressure to meet market deadlines is the main reason. Many people think that manufacturers are trying to save costs, but that’s not the case. If a car is launched several months later, it’s at a disadvantage from the start. In the current mainstream new energy vehicle market, which ranges in price from 100,000 to 200,000 yuan, several new models can emerge in just half a year. For example, if a manufacturer originally planned a car with a range of 500 kilometers and assisted driving features for 120,000 yuan, but launches it 3 months later, competitors might offer the same features for 100,000 yuan, making the original car obsolete before it even goes on sale. Launching a car a month earlier can help the manufacturer recoup its research and development (R&D) costs more quickly, saving millions in interest on loans. Additionally, it allows the 4S stores to have new products to attract customers. The brand exposure from launching a new car every year is far greater than launching one every three years.
2. The testing time saved by manufacturers ultimately becomes a problem for consumers
Cutting back on testing has become a common practice in the industry. Engineers used to spend days verifying vehicle performance using computers, but now the results are obtained in just 2-3 days. Extreme tests, such as checking for damage after 10 hours of continuous driving in harsh weather or whether the chassis will crack under heavy loads, are often skipped. Even the two core testing processes—design verification and mass production verification—are often reduced to just one round. These omitted tests will eventually cause problems; J.D. Power data shows that new energy vehicles that have been in use for 3-4 years have nearly double the number of faults compared to those that have been in use for 2-3 years. In the first half of 2026, the number of recalls by domestic brands increased by 681%, and 7 out of every 10 recalled vehicles had defects that were not detected during the design phase. In essence, manufacturers are shifting the millions of kilometers of testing that should have been done in the test labs onto the consumers, who then have to bear the costs of repairs. When these vehicles are sold used after two or three years, their resale value drops significantly, with all the costs falling on the consumers.
3. The issue of “production consistency” highlighted by the MIIT report is essentially about manufacturers cheating
The problems identified by the MIIT reveal a discrepancy between the car’s advertised features and the actual product delivered to consumers. For instance, the fuel consumption claimed in advertisements is higher in reality, the stated wheelbase is actually longer, and the size of safety windows does not meet the requirements. Even more problematic is that many manufacturers are producing cars that just meet the minimum standards set decades ago. For example, the current national standard for a 5-seater car requires a maximum load capacity of 375 kilograms, which means it can only carry five people weighing 75 kilograms each. Manufacturers design the cars to exactly meet this limit, leaving no safety margin. If passengers carry extra luggage or goods, the suspension may deform over time, leading to metal fatigue. These standards are merely a basic requirement, but manufacturers are content to meet them, unwilling to invest in additional quality improvements that would ensure the car’s reliability over a longer period.
4. Why can’t “global cars” be produced quickly in 18 months?
Overseas regulations prevent such shortcuts. The recent batch of domestically produced “global cars” intended for export all had development cycles of more than three years. To be sold in Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia, and other countries, they must meet the collision, environmental, and road testing requirements of dozens of different regimes. For instance, Chery’s Fengyun T7 had 81 test vehicles, covering a total of 6 million kilometers across various climates, taking five years to complete all the testing. The Xpeng G9L underwent road tests in 26 countries and encountered 192 collisions. It’s impossible to complete all these tests in 18 months; the process itself takes much longer. Moreover, being a “global car” doesn’t guarantee high sales; many of these cars have user interfaces that don’t suit Chinese preferences, and they need to be localized to be successful in the Chinese market. Therefore, being a “global car” is not a guarantee of better sales.
5. The era of quickly produced cars is coming to an end; what’s needed is “true efficiency” rather than “false agility”
Regulatory authorities are taking action to address this issue. Four departments have launched a year-long inspection, conducting surprise tests on both manufacturers and testing institutions. They are also increasing the mandatory reliability testing distance for new energy vehicles from 15,000 kilometers to 30,000 kilometers, effectively making up for the reduced testing time. Consumers are also becoming more discerning: the resale value of new energy vehicles has been declining for three years, and people are realizing that cars produced in just 18 months often have many minor issues after two or three years of use. While platform-based technologies and AI simulation tools can speed up the development process, safety and durability tests cannot be bypassed. If the suspension breaks while the car is in use, remote updates won’t solve the problem. The industry needs to move away from the false agility that comes from cutting corners in testing and towards true efficiency.
In conclusion, the industry is shifting towards cars that are not only produced quickly but also designed to last for a long time and perform reliably.