Chevrolet LOVA, a loyal companion

At the end of 2001, Shanghai GM launched the "100,000 yuan sedan sedan" Sail in China; at the beginning of 2006, the second-generation "100,000 yuan sedan", the main force Lefeng, was launched. The debut time of the two models is only more than four years apart, but in the past four years, everything has changed so much.

Four years is not a long cycle for the world auto industry. Japanese cars often have to be replaced every four years, while European cars generally take six to seven years. But for the Chinese market in the past four years, the changes have been earth-shaking. Maybe everyone disagrees with this, but there is one thing that makes me feel again.

Starting from Sail

In Lefeng's product briefing, the manufacturer explained the positioning difference between Lefeng and several close competitors in the market, and also mentioned its own Sail. In the model positioning map produced by Shanghai GM, the position of Sail is in the lowest corner, representing a group of "traditional" and "conservative". Kevin, the brand planning director of Shanghai General Motors, who is in charge of the narration, explained: People who choose Sail today are not for the pursuit of fashion, but for the purpose of being practical and satisfying basic needs...

Recalling that the listing of Sail happened just in time for me. When it first entered the industry, the entire Chinese auto industry was eagerly waiting for this high-standard, high-quality, high-profile "100,000 yuan sedan". At that time, Sail was the representative of trend, fashion and quality of life. I still remember seeing a large group of people around a new white small Sail at a gas station when it was first launched.

Unexpectedly, in just four years, Japanese cars have changed from the Nth generation to the N+1th generation in their long history, and before the European cars have even replaced one generation, there is a small car that has already passed through the land of China. An unusual life course, it can even be said to have witnessed the ups and downs and development of China's auto market.

Was Sail's four-year success in China? In terms of sales, it's for sure. Under the excellent marketing of Shanghai GM (some people call it hype), the cumulative sales volume of Sail has exceeded 200,000 units. Even in 2005, when new cars were produced in large numbers, the trademark had been changed from Buick to Chevrolet, and the production site had moved from Shanghai to Yantai, Shandong. The new Sail still has an impressive sales volume of 46,000 units. Not only the sales performance is outstanding, but Xiao Sail also wrote new chapters such as "100,000 yuan sedan car", "petty bourgeoisie life" and "brand integration" for China's automobile history.

Sail is not without fault. Almost from the time its first opponent, Xiali 2000, appeared, Sail has been singled out for many "failures". The model is not advanced, the origin from South America is not good, the engine displacement is too large and the fuel consumption is too large, the passenger space is insufficient, and the appearance is cute but stingy... As a small star, it has always faced many critical eyes. The above weaknesses are not unreasonable in our opinion. From a product point of view, Sail is not perfect, but what kind of car is perfect when it is born?

The evolution of Sail to Lefeng

It doesn't matter if it's not perfect, it's even better, especially if you're designing a replacement for it. What's more, when Sail itself has the above obvious weaknesses, Shanghai GM can also plan a set of targeted marketing strategies for it to make it sell well. What do you say? In addition to the attractive selling point of the car itself, it is even more necessary for the person who sells it to have a clear head. This mind, one is to understand the market demand, to know what is most attractive; the other is to understand the product, not only to know what is good, but also to know what is not good, so as to avoid the important and choose the path. This is the most powerful aspect of Shanghai GM, and it is also an aspect that many domestic automakers are inferior to.

Speak back to Lefeng. The factory did not admit that Lefeng is the replacement for Sail. In fact, Sail will continue to be produced after Lefeng is listed, but the positioning of the two cars has been significantly opened. However, the position of Lefeng is exactly the "100,000 yuan sedan car" level developed by Sail that year, so it will obviously replace Sail and become the main force in the Shanghai GM sedan market. After listening to the manufacturer's explanation of Lefeng, I have a strong feeling that it is very deliberately trying to make up for Sail's weaknesses: Lefeng is a new car with a new design and a global launch; its origin is very good, not only in China, It will also be listed in the European, American, Korean and Southeast Asian markets; its engine is a newly developed 1.4-liter "golden displacement" product, which is about to completely reverse the reputation of general-purpose engines for fuel consumption; its passenger compartment is designed for the market. It is designed by the strongest opponent and can meet the Chinese people who have extraordinary requirements for space; its shape is completely popular, and the body size is decent enough... In a word, the weaknesses of Sail, in the music style, no longer exist, even became its strength.

Obviously, Shanghai GM has absorbed many opinions on Sail from the market in the past four years, and then applied all these opinions to the development of Lefeng. Four years, from Sail to Lefeng, marks the evolution of Shanghai GM's "100,000 yuan sedan" from the first generation to the second generation, but this evolution can be said to be faster than the pace of the replacement of Japanese cars and even European cars. Big, the meaning is more positive, because it reflects a process of Shanghai GM's exploration of the successful formula of "Chinese family car". Almost every aspect of Lefeng today reflects the results of this exploration.

The appearance of reason over emotion

The biggest change in direction is appearance. Sail used to be cute and fashionable. At that time, it wanted to capture fashionable "petty bourgeoisie"; but today's Lefeng, the manufacturer's target group for it is "the quality of life and do not want to be too public". Man, that's pretty accurate. The shape of Lefeng is indeed the type that few people will see when it is parked on the side of the road.

To be honest, after watching it in different environments for two days, Lefeng didn't leave me with any spiritual feelings, but there are a few rational impressions: First, there are Toyota Vios shadows in several parts of its body, I don't know. Whether it is a deliberate reference or an unintentional insertion; second, from the side profile of Lefeng displayed by the manufacturer, it can be seen that its compartment space is higher and longer than the largest sedan Fit in its class (I can't really see it at a glance) ; Third, when we parked Lefeng in front of the restaurant, it didn't look smaller than the Bora next to it.

There is a legend about the shape design of Lefeng. When Bob Lutz, the head of GM's products and known as the "Master of Products" in the American auto industry, had a meal with the mayor of Shanghai, at the request of the mayor, he casually sketched a "Chinese family of three products" on the invitation letter. The side profile of the "van sedan", it is said that the design of Lefeng originated from this sketch.

I say this is a "legendary statement" because I've seen that sketch by Lutz, which is basically sloppy and out of proportion, and has nothing to do with what Lefeng looks like today. The more realistic version is that the side profile of Lefeng was drawn by a Chinese designer from Shanghai Pan Asia, and then jointly developed with Giugiaro. The reason why they had such an opportunity is because the sedan version of the Aveo (called Kalos in Korea) that they originally planned to introduce is too ugly.

The origin of Lefeng's shape is so deep, but I want to understand one thing: why is its shape so boring? We know that the Sail is a model that has been remodeled and improved, but the design of Lefeng was planned from scratch, and the manufacturer has repeatedly emphasized that it is dominated by Chinese design ideas. Therefore, the design orientation of Lefeng is actually It represents Shanghai GM's judgment on today's mainstream consumer tastes in China.

What the results reflect is that Shanghai GM believes that the people who buy a 100,000 yuan sedan today are no longer the "petty bourgeoisie" who paid attention to "timely enjoyment" like those who bought the Sail in the past (this group of people has Lecheng to be responsible for it today). ), and more of them are pragmatic buyers who "meet the needs of life". Most of these buyers do not put appearance in the first place, and are more rational than emotional, so they have such a conservative and stable style of Lefeng. It can also be seen from this point that Shanghai GM's analysis of Chinese consumers is not only accurate, but also very timely.

Irresistible interior

Actually, I forgot what the Lefeng looked like as soon as I got in the car, because compared to the impressive interior and suspension, its appearance It's really not worth mentioning.

Lefeng's interior deserves a lot of hype, why? In fact, the cars produced by Shanghai GM have long since gotten rid of the careless feeling of American cars in terms of workmanship, but the performance of Lefeng has improved on the whole. Its cabin atmosphere is eye-catching, with black plastics, light brown seats and linings, and bright mahogany veneer, matching a "full-fledged" cabin.

A discerning person can feel that the atmosphere of this compartment is very "Chinese", reflecting some typical tastes of Chinese consumers, such as the peach wood veneer. Readers who often read our articles know that we are usually very disgusted by the "peach wood" used in a car with a class of 100,000 yuan, but Lefeng's peach wood veneer is bright in tone and realistic in texture (we even suspected that it was real wood, but experience tells us that Unlikely), it is not tacky, other manufacturers should buy it and go back to dismantle it and study it.

In addition, other materials in the cabin also have a good texture, including imitation metal decorative strips and chrome embellishments with just the right location and amount. The assembly process of the plastic plate parts is also smooth and fine, and there is no roughness. For low-priced cars, the most taboo in the interior decoration is that the eyes are high and the hands are low, and the Lefeng's car not only has a visual style, but also can give people a real sense of grade.

Like Excelle, Le Feng has Korean ancestry. Korean ancestry is not bad. For example, in terms of functional design, contemporary Korean cars are very thoughtful, and they rarely give people a handle in terms of storage space and convenience. A typical example is the Excelle. Its sixteen or seven compartments are still a strong selling point. Lefeng also has similar design ideas, and strives to be thoughtful and practical. There are storage compartments up and down the center console, and there are also mesh pockets for storage behind the front seat backs. However, there are some omissions in some details. For example, the three cup holders at the front and rear cannot hold a normal mineral water bottle, which seems to be useless. This shortcoming is unacceptable for this car full of Chinese flavor.

Of course, Shanghai GM is well aware of the criteria by which Chinese consumers judge a car as good or bad. A car with a terrible sound. I believe that Lefeng's carriages can capture the hearts of most general buyers, because its sense of style can touch people from feeling, and its space and functions can convince people from reason. Abandoning the appearance and focusing on the interior is the strategy of Lefeng, which seems to be quite clever, because the appearance and style are indeed different in taste, but no one will be disgusted by the luxurious and exquisite interior.

Easy to drive is the biggest advantage

Lefeng has a complete configuration division at the beginning of its launch. The engine is a 1.4-liter dual camshaft, and both manual and automatic transmissions are available. This time we tested all manual transmissions. The Lefeng with manual transmission is very easy to drive. It can drive less than 20 kilometers in three hours in downtown Shanghai. Even if there is a traffic jam, I have no complaints about its clutch and gear. Test drive in the city!

Like the previous mainstream models of the Shanghai GM family, the Lefeng's dynamic character is not sporty, but focuses on the ease of daily driving. It has plenty of low torque, the output is even and smooth from 1500rpm to 4000rpm, and it has a great tolerance for gears. But after 4000rpm, the power will be attenuated, and the stamina to push it will only appear powerless. Therefore, similar to Excelle and Jingcheng, Lefeng is suitable for you to drive with the mentality of "no desire and no desire". Although it is less exciting, it will make people feel more and more comfortable. For people who only travel by car, easy to drive is the biggest advantage.

Be prepared for the bad road in China

Although trying to get the excitement from the Lefeng can be a letdown, I really appreciate its suspension settings. This time, I drove the car for two days in and around Shanghai, and found that the road conditions in Shanghai are actually quite ordinary. Many roads have cracks in disrepair, and sometimes there are large potholes. But Lefeng is still very comfortable driving on such a complex road. Its suspension has a very good shock filtering performance, which can filter out almost all scattered vibrations on urban roads, giving people a feeling of peace and comfort.

When encountering some poorly paved roads, even if you rush over at a high speed (usually we only do this when we test the car, but not our own car), we only hear a low suspension sound, which is transmitted into the car. The vibration has been weakened a lot. Moreover, there is no noise from any parts inside and outside the body, which proves that the rigidity and noise suppression of the frame are quite high. When driving Lefeng on a bad road, it is not necessary to slow down. Usually, only a car that is one or two levels higher than it and is comfortably tuned will have such a performance, but now this 100,000 yuan (the basic version may be less than 100,000) level car can give you such comfort and self-confidence, which is one thing to be happy about.

The foundation of Lefeng comes from Kalos of GM Daewoo in South Korea. The manufacturer said that its suspension was adjusted by Pan-Asia. I believe that a lot of efforts have been made for Chinese roads. In terms of feeling, Lefeng uses a thick rubber pad in the suspension part, which is the most effective way to isolate the scattered road vibration, but the rubber pad will theoretically affect the sensitivity and accuracy of the control, which I did not test in this test. I didn't confirm it, because when I was driving the Lefeng, I was not in the mood to drive intensely, and I didn't find any interesting detours in the suburbs of Shanghai for a long time, so I simply gave up the homework-style handling limit test.

This also reflects the Chinese car use environment, and there are few opportunities to really focus on fun. I have tried Lefeng's high-speed performance. The acceleration force in the middle section from 100km/h to 120km/h is average, and the directional stability at 120km/h (this is the current legal maximum speed in China) is acceptable. The power during cruising is relatively calm, but The increase in wind noise by the window is more obvious.

Days we walked together

In the two full days of test driving Lefeng, I drove it through urban areas, highways, and national highways, most of which are roads with "Chinese characteristics". Lefeng gave me Confidence and satisfaction are unprecedented at this level, matching (or even surpassing in some respects) the Excelle one level above it. The confidence and satisfaction I am talking about here do not refer to the extreme control state, but the feeling of stability, calmness and trust in the car when faced with various actual road conditions. This is an important reason why I appreciate Lefeng. When you buy a car, you are not buying a toy, but want to get a loyal companion who will walk with you for many, many days in the future. Don't the vast majority of Chinese treat cars with this mentality?

Finally, I would like to express my admiration for Shanghai GM once again. On the one hand, they admire their accurate analysis and grasp of the tastes of Chinese consumers; on the other hand, they have the technical strength to fully reflect this grasp into actual products. The former is something that many foreign brands working hard in China should learn from; the latter is something that many of our own brands should strive to catch up with.