EV market gets ugly as rivals openly spar

SHANGHAI – The rivalry between Chinese automakers has reached a new high. 

Great Wall Motor Co., a major light-truck maker, on Thursday alleged on Webo, a Twitter-like online platform, that two main plug-in hybrid models from BYD Co., China’s largest electrified-vehicle manufacturer, don't meet domestic emissions standards. 

BYD quickly responded. In a statement, it said Great Wall bought the two models and arranged the tests, thus the results are invalid. “We firmly oppose any kind of unfair competitive behavior and reserve the right to sue,” it added.

The accusation and counter-accusation between Great Wall and BYD didn’t come as a surprise. 

There has been a lot of bad blood between domestic automakers in recent years. It dates back to 2018 after wholesale shipments for China’s auto industry plateaued at 28.9 million in 2017. 

As the China's market spectacular growth ebbed, domestic automakers started accusing each other of hiring online bloggers to spread false information about products to undermine their reputation. 

To curb the smearing and promote unity among local automakers, eight Chinese light-vehicle makers, including three major companies — Great Wall, BYD and Chery Automobile Co. — formed a “self-discipline alliance” in October 2018. 

But to no avail. The next month, Geely Holding Group Co., another major Chinese automaker, sued Great Wall in a Beijing-based court, accusing the latter of “maliciously spread false and misleading information” to harm its reputation. 

Though Geely and Great Wall later settled the disputes out of court by blaming third parties for initiating the smear campaign, the feud between domestic Chinese carmakers showed no signs of subsiding. 

Instead, it quickly spilled over into the electrified-vehicle market. 

Since late last year, a slew of EV makers including Li Auto, Nio and Xpeng have set up legal teams dedicated to countering negative online campaigns of which many are believed to be sponsored by competitors.  

In February, Changan Automobile Co., a major state-owned company, issued a statement alleging that Geely copied the styling of its latest concept full electric sedan. Geely squarely refuted the claim. 

On Thursday, Great Wall also said in its Webo account that it has reported the emissions problems with the two BYD models, the Qin Plus and Song Plus plug-in hybrids, to China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment, State Administration for Market Regulation and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

How government regulators will deal with the report remains to be seen. 

But one thing is certain: With unrelenting competition among China’s EV makers, the feud among local brands, which control more than 70 percent of the EV market, will intensify. 

That, in turn, will prompt more Chinese EV makers to seek growth opportunities overseas.