Chinese car companies have been enjoying a bigger slice of the pie in the European market, and its native brands are lobbying for their survival. Stellantis (comprising Peugeot, Citroën, Opel, et al.) and Renault have joined forces to lobby the European Union for a new class of car with reduced safety regulations, similar to Japan’s kei-car segment, which would allow the two automakers to build entry-level city cars for cheaper to compete with the likes of the BYD Dolphin Surf, a $20,000 EV whose current rivals cost $5,000 more on the Continent. Think Fiat 500e but slower, smaller, and cheaper.
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Electric
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Front-Wheel Drive
The Brands Say They’re Struggling At Home
According to Reuters, Stellantis Chairman John Elkann and Renault CEO Luca de Meo are currently embarking on a joint campaign to get regulators at the European Union to consider an entry-level vehicle segment, which would slot above the existing quadricycle class of car where the Citroën Ami and Fiat Topolino compete. The new vehicle class would be granted full road use, meaning they could drive on highways – quadricycles are limited to surface streets and are limited to 50 miles per hour or less – but the regulations would be geared toward their intended use as city vehicles.
“What we are asking for is a differentiated regulation for smaller cars. There are too many rules designed for bigger and more expensive cars, which means we can’t make smaller cars in acceptable profitability conditions.”
– Renault CEO Luca de Meo
Backed by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, lobbyists are asking regulators to establish a new segment called M0, otherwise known as “e-car,” that would roughly correspond to Japan’s kei class The argument is that due to their primary use on streets where the speed limit is 30 mph or less, these vehicles wouldn’t need side-impact airbags, driver drowsiness monitors, or lane departure prevention, items which lobbyists say add $1,000 or more to the cost of a new car. Although those features are important when traveling at highway speeds – where the consequences of a crash are far more dire – city cars just don’t face the same priorities, according to those lobbyists.
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Safety Experts Disagree With The Premise
Per Reuters, even with the deregulated class of car, it’s not guaranteed that European automakers would be able to compete. Euro NCAP Director For Strategic Development Matthew Avery said that Chinese cars regularly achieve five-star safety ratings in Europe, a feat that deregulated e-cars would not be able to achieve given the lack of equipment considered mandatory for the award. Avery said that many corporate fleets don’t even consider purchasing vehicles that don’t achieve five-star ratings, which would pose a problem for European automakers since so many professional-level employees across a variety of industries benefit from a company lease as part of their compensation.
Even so, Stellantis and Renault plan to continue campaigning for a cheaper class of vehicle that would give customers some additional choice. Although the European auto market is contracting somewhat in recent years, small city cars are gaining traction in the region. Reuters reports that S&P Global is predicting a 600,000-strong segment by 2030, a number that’s up a staggering 20 percent from last year.
Source: Reuters (1) (2)
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