70 years of hard work, 70 years of hard work, 70 years of change, 70 years of development. In these 70 years of ups and downs, China's commercial vehicle industry has made great progress. Many commercial vehicle companies have not only achieved good results in China, but also went abroad to show the world the "Made in China" style.

      In the history of China's automobile industry, commercial vehicles have the longest development history, the best foundation, the most independent brands, and the highest foreign exchange earnings from exports. In today's domestic commercial vehicle market, whether it is in the field of trucks or buses, domestic independent brands have an absolute advantage. Today, we can say without humility that commercial vehicles, which are closely related to the development of the national economy, can be regarded as the foundation and backbone of China's automobile industry.

      Looking back on the 70-year development history, commercial vehicles have made a strong mark in the history of China's automobile development, and at the same time internalized "self-reliance" and "independent innovation" into the entire industrial development process.

Relying on foreign aid to end "Made in All Nations"

      The People's Republic of China was established in 1949. At that time, China's car ownership was only 50,000, but the brands were varied. The industry referred to this stage as the "Made in All Nations" period.

      At the beginning of the founding of New China, there were only a few auto repair factories in China. At that time, China's auto industry had a poor foundation and a low level, and it was in a situation of "lack of weight and lightness". According to the "China Automobile Yearbook (1983)", until 1949, my country still did not have the capacity to mass produce passenger cars. For imported buses running on the streets, ordinary people called them the "Wanguo brand". At that time, the level of my country's automobile technology was described by a petrol poem: "Go two or three miles, break down four or five times, rock the car six or seven times, and eight or ninety people push."

In this process, commercial vehicle companies have adopted various approaches.

      On the one hand, it has a joint venture with the international commercial vehicle giants. In 2007, SAIC-Iveco Hongyan and GAC Hino were established; in 2009, Sinotruk (Hong Kong) and German MAN joint venture, FAW and GM established FAW-GM light commercial vehicles; in 2012, Foton Daimler Automobile was formally established. In the context of the rapid development of new energy vehicles in recent years, Jianghuai and Volkswagen established a joint venture in 2017, and Brilliance and Renault established a joint venture. New energy commercial vehicles are in their future strategic plans.

      On the other hand, my country's commercial vehicle companies are constantly tapping their potential. Since 2014, emission upgrades have always been the focus of the commercial vehicle industry, and various companies are increasing R&D efforts to launch products that meet the standards and user needs.

      Nowadays, my country's commercial vehicle companies are strong, with sufficient reserves of technology and products, and they are also at the world's advanced level. Whether it is in the field of trucks or buses, my country has the strength to compete with foreign companies. Not only that, my country's commercial vehicle companies have also made great achievements in intelligent network technology, new energy vehicle technology, etc., and the application of electrification and intelligent technology has become increasingly mature.

Compete on the international stage with strength

      China's commercial vehicles not only fully meet the domestic development needs, but also excel in overseas markets. In the bus field, Yutong Bus's "Export Road" is the most representative. As early as 2002, Yutong Bus received overseas orders; in 2005, Yutong established an overseas marketing department. In the same year, the first batch of 12 buses were sold to Cuba, opening the prelude to Yutong's overseas expansion. So far, Yutong has accounted for more than 90% of the Cuban imported passenger car market.

      In the truck market, Sinotruk's overseas exports are firmly in the top spot. In 2004, Sinotruk formally proposed to implement an international strategy. In 2005, it achieved 4,920 vehicle exports; by 2007, Sinotruk had exported 15,000 vehicles. According to national customs statistics, in the first half of 2019, Sinotruk’s exports accounted for 47.2% of the total exports of the domestic heavy truck industry, and continued to rank first in the heavy truck industry. This is also the number one in the domestic heavy truck industry for 14 consecutive years .

      After 70 years of wind and rain, 70 years of hard work, generations of commercial vehicle insights have used their diligence and wisdom to write the legendary deeds of Chinese commercial vehicles. The 70-year history of development has also proved to the world that China's commercial vehicle has never changed its genes for insisting on independent innovation and its spirit of insisting on self-reliance.

      On December 21, 1949, Chairman Mao Zedong visited the Soviet Union and visited the Stalin Automobile Factory. He saw the advanced manufacturing technology of the Soviet Union. He said loudly with a strong Hunan accent: "We also want such an automobile factory." Chairman Mao knew well. New China cannot develop without cars in any aspect.

      On July 15, 1953, the First Automobile Manufacturing Plant laid the foundation stone in Changchun, and people all over the country were excited about it. Three years later, in 1956, the first batch of Jiefang vehicles officially rolled off the assembly line, marking the arrival of China's automobile manufacturing era.

      When the truck industry enters the rapid development track, as another important part of the commercial vehicle-the passenger car industry is also keeping up with the pace of development of the times. At that time, bus manufacturers have successively used Jiefang chassis to develop buses and group buses, opening the way to refit buses with domestically-made truck chassis. In 1957, the passenger car manufacturers in Shanghai and Beijing used the domestic Jiefang brand CA10 truck assembly and all domestic equipment for the first time to trial-produce the 57-type passenger car with an all-metal integral structure body, which became my country’s first fully self-manufactured domestically produced bus. Coach.

      "In that era, the Jiefang brand car was the pride of the Chinese people and represented the most advanced industrial level of New China." An old automaker said that the Chinese people loved Jiefang trucks sincerely, and the "Jiefang brand" represented self-reliance. , Working hard, it also proves that no matter what, the Chinese can't be troubled.

Self-reliance for survival

      In 1950, automobiles were included in the 156 key industrial construction projects aided by the Soviet Union in China. Three years later, the first automobile factory laid the foundation. In 1956, China owned a car that was truly self-made. In a few years, through the introduction, digestion, absorption, and re-innovation, China has successively produced a variety of trucks and buses, and established an automobile industry foundation no less than that of Japan and South Korea at that time.

      China's commercial vehicle development started with "foreign aid", but it can be successful because of the self-reliance and hard work spirit and determination of the R&D personnel of auto companies. On March 10, 1958, China's first domestically-made light-duty truck NJ130 was born and named the Yuejin brand. In May of the same year, Chongqing Chang'an Automobile Plant, without any experience and production base, conducted surveying and mapping design on the American CJ-5 Jeep, and produced the first "Yangtze River" brand 46 off-road vehicle in China. In April 1960, Jinan Automobile Manufacturing Plant, the predecessor of Sinotruk, successfully trial-produced the first Huanghe brand JN150 8-ton truck through hard work, which opened the prelude to the development of China's heavy-duty truck industry.

      However, with the sudden changes in the international and domestic situation, my country's commercial vehicle development is also facing a huge test. From the 1960s to the mid-1970s, the overall progress of my country's commercial vehicle industry was slow. According to statistics, between 1949 and 1977, my country produced a total of 1,252,500 automobiles, and the annual output of major domestic automobile manufacturing bases was less than half of the annual output of multinational factories. In the early stage of reform and opening up, the situation of my country’s auto industry that “lack of weight and light, and cars are almost blank” has not been improved. At the same time, the foundation of parts is weak, and the problem of “scattered, chaotic, and poor” production layout has become prominent.

      Fortunately, the passenger car industry maintained steady development before the reform and opening up. Beginning in the 1970s, Chinese bus manufacturers have adopted Jiefang CA10 truck chassis and Huanghe brand JN651 bus chassis to refit large-scale single buses and articulated buses in large quantities. In addition, there are also passenger car products modified from truck chassis such as Yuejin and Dongfeng. In December 1974, the Automobile Bureau of the First Ministry of Machinery Industry and the Urban Construction Bureau of the State Construction Commission jointly issued a document that Changzhou Bus Manufacturing Plant developed a special chassis for buses. In December 1978, the JT680 large diesel long-distance bus jointly designed by the transportation system passed the appraisal in Guangdong and was subsequently put into mass production.

      “It’s unimaginable to make cars in that era.” Another old automaker introduced that the industrial foundation was weak, the supporting system was blank, technical drawings and R&D capabilities were completely dependent on foreign parties, and even how to manage an automobile manufacturing workshop was required. Learn from scratch. It can be said that there is a clear gap between us and the world's advanced countries in the automotive industry. Fortunately, the Chinese have made the impossible possible through self-reliance and hard work.

Introduce and absorb to promote development

      In December 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee was held. China opened the prelude to reform and opening up and also the beginning of the introduction of commercial vehicle technology.

      In December 1983, China National Heavy Duty Truck Industry Association, the predecessor of China National Heavy Duty Truck Group, signed a heavy-duty vehicle manufacturing technology transfer contract with Austrian Steyr, and introduced Steyr 91 series heavy-duty vehicle technology. In 1985, the first Steyr 91 rolled off the assembly line at the Sichuan Automobile Manufacturing Plant; in 1989, the first domestically produced Steyr rolled off the assembly line at the Jinan Automobile Manufacturing Plant. This project, which was introduced at that time to change the status quo of the "lack of weight" in my country's automobile industry, changed the pattern of China's heavy-duty automobile industry.

      In the following 20 years, Steyr technology has become the main technology platform of China's heavy-duty vehicles, making China's heavy-duty commercial vehicle manufacturing technology a major step forward to the world's advanced level. It is worth mentioning that, considering that the automobile industry is an interlocking whole, the Steyr technology introduction project also includes the introduction of key assemblies for heavy commercial vehicles, such as engines, axles, transmissions, frames, and braking systems. Wait. At present, component manufacturers occupying an important position in China, such as Weichai Power, Fast, Hande Axle, etc., have developed on the basis of Steyr technology.

      1985 was an important node for my country to solve the problem of "less light". In January 1985, the national automobile industry authority adopted the method of combining technology and trade to sign the "Isuzu N Series Truck Technology Transfer Contract" and the "Isuzu N Series Light Truck Cab Technology Transfer Contract" with Japan's Isuzu Motor Company. The impact of this technology introduction is extremely far-reaching and has established the competitive landscape of my country's light truck industry from reform and opening up to the next 30 years. Since the mid-1990s, domestic light-duty truck manufacturers have introduced Kangling, Ouling, Aoling, Shuailing and other light truck series products named after "Ling", which have been widely recognized by the market. At this point, the problem of "lack of weight and lightness" in my country's automobile industry has been basically resolved.

      In the early stage of reform and opening up, the development of the passenger car industry stagnated, but there were also bright spots. In 1979, Beijing Passenger Equipment Company developed and produced my country's first air-conditioned tourist bus with the Jiefang CA10 truck chassis. In the same year, the Beijing Long-distance Bus Company's repair plant trial-produced the BCK652 long-distance bus. In 1981, it was improved again and trial-produced the BCK653 long-distance bus suitable for driving in mountainous areas.

      The reform and opening up have further deepened, and the passenger car industry has gradually embarked on a professional and large-scale development path. In the 1980s, a self-made chassis for Chinese buses was born. At that time, the government took the lead in organizing the overall design and development of special chassis suitable for buses and highway buses, ending the history of Chinese bus manufacturing relying solely on truck chassis modification. Among them, in 1981, Yangzhou Automobile Repair and Repair Factory used the JT663 passenger car special chassis designed and developed by the original Ministry of Transportation to be a trial-produced passenger car. After being put on the market, it became the mainstream model of China's highway passenger transportation, with a market share of more than 30%. Since then, between 1988 and 1989, organized by the China Automobile Industry Association at the time, major domestic bus and chassis manufacturers formed a bus joint design group in Jinan, based on Steyr technology and main assembly development at that time, the most advanced domestic The special chassis for buses has made an important contribution to the technological advancement of bus chassis.

      In the 10 years since the reform and opening up, my country's bus industry has not only broken through the limitations of truck chassis and formed a large-scale production, but also launched the country's first sleeper bus in 1988. This model was jointly developed by Xi’an Institute of Highway and Technology and Yangzhou Coach Factory (formerly Yangzhou Automobile Factory). Under the situation of tight national railway capacity, the use of highway sleeper coaches to meet people’s long-distance travel needs has the dual characteristics of economy and comfort. It eased the tension of railway capacity and promoted the development of urban and rural road passenger transport markets. Although this model has withdrawn from the passenger transport market with the development of the times, it has left a strong mark in the history of my country's passenger cars.

Actively reform and enhance strength

      With the further deepening of reform and opening up, the task of my country's auto industry has changed from laying the foundation to developing the national auto industry. During this period of time, establishing a modern enterprise system and cultivating the ability to adapt to the market economy has become a challenge that my country's commercial vehicle companies must face.

      In the 1990s, my country's passenger car industry has a trend of introducing technology and joint ventures to produce passenger cars. At that time, Europe, the United States, Japan, South Korea and other regions had strong technological advantages in the international commercial vehicle market. Therefore, the introduction of technology by Chinese enterprises was nothing more than two routes, Europe, America, Japan and South Korea, mainly through technical cooperation or joint ventures. At that time, there were many bus manufacturers adopting European and American technical routes. Representative models were North Neoplan, Anhui Kesbauer, Sivo Bus, Yaxing Benz, Sunward Bus, etc. The typical representative using Japanese and Korean technology was Shen Fei Hino, Guilin Daewoo, Sichuan Toyota Costa, etc.

      However, in the mid to late 1990s, my country's self-owned brand passenger cars began to rise, and their development speed and momentum exceeded everyone's expectations. What marked the rapid development of self-owned brand passenger cars was the emergence of joint-stock enterprises and private enterprises. At that time, the leading passenger car companies had begun to seek listing and introduced new momentum for corporate development.

      In December 1988, Xiamen King Long Automobile Group Co., Ltd. was established. In 1992, it was restructured into a joint-stock enterprise. In 1993, the company's stock "Xiamen Motor" (later renamed "King Long Motor") was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange; February 1993 In September, Yutong Bus seized the opportunity of the country’s pilot shareholding system reform and established Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co., Ltd. In May 1997, Yutong Bus was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. Sufficient funds brought by the listing channel have enabled Yutong Bus to completely get rid of the dilemma of obsolete production lines and insufficient production capacity.

      The leading role of King Long Automobile and Yutong Bus opened the prelude to the listing and financing of many bus companies since then. By 2000, China had become a major producer of passenger cars in the world. No matter in the fields of highways, tourist buses, and buses, my country's buses have performed well. The scale and concentration of passenger car production have increased rapidly, and the first camp of Chinese passenger cars represented by the "three dragons and one link" has gradually formed. In order to adapt to the rapid development of highways in my country, various bus companies have developed numerous highways, tourist buses, and tourist buses; in order to solve urban public transportation and advocate green travel, various forms of buses have emerged, such as low-floor buses and new energy buses. In order to meet the needs of airport shuttles, airport buses, etc., as well as urban and rural passenger transport models, China’s passenger car industry is showing great vitality.

      Subsequently, the reform of the truck enterprise system and mechanism has also taken a step forward. Among them, the one with flexible thinking and quicker action is Foton Motor. In 1996, Foton Motor started from scratch and transformed from a local state-owned enterprise to a joint-stock company under the model of "Manufacturing Foton by Hundreds of Laws". Foton Motor went public in 1998 and developed from a small factory producing four-wheel agricultural vehicles to a well-known domestic commercial vehicle manufacturer with a full range of trucks and buses.

      Next, the state-owned heavy-duty truck enterprises with historical "burden" are also determined to carry out market-oriented reforms. From January 2001 to January 2003, the former China National Heavy Duty Truck Group faced a loss and went bankrupt. The State Council decided to reform and reorganize the company and delegate it to Shandong, Shaanxi and Sichuan (Chongqing City was originally part of Sichuan) for local management. In January 2001, China National Heavy Duty Truck Group Co., Ltd. was formally established; in February 2002, Shaanxi Automobile Group Co., Ltd. was established; in January 2003, Chongqing Hongyan Automobile Co., Ltd. was established. Three companies under the former Sinotruk Group have been reborn after reorganization. By introducing market competition mechanisms, reforming management systems and insisting on institutional innovation, the three companies have gradually developed from the brink of bankruptcy to the mainstay of my country's heavy truck industry.

      It can be seen that the separation of government and enterprises in the management system and the changes in the market competition environment brought about by reform and opening up have added more autonomy to commercial vehicle manufacturers, effectively mobilized the enthusiasm and initiative of enterprises in operation, and strengthened The independent innovation ability and the ability to grasp the market of commercial vehicle enterprises.

Independent research and development

      In 2010, my country's commercial vehicle market achieved its best performance ever. Among them, the sales of heavy trucks exceeded one million for the first time; the sales of light trucks were 1.96 million; the sales of passenger cars reached 358,600, which also broke the historical record. After reaching a peak, commercial vehicle sales began to decline year by year, from a seller's market that lasted for decades to a buyer's market.

      Prior to this, because my country's commercial vehicle companies have been "not worrying about sales", there was little motivation to improve processes and products. As the competitive pressure brought by the market economy continues to increase, companies have gradually realized the importance of technological improvements and product performance enhancement. Gradually, my country's commercial vehicle products and services have begun to develop towards high-end and refined products.