Since the beginning of 2018, due to policy changes, imported RVs have almost disappeared in China. The imported RV brand that has been absent for a year is about to return. Is the domestic RV market ready?
After a long absence, imported RVs returned to the domestic market, which naturally attracted the attention of many people. In China, imported RVs still have a certain number of fans, so what are the differences between the current imported RVs and the previous imported RVs? For this reason, the reporter specially interviewed Mr. Xie Zijian of Kruzer RV to learn more about the current import of RV.
high standard, long
The current RV import is not much different from the previous one, except that there is an additional 3C certification. The country’s policies have begun to tighten. All imported RVs are regulated according to Class A, and adopt the same regulatory standards as imported cars. They need to obtain “3C Certification” (China Compulsory Product Certification, China Compulsory Certification in English) before they can be sold. For RV import companies, the most painful issue is the “3C certification” issue, because it includes four difficulties: vehicle dismantling, crash testing, fatigue testing, and factory inspection.
Sample testing and factory review among the RV 3C tests, among which there are vehicle dismantling, crash testing and fatigue testing in the sample testing. Vehicle dismantling and crash testing first require the manufacturer to provide the vehicle for testing. The value of the vehicle itself is nothing, but time is more important. The fatigue test requires the vehicle to run a certain number of kilometers in a specific environment, and this alone takes 10 months. The factory inspection is relatively simple, as long as the factory meets the standards, it can pass smoothly.
The state took action to sort out the imported RV market, which was originally a mixed bag. Although it caused a gap in the domestic market for imported RVs in a short period of time, in the long run, it directly shut out some unqualified and non-compliant products from the source.
Beyond 3C
It seems very simple, just follow the process, but the real problems are hidden below the surface. This is what it means to work hard outside the poem.
First of all, the domestic RV market is still a small and immature market. The annual digestion of RVs is only a few thousand units, and a large part needs to be divided by domestic brands. That is to say, in fact, the number of imported RVs sold in China every year is very small. Under such circumstances, is it in the interest of both companies to spend so much manpower, financial resources, and material resources on 3C certification for a model of a brand? , it is worth pondering.
Secondly, as far as foreign manufacturers are concerned, the current domestic market is still very small, and too much attention is devoted to these things, and the rewards are not directly proportional. In addition, the plan of some domestic enterprises to import some products from small foreign workshops to earn high profits under the banner of “foreign monks can recite scriptures” has now been completely reimbursed.
Finally, time consumption. The market is changing, especially in the fast-growing domestic market. Demand orientation From self-propelled B-type RV to self-propelled C-type RV, and then from the large forehead of the C-type RV to the small forehead, all the changes are fleeting. It takes about a year from filing to production, and then to the launch of the final product. Whether it can keep up with the pace of the market remains to be seen.
Promote the development of
The cautious attitude towards imported RVs is also positive for the domestic RV market. First, rectify the existing mixed import market. The threshold for importing RVs has been raised, and the requirements for the strength of agents and manufacturers have been put forward at the same time. After shutting out some unqualified, non-compliant and illegal RVs, the entire imported RV market will be more organized.
Second, promote joint venture brands to launch products quickly. Roughly speaking, there are already several domestic joint-venture RV companies, but so far none of them has really launched joint-venture products. Under this specific scenario, it is necessary to speed up the product research and development efforts of various joint venture manufacturers and accelerate the launch of joint venture RVs.
Because from a long-term perspective, when the time cost and economic cost of importing imported RVs are high, it is a good way to use joint venture brands to occupy the vacant RV market.
The third is to promote the inspection mechanism of domestic RVs. Imported RVs need to go through layers of screening and tests before they can enter the domestic market. Domestic brands have no reason to pass the inspection with peace of mind. Although the vehicle detection mechanism of domestic RVs is not perfect, or even lacking, but in line with the attitude of being responsible to users and the demand for increasing the added value of products, we will urge the country to introduce relevant detection mechanisms as soon as possible. The missing fatigue tests, crash tests, etc. They will all be filled in.
opportunity challenge
Although importing RVs is much more troublesome than before, it is also much more formal. Foreign RV brands will certainly not give up China, the most potential market, and perfect game rules will be more beneficial to these mature brands. During the short blank period of imported RVs, we saw the rapid development of domestic RVs. Although the time is only about a year, the sales volume and workmanship have reached a higher level. It is about to face the ferocious counterattack of imported RVs and the rapid expansion of joint venture brands. The current brutal growth model is obviously not acceptable.
Compared with domestic RVs of the same level, imported RVs have absolute advantages in terms of design concept and product quality, which need not be discussed further. However, in terms of price, later maintenance and applicability to the domestic environment, domestic brands have inherent advantages. We need to take advantage of our advantages, expand our advantages, seize rare development opportunities, and fight head-on when imported brands aggressively invade the market.
