Re-discussion on low-speed electric vehicles: lead-acid battery OR lithium battery?

"This is almost a scourge, the car is not afraid of rotten, don't prove, don't want cards, want to stop and stop, want to turn and turn." The taxi driver's words to some extent reflect the four-wheeled low-speed electric car to traffic influences.

Located in the northwestern part of Shandong Province and the alluvial plain of the lower Yellow River, Dezhou City, known as Ande, is the northwest gate of Shandong Province. It used to be an important transportation channel in history. Since ancient times, it has been known as the “Jiuda Tianzhu” and “Shenjing Portal”. Today, Texas has an identity tag low-speed electric car in addition to the pheasant.

It is not unreasonable to see the national low-speed electric vehicles in Shandong and Shandong in Texas.

Dezhou is the epitome of the development of low-speed electric vehicles in Shandong and even the whole country. In 2014, there were 109 low-speed electric vehicle enterprises in Shandong Province, of which 42 were the first in Dezhou. After two years of reshuffle, there are about 12 new energy vehicle manufacturers in Texas and 40 or 50 supporting enterprises.

Taxi drivers know very little about industry policies and product standards, but they have similar voices on the growing number of low-speed electric vehicles on the road. "It must be regulated, it will affect traffic, and the key is now not even binding, unless it is hit, something happened, traffic police."

However, the taxi driver named Li said that he had never had an accident with these "small four-wheeled". He had been exposed for eight years and he couldn’t help but reveal a trace of pride. "I can let me try to let you, that car." I can't touch it. But my buddy has encountered a lot."

In 2016, the production and sales volume of low-speed electric vehicles in Shandong Province were 622,600 and 618,300, respectively, an increase of 47.76% year-on-year, and production and sales accounted for more than 50% of the country.

In comparison, in 2016, China's new energy vehicles that eliminated low-speed electric vehicles produced 517,000 vehicles, with sales of 507,000 vehicles, up 51.7% and 53% respectively.

The new energy market is still not warm on the basis of state support, and the four-wheel low-speed electric vehicles originating in the third- and fourth-tier cities and the vast rural areas are gradually becoming shady.

On the one hand, the development of spurt type proves its strong market vitality; on the other hand, industry standards have not yet been introduced, and factors such as policy uncertainty have cast a shadow over the prospects of the entire industry.

Since the end of 2016, related topics have continued to ferment. The three ministries and commissions responded to inquiries, the Ministry of Public Security's tough reply, the second meeting of the Standard Working Group... The “government hand” of policies and standards lags behind the development of the industry, and the problems of traffic order, security, enterprise development, etc. break out.

Lu Fujun, chairman of Texas Fulu Group and vice chairman of Lichi New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. told reporters: "Like traffic chaos, safety regulations and other issues, the industry should be standardized as soon as it comes out, otherwise it will not lead to (now) The land is 'uneven'."

At the end of 2016, the continuous heavy fog and fog caused the third-tier city in Texas to begin to be restricted. It is still rare for street residents to wear basic masks to take basic protective measures.

From Dezhou East Station, take the bus to the west for about 18 kilometers and arrive at the intersection of Sanba West Road and Commerce Avenue. It is close to the Texas Black Horse Farmers Wholesale Market, which has a large flow of people and is a necessary condition for the birth of the largest low-speed electric vehicle store in Texas.

From the mouth of a boss who has been operating a supermarket for many years, it is known that the electric tricycle was sold before the four-wheeled vulgar electric car was not so hot, and the motorcycle was sold earlier.

There are about twenty or thirty stores in large and small, Yujie, Redding, Lichi... Whether it is well-known or some brands that have never been heard, you can find them here. The neatly parked vehicles crowded the roads and looked spectacular.

On December 29th, the temperature in Dezhou fell to minus 7 °C, and the snow that started the night before added a little chill to the small town. In the smog and rain and snow, there are not many pedestrians on the road, but in the process of visiting the store, there are not many customers who come to inquire and experience.

In order to prove that the older people can also easily get started, Mr. Chen, the electric car dealer of Baoluda, showed the reporter a photo of a new 80-year-old grandfather who had just picked up the car.

From another dealer who runs low-speed electric vehicles, now the main dealers of Chery and Jiangling New Energy Automobiles, "The people who buy cars are basically over 50 years old, and there are very few young people. It is more than a few years ago. ".

Lu Fujun’s answer to the question “why is involved in the low-speed electric vehicle industry” is very straightforward. “We are just doing what we need, and the industry is just about to be based, because we only enter the industry because of rigid demand.”

As of 2015, China's population aged 60 and over reached 222 million, accounting for 16.15% of the total population. China has entered an aging society since 2000 and is now the country with the largest number of elderly people in the world.

Among them, the number of people receiving pensions accounts for a considerable proportion. This is a large group with certain economic strength and economic use decision-making power, and the potential consumption power is huge.

In the interview, Lu Fujun talked about three points.

First, in the 30 years of reform and opening up, China has developed into a car society. There have been such groups. They are old and want to get a so-called "gain" from social development.

Second, they have missed the best time to own a car and test their driver's license. Public transport can't keep up. They urgently need a sheltered vehicle to solve travel problems.

Third, because of weather factors such as smog, motorcycles and electric bicycles are not big. Low-speed electric vehicles, sheltering from wind and rain, can improve the quality of travel and solve the needs of some people in short-distance travel.

Obviously, low-speed electric vehicles capture the needs of the current group of people, and because of the cheap price, this demand has become easy to meet.

At present, the price of four-wheel low-speed electric vehicles is mostly less than 40,000 yuan, mainly concentrated at 20,000 yuan, and the average wage in Texas in 2015 is 4,760 yuan. For the average family, it is not a problem to purchase a surplus of money in one year.

Shandong Lichi New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. is the largest low-speed electric vehicle manufacturer in Texas. It is located at No. 66 Yingbin Street, Economic Development Zone, Lingcheng District, Dezhou City, with a registered capital of 300 million yuan. In 2016, the production and sales volume was 92,000 and 70,000 respectively.

The largest shareholder of Lichi is Longxin General Dynamics Co., Ltd., which is 51% of the shares. This is an A-share listed company registered in Chongqing. Zhang Jianbin, chairman of the board of directors of Fulu Group, said that Longxin GM did not intervene in the specific affairs of Lichi. Lu Fujun’s absolute control of Fulu was responsible for daily work.

From the perspective of the business scope of the inquiry, Fulu Motors started its business by producing three-wheeled motorcycles and accessories business, and now its focus has gradually shifted to Lichi with market changes.

In the morning, I was exposed to ten customers, and the price was the most concerned factor for the people. These consumers are all elderly, and there are daughter-in-law with their mother-in-law to see the car, a son to buy for the elderly, and a pair of retired couples to test the car...

The reporters tried to dig their knowledge of the safety of low-speed electric vehicles, but with the sales staff's promotion of product configuration and car discounts, they found that they were not interested in safety issues.

"It is definitely not safe, but there is no way. It really brings convenience to the elderly at home." The front desk of a fast hotel near the market believes that even if you realize the safety problem, there are still many four-wheeled electric vehicles purchased by your relatives.

A dealer business manager of Yujie Electric Vehicle said: "You young people are always worried about safety. Don't underestimate the elderly. Come to me and buy the old man. We will open it after we teach. They also know how to go."

Four-wheeled low-speed electric vehicles are not based on traditional cars, but are often developed from prototypes such as golf carts.

The large-scale low-speed electric vehicles in China began in 2008, and began to erupt before and after 2010, and maintained rapid growth in the following years. "This is not a new thing, it is all over the world. It is not a very big industry, it is an upgraded version of motorcycles and electric bicycles." Lu Fujun told this reporter.

For a long time, low-speed electric vehicles have been regarded as the old scooter. Many low-speed electric vehicle practitioners such as Lu Fujun resolutely oppose the equation. It seems that they will be unequal, and this category will be cancelled. This actually reflects the dilemma of the identity of low-speed electric vehicles.

On July 9, 2012, the State Council issued the “Energy Conservation and New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Plan (2012-2020)”. The document pointed out that: New energy vehicles refer to vehicles that use new power systems and are driven entirely or mainly by new energy sources. The new energy vehicles under the plan mainly include pure electric vehicles , plug-in hybrid vehicles and fuel cell vehicles .

“It is clear that low-speed electric vehicles are not new energy vehicles. ” For the planning, Chen Jianguo, then deputy director of the Industry Coordination Department of the National Development and Reform Commission, once emphasized.

The definition of “low-speed car” has been added to the national standard “Safety Technical Conditions for Motor Vehicle Operation (GB7258-2012)”, which was revised in 2012, but the low-speed electric vehicle is obviously not in this range.

The above definition of low-speed vehicles is: "three-wheeled vehicles and low-speed trucks are generally referred to as low-speed vehicles", "three-wheeled vehicles refer to trucks with three wheels with a maximum design speed of 50km/h or less; low-speed trucks are defined as the largest. Design a truck with a four-wheel speed of less than 70km/h.

Then check the national standard "terminology and definition of types of cars and trailers", "Classification of motor vehicles and trailers", "terminology of electric vehicles", "technical conditions for pure electric passenger cars" and "vehicle production enterprises and products announcement" promulgated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, There is no attribution of low-speed electric vehicles.

Low-speed electric vehicles have grown wildly in such an unnamed group, and the industry has nearly 10 times more than five years ago. The reporter believes that in the "running" of the entire low-speed electric vehicle industry, local governments actually look at their positive effects on the economy and society and have always tried to give them formal status.

In August 2009, Shandong Province issued the “Shandong Province Low-Speed ​​Electric Vehicle Management Measures (Trial)” and issued the “Shandong Low-Speed ​​Electric Vehicle Manufacturers and Product Record Catalogue” for the management of low-speed electric vehicle production enterprises and product production.

In the following years, Shandong Province and its industry associations successively released the "General Technical Conditions for Low-Speed ​​Electric Vehicles", "Shandong Province Small Electric Vehicle Industry Standards", and "Notice on Issues Concerning the Implementation of Vehicle Insurance for Small Electric Vehicles in Shandong Province" and other documents. .

Various localities have also introduced specific management measures. At the end of 2013, Shandong Zibo, Liaocheng, Jining, Weifang, Dezhou, and other places have clearly defined low-speed electric vehicles limited to 1 or less (including 1) roads. The number plate is the green electric vehicle number. Card, and need a C2 or C3 and above driver's license.

However, this is not the case in actual implementation.

In Texas, our reporters have seen some low-speed electric vehicles with “Ludian” and “German” licenses, but they have been kindly advised by a multi-brand dealer. “I can give you one if you want.” "Hanging that is easier to check."

The reporter consulted more than a dozen dealers on whether to ask for a uniform electric vehicle license. The answers were basically the same. "There is no requirement at present."

Obviously, this is because the local government's regulations do not have true legitimacy. If the traffic control department closes one eye, it can grow wild in the gray area, but if it is true, it may face the car being buckled. The tragedy of destruction.

More importantly, consumers don't like it. As mentioned before, the users of low-speed electric vehicles are often older, and it is not necessary to test the driver's license to open the car map.

As a result, the manager of Yang, a local company in Texas, who is responsible for the sales of Zhongya Motor Co., Ltd., described a possibility—“If the vehicle is strictly in accordance with the standards of the motor vehicle, 80%~90% of the enterprises die. ".

Despite this, low-speed electric vehicle companies have been seeking recognition at the national level, hoping to operate under a legal framework. They seem to be waiting for the dawn.

In 2015, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Development and Reform, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Transportation reported to the State Council the "Request for Issues Concerning the Management of Low-Speed ​​Electric Vehicles" and proposed "Upgrading a batch and standardizing a batch." And eliminate a batch of "work ideas."

At the end of the year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology submitted the application for the national standard project of "four-wheel low-speed electric passenger car technical conditions". The National Standards Committee publicly solicited opinions on the project in April 2016.

What is not good is that the name of the project itself represents the official idea in a certain sense, indirectly expressing opposition to the four-wheel low-speed electric car, because it will be upgraded to a "passenger car."

But soon the peaks turned.

On October 13, 2016, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued an announcement to change it to a low-speed electric vehicle. The announcement said that the "three batches" of low-speed electric vehicles work ideas "the leaders of the State Council have approved the consent", that the current work focus is mainly on "regulating a batch" and "eliminating a batch", "I believe that low-speed electric power should be formulated as soon as possible. The technical standards for car products are the basis for 'standardizing batches' and 'eliminating batches'."

A week later, the National Standards Committee issued a number of new national standard development plans, and the “four-wheel low-speed electric vehicle technical conditions” appeared. The project cycle is 24 months and will be introduced in 2018. More critically, the name of the “low-speed electric vehicle” was confirmed.

The optimism is rising again.

On November 18th, the preparatory work for the "four-wheel low-speed electric vehicle technical conditions" standard working group was held and the first meeting was held, including nearly 100 representatives from various ministries, automobile associations, industry organizations, monitoring centers and related enterprises. The meeting discussed and confirmed. The basic principles of the standard.

Shandong, a low-speed electric vehicle, hopes to hit the iron. Soon, the Traffic Police Corps of the Shandong Provincial Public Security Department issued the "Request for the Implementation of the Four-wheel Low-speed Electric Vehicle Standard Management Pilot Project in Dezhou City, Shandong Province" to the Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security.

Unexpectedly, a basin of cold water falls from the sky.

On December 22nd, a reply from the Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security to the Traffic Police Corps of the Shandong Provincial Public Security Bureau was like pouring a bucket of ice water on the head of a low-speed electric vehicle manufacturer. This answer is equivalent to a total denial of the possibility of legality of low-speed electric vehicles.

The answer first denied the "allowed Dezhou City to organize the production and sales of electric vehicles", that "production and sales of low-speed electric vehicles in violation of laws and regulations and the national motor vehicle production management system."

"Requests" requires "to formulate a low-speed electric vehicle security registration management method, allow low-speed electric vehicles to drive on the road, implement registration and issue special signs," the Ministry of Public Security's reply pointed out that this "violation of the Road Traffic Safety Law."

The reply also pointed out that the low-speed electric vehicles produced by some enterprises in the name of 'sightseeing cars' in Shandong are closed-type vehicles of less than 6 seats, which do not meet the national standards of sightseeing vehicles, and they produce production and sales roads with 'sightseeing car' production licenses. The low-speed electric vehicle driving on the road is illegal and should be resolutely banned.

The Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security also requested that Dezhou City immediately report to the Provincial Public Security Department the illegal production and sales of low-speed electric vehicles, and invite the provincial government to carry out illegal production and sales of low-speed electric vehicles.

It can be said that this wording is strict, and there is no sensational "Response" to let the low-speed electric car practitioners and fishermen get a circle.

When the industry has not slowed down from the shock caused by the pilot demonstration of low-speed electric vehicles in Dezhou, Shandong Province, as "illegal" by the Ministry of Public Security, on December 24, at the 25th meeting of the 12th National People's Congress Standing Committee At the group meeting, the leaders of the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce accepted the topic of the low-speed electric vehicle. In the answer, the industry heard different answers.

Miao Wei, Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said that the State Council has approved and agreed to govern the chaos of low-speed electric vehicles in accordance with the "three batches" of general ideas. The most important thing at the moment is to develop new standards and testing conditions for four-wheel low-speed electric vehicles, with emphasis on safety requirements. In the case of a unified standard, the local government will be given discretion in the right of the right to reach the standard vehicle and the disposal of the original non-standard vehicle. At the same time, after standard setting, supervision should be strengthened according to motor vehicle standards.

Li Wei, deputy director of the Ministry of Public Security, said: "From the perspective of public safety, it is better to have low-speed electric vehicles as little as possible." To be honest, we want to completely ban it because such vehicles do give traffic. Safety and order management poses great problems and dangers." Since "can sell and ride (open)", he suggested that "in this issue (policy), we must be very cautious."

The conclusions of the two sides seem to be in the south, but the reality is the same.

On December 27, 2016, the “four-wheel low-speed electric vehicle standard working group” convened the second meeting. Very unfortunately, in this meeting, the statement of 'low-speed electric car' was put forward.

Subsequently, the draft standard for low-speed electric vehicle technical standards, that is, "close to passenger cars", is equivalent to the low-speed electric vehicles under the category of pure electric vehicles , so that the entire industry is caught in the emperor.

Yang Yusheng, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, believes that the reason for the limited use of lead-acid battery pollution and recycling management is unreasonable. "The start-stop battery and two-wheel electric vehicles of the car use lead-acid batteries, which also face pollution and recycling. Management issues, why the restrictions on low-speed electric vehicles alone, it can be seen that the government's more appropriate approach should not be restrictions but strengthen management."

Low-speed electric vehicles are characterized by low speed and low cost. Fu Yuwu, chairman of the China Automotive Engineering Association, believes that lead-acid batteries can just meet market demand. In our opinion, because of its low speed, the safety requirements should naturally be reduced, further reducing costs.

The reporter agreed with Dong Yang’s statement that the driver’s license and insurance management are not strict for low-speed electric vehicles. However, if it is given legal status and requires licenses, driver’s licenses and insurance, it will largely eliminate low-speed electric vehicles. The hidden danger of safety has weakened Dong Yang’s belief that “the development of motor vehicles in China is too fast, and the road construction, traffic management, and urban planning cannot keep up with the current major contradictions”.

In fact, low-speed electric vehicles should be classified as motorcycle management, and there is no need to re-establish standards. Many cities in China are limited, but the vast rural areas are not limited to motorcycles. This is also in line with the real use of such products, and will not be chaotic. It can quickly deal with the tens of thousands of unlicensed low-speed electric vehicles on the roads of counties and towns. Some of the confusion that has occurred now is entirely due to the lack of real management.

Of course, to achieve this, I am afraid that it is impossible.

Zhang Liping, chairman of Yujie Motors, retired. In view of the current state subsidies for A00-class pure electric vehicles, the cost is much lower than the current cost of low-speed vehicles for lead-acid batteries. He believes that it is necessary to set a transition period for the industry. After 2020, the A00-class pure electric vehicles do not have state subsidies, and the low-speed electric vehicles use lithium batteries, so the market competition between the two will be fair. Otherwise "it is tantamount to killing the industry."

Right now, for the future, Lu Fujun, chairman of Texas Fulu Group and vice chairman of Lichi New Energy Automobile, still expressed “being full of confidence and hope” because “the policy orientation of the country to respect the market is gradually strengthening. Regardless of the policy, the people’s access I must definitely consider it."