New National Side-Impact Crash Standard Takes Effect July 1, Industry Updates Follow

Starting July 1, 2024, China’s national standard “Protection of Occupants in Lateral Collisions for Motor Vehicles” officially took effect. The new standard increases the mass of the moving deformable barrier used in side-impact tests from 950 kg to 1,400 kg. It also mandates that electric vehicle (EV) batteries must not shift during a side collision and must not catch fire or explode within 30 minutes post-impact. Additionally, vehicles are required to automatically activate hazard warning lights after such collisions. Tesla has been granted a U.S. patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a technology titled “Vehicle Suspension Actuator System.” This system integrates active motor control with passive suspension components, including active actuators, passive elastic elements, adaptive dampers, and parallel air springs. It can proactively adjust suspension settings using a “road roughness map.” Tesla has not yet announced any production plans for this technology. SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW) has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Southeast Asian mobility platform Grab, delivering Binguo EVs in bulk to Grab’s ride-hailing operations in Indonesia. SGMW Indonesia has collaborated with platforms like Grab and GoTo for two years, successfully entering the local electric mobility market. Volkswagen AG, Audi AG, and SAIC Motor plan to jointly establish a new joint venture, holding stakes of 41%, 10%, and 49% respectively. The venture will primarily provide engineering services for battery electric passenger vehicles to affiliated parties. The relevant merger filing was publicly disclosed on June 24. At its 2025 annual general meeting, Great Wall Motor outlined six key value dimensions, emphasizing product reliability and reducing user operating costs. The company also announced plans to deepen its presence in the European market by building local R&D and manufacturing capabilities and establishing wholly owned sales and service systems. Huawei announced that the Aito M9 series received over 42,000 firm orders within one month of its launch. The vehicle was unveiled on May 27 and is available in standard and long-wheelbase versions, with a starting price of RMB 479,800. Mercedes-Benz Group has decided to suspend the payment of year-end bonuses originally scheduled for July to approximately 90,000 employees in Germany. The company is also considering extending the standard workweek from 35 hours without additional compensation, a move expected to save more than €10 million. Bosch Group announced that Stefan Hartung, Chairman of the Board of Management, will step down on June 30, 2026, succeeded by current Deputy Chairman Christian Fischer. Bosch emphasized that its operations in China remain unaffected and will continue to be a key strategic market globally. Grand Auto has largely exited the new car sales business. Of its more than 500 self-owned properties, only about 30 remain operational, primarily offering after-sales maintenance services. The company is transitioning into a property leasing and legacy after-sales service provider. CATL has launched its direct-sales platform, “CATL Store,” targeting small and medium-sized energy storage integrators. It offers three energy storage cells (100Ah, 280Ah, and 314Ah), with a minimum order quantity of three packs, lowering procurement barriers. The fourth-generation semiconductor materials production base of Zhongke Fenyan has been established in Zhengzhou High-Tech Zone. This marks China’s first full-industry-chain project in this field, strengthening Henan Province’s ultra-hard materials industrial chain. According to data from the Passenger Car Association (CPCA), China imported 160,000 vehicles from January to May 2026, down 11% year-on-year—marking the third consecutive year of decline. Excluding volatile factors, imports have actually declined for eight consecutive years. Yaoxin Micro noted that sectors such as AI computing power, new energy vehicles, and energy storage exhibit high pricing elasticity. Upstream cost pressures are unlikely to ease in the short term, and component prices will undergo a sustained transmission cycle. National Bureau of Statistics data shows that from January to May 2024, profits in the automotive manufacturing sector fell by 19.8% year-on-year. In contrast, industries such as non-ferrous metal smelting and electronic equipment manufacturing saw significant profit growth, while sectors like ferrous metal smelting and non-metallic mineral products experienced sharp declines. China’s 15th Five-Year Energy Plan proposes that by 2030, the country will have 40 million charging facilities nationwide to support energy replenishment for 110 million electric vehicles. As of the end of May 2024, China had a total of 22.497 million charging connectors, including approximately 17.55 million private chargers and fewer than 5 million public chargers.