Soon in China: the car of the future

SHANGHAI: Global manufacturers are positioning themselves for a new world of on-demand transport, which will require a car of the future – hyper connected, autonomous and shared – and China could become the laboratory of the concept.

With booming passenger services and carpools not far behind, the need for vehicles adapted to these ever-changing mobility solutions is one of the most popular topics among global manufacturers gathered for the Shanghai automobile.

Almost everyone agrees that there is no better testing ground than China: its gigantic cities are desperately seeking answers to dead ends and its population stands out for its ability to adopt new high-tech services.

To take advantage of this, manufacturers are competing not only to sell conventional and electric vehicles in the world's largest automotive market, but also to develop new technologies and even specific interiors designed for the on-demand world.

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"We can not just develop electric cars. They will have to be smart, interconnected and of course shared, "said Zhao Guoqing, vice president of Chinese auto giant Great Wall Motors, on the sidelines of the auto show.

The discussion of China and mass rise inevitably involves Didi Chuxing, the country's ubiquitous response to Uber.

The eagerness of Chinese travelers to call a smartphone has triggered a colossal market: on-demand transport has reached a turnover of 28 billion dollars in China last year, about half of global volume, and is expected to double by 2022, according to data firm Statista.

Didi represents about 90% of the Chinese market.

Demand Potential brings together automakers and service providers.

Last year, Didi unveiled an alliance of Chinese and foreign automakers, including Renault, Toyota and Volkswagen, dedicated to exploring ways forward.

And in February, Chinese technology giants Alibaba and Tencent worked with several manufacturers to develop a future on-demand transport platform.

"We can no longer be a conventional manufacturer, we must offer mobility solutions, connectivity," said Stephan Wollenstein, director of Volkswagen China.

Although relatively new in the Chinese car market, the French brand Renault is on the rise: its local joint venture with Chinese automaker Brilliance Auto delivered 600 personal minivans to Didi in February.

"Didi wants to develop such vehicles with many manufacturers, more suited to the activities of Didi, around the passenger," said Michael Dong, vice president of Renault-Brilliance-Jinbei.

First of all, most passenger cars are designed to fit into a family and therefore offer little space in the back because that's where children sit normally, said Lawrence Petizon, an analyst at AlixPartners.

However, for transportation by car or carpool, it takes more space at the back to accommodate adult passengers.

"The family car is not the right answer," he said.

Didi drivers usually provide their own vehicles, but Chinese authorities are encouraging service companies to build their own fleet, partly to stimulate the industry and advance the concept of futuristic transportation.

Some builders are even interested in the race. BMW, Germany, offers high-end service in Chengdu city in southwestern China, and Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz in Shanghai.

"Of course, the volumes ordered are still insufficient for mass production, but the potential is huge," says Dong.

The idea is not limited to China.

Daimler and BMW announced in February that they would jointly invest "more than a billion euros" to boost cooperation between their Car2Go and DriveNow services in Europe, where cars are available for short-term, one-off use.

One thing that seems to eventually change is the way cars are bought and sold.

"Automakers will no longer deliver cars to customers through a one-off sale, but rather with a brand that connects them daily to users via the mobility services they offer," says a recent report from Eurogroup Consulting. .

This evolution of the automobile industry should accelerate the development of autonomous vehicles, which are already considered the future of motor transport in general, but which seem particularly well suited to carpooling services in the city.

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Valeo, the French manufacturer of ultrasonic sensors, cameras and navigation technologies, announced last year that it has received orders of € 1 billion related to the development of "robot taxis".

Francois Marion, president of Valeo China, said that the global advent of driverless cars is about to happen.

"They will hit the road in carefully mapped urban environments, with dedicated lanes in the streets, connected infrastructures guiding them and programmed routes," he said of the futuristic vision.

"And the companies that exploit them will still be able to intervene if anything happens to one of the vehicles."

Valeo is also working with Meituan, the Chinese leader in meal deliveries, to develop a robotic vehicle.

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