#121 - All price reduction (medium)

So, on the actual launch day, they received over 40,000 orders from around the world. This was already recognized as one of the best-selling models globally, and it was also the model with the most single-day sales to date. No other model has surpassed it since.

The Audi A4, however, isn't an A-class car; it's a genuine B-class luxury car. With a price difference of more than double, it still managed to secure over 60,000 pre-orders just from its release in Great Xia Country. If pre-orders were accepted worldwide simultaneously, the sales figures would be terrifying.

Over 60,000 orders for a B-class luxury car is simply dazzling. Even if Audi cars have excellent technology and a high-cost performance ratio, the order volume should still be limited. Therefore, the first reaction upon seeing this number was to doubt its authenticity.

However, they were all very clear in their minds that Audi Motors couldn't fake sales figures because there was no need, and it wouldn't stand up to scrutiny.

If it were exposed, they would lose a great deal of face and ruin their reputation. Therefore, that meant the sales data was real.

This made those car brands feel the terror of this wolf, even to the point of despair. With such massive sales, what market share would their B-class luxury cars have left?

The impact on the A-class car market might not be significant, but for the B-class luxury car market, it was a fatal threat. Therefore, these automotive giants now faced a serious choice: either reduce prices or withdraw from the B-class car market. There was no other option.

Lowering prices might still allow them to retain their B-class car market. Now that their performance couldn't compete, they could only use price advantages to boost sales. Otherwise, the longer they delayed, the more disadvantageous it would be for them. Were they really going to wait until the Audi A4 completely dominated the market before responding?

These automotive giants weren't fools. If that were the case, they'd be too late. So, all the competitors took action immediately.

……

Benma Motors was the first to issue an announcement: "To repay the long-term support and trust of our valued consumers in Benma Group, Benma Group has decided to comprehensively reduce prices and promote several models, including the Benma B210, Benma B240, and Benma B250, starting today."

"Price discounts can be as high as 150,000, pre-order as soon as possible. At the same time, all Benma Motors products enjoy a five-year, 100,000-kilometer warranty and a two-year, 50,000-kilometer 'Three Guarantees' policy."

With Benma Motors taking the lead, other car brands also issued announcements immediately, starting a round of collective price cuts for B-class luxury cars.

……

Baolai Group: "Baolai Group has always been committed to bringing consumers the most affordable and attentive product quality service as its principle."

"Therefore, to repay the long-term trust and support of our valued consumers in the Baolai brand, we have decided to comprehensively reduce prices and heavily promote several models under Baolai, including the Baolai E315, Baolai E325, and Baolai E345, starting today."

"Maximum discount activities can reach 120,000, and there are also mystery gift packages waiting for you to take. At the same time, purchasing all automotive products under Baolai enjoys a five-year, 100,000-kilometer warranty and a two-year, 50,000-kilometer 'Three Guarantees' policy. We welcome our valued consumers to continue supporting the Baolai Motors brand."

……

Aotuo Group: "As a century-old car company, Aotuo Group bears the responsibility to consumers and society. Aotuo Group's development to this day cannot be separated from the support and love of our valued consumers."

"In order to give back to consumers and bring them the most affordable products, Aotuo Group has decided to comprehensively offer several automotive brands under its umbrella, including the Aotuo S425, Aotuo S455, and Aotuo S485."

"Maximum discounts can reach 130,000, with many offers available. Come and buy! Furthermore, Aotuo Group hereby promises that all automotive products under its umbrella will fully enjoy a five-year, 100,000-kilometer warranty and a two-year, 50,000-kilometer 'Three Guarantees' policy."

……

The next day, one automotive brand giant after another issued price reduction announcements, and even Audi Motors' warranty policy was completely copied by them.

The products they reduced prices on were all products that the Audi A4 could threaten, basically B-class cars with prices between 300,000 and 700,000.

As for the warranty policy, they had no choice. If they didn't follow suit, they wouldn't have any advantage at all.

When the Audi A4 was launched yesterday, although they were helpless about Audi Motors' warranty policy, they didn't follow suit immediately. The sales data of the Audi A4 hadn't come out yet, and they all wanted to wait and see.

After all, if they followed suit early, the losses for them would be very large. But now they had no choice. Audi Motors was coming on strong, and if they were still hesitating at this time, they would really be finished.

Moreover, they were all ruthless enough, directly reducing prices by hundreds of thousands, almost down to the cost line, seemingly wanting to use this method to suppress the sales of the Audi A4.

You should know that if their models, which cost around 300,000 to 400,000, were reduced by hundreds of thousands, then you could buy them for less than 200,000 now, directly making them almost half the price. This was indeed relatively affordable for consumers.

Many people who couldn't afford them before could probably afford them now, but whether or not they would be sought after by consumers was unknown.

Now, suddenly dropping from the price range of 300,000 to 400,000 high-end brands to the price range of around 200,000 mid-range brands was definitely a disgrace for a luxury car brand.

You should know that the price positioning of a car brand is very important. Once the price is reduced, it won't be so easy to raise it back up again.

When had they, who were always high above, been reduced to being on par with mid-range brands? In the past, even if their products had certain discounts, the discounts weren't large, generally at most 10,000 or 20,000. Any more than that was simply impossible.

Unlike now, with a price cut of hundreds of thousands in one breath, it was simply a fire sale. Now, not only were profits greatly reduced, but they might even face a loss-making situation.

This was the same as when the car market was sluggish in the previous life. Major brands were reducing prices to attract customers. You reduce by 10,000, I reduce by 20,000. There was no lowest, only lower. But in the previous life, the price cuts of those luxury brands weren't so exaggerated. Basically, the biggest price cuts were from those mid-to-low-end car brands. As a luxury car brand, they also had their own pride. Their products were still as popular as ever, and prices remained firm.

It just seemed that these high-end luxury car brands here were too spineless. If they still had a choice, they wouldn't reduce prices. On one side was waiting to have the market snatched away by Audi Motors, and on the other side was reducing prices to maintain survival. These car brands knew which was more important.