Short torque

Market hails Yidao's growing success

Car-hailing company Yidao Yongche started building a mobility ecosystem last week after its daily orders exceeded 1 million and daily transaction values ranked the firm second in the sector.

The Beijing-based platform was operating more than 2.3 million vehicles as of June 21, with 1.5 million units added to the fleet after a large injection of capital by Chinese technology company LeEco.

Yidao has released both its new brand image and logo, both of which embrace its mobility ecosystem plan. The company hopes the plan will better serve not only existing users, but also LeEco users, who will automatically gain access to the car-hailing app.

The mobility ecosystem will include a range of services including car and ride sharing, car hire, car sales, in-car e-commerce and insurance.

According to data from iResearch Consulting Group, Yidao's daily service orders overtook those of Uber Technology in April, putting them second only to the current market leader Didi Chuxing.

Cowin eyes connectivity to woo young buyers

Cowin Auto added its first compact sport utility vehicle to its connected car fleets, with connections to the internet through the iCar operating system, aimed at younger drivers.

Cowin X3, which was launched in Beijing on June 20, is 4.34 meters long with a wheelbase of 2.53 meters. Boasting an independent design by GranStudio, it is also oriented toward the younger generation of drivers and gives a choice of eight body colors.

The new SUV is powered by a 1.6-liter combustion engine outputting 93 kW maximum and 160 Nm peak torque, and consumes about 6.7 liters of fuel every 100 km. Two transmission options are available - 5-speed manual, and continuously variable transmission.

Drivers can use a mobile phone app to remotely control the air conditioning, and the app can also be used to unlock the car and open and close the windows.

The suggested retail price of the nine variants ranges from 66,600 to 96,900 yuan ($10,140 - $14,750)

Defective parts spark recall of JLR SUVs

Jaguar Land Rover started recalling sport utility vehicles due to defective parts last week, and two imported luxury models will also be recalled from the Chinese market by Volkswagen in July, the top quality watchdog announced.

A total of 11,282 Land Rover SUVs manufactured in 2012 were on the recall list due to defective crankshaft sensors.

The recall affects 6,067 imported Land Rover Discovery 4 vehicles, 5,214 imported Range Rover models, and one New Range Rover.

Faulty crankshaft position sensors could cause the engine to stall when the car is in motion, and some cars could fail to start.

Volkswagen's recall involved 4,839 units of imported Audi A8L produced from May 2007 to June 2008, and 623 Volkswagen Phaeton produced from April 2007 to June 2008.

Swedish automaker launches new brand

National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB launched its brand name NEVS for the future products, including the 9-3 fully-electric car, which is set to hit the market in 2017.

The Swedish carmaker started constructing its plant in Tianjin in 2015 with a planned 1.2 billion yuan investment for a 200,000 unit annual capacity to manufacture up to six new-energy vehicles models, including one based on the SAAB 9-3.

NEVS was founded in 2012 and purchased the assets of Saab Automobile AB in a bankruptcy estate sale in the same year.

Motoring

(China Daily 06/27/2016 page18)