China NEV surge

China’s car market bounced back from its February slump in March, and battery-electric cars plus plug-in hybrids took 51.5% of passenger-vehicle retail sales. (autonews.gasgoo.com) The China Passenger Car Association said March passenger-vehicle retail sales reached 1.648 million units, down 15% from a year earlier but up 59.4% from February. First-quarter retail sales totaled 4.226 million units, down 17.4% year over year. (autonews.gasgoo.com) New-energy vehicles — China’s term for battery-electric cars, plug-in hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles — sold 849,000 units at retail in March, up 14.4% from February, according to Gasgoo’s report of the association’s data. Their retail share rose 0.3 percentage points from a year earlier to 51.5%. (autonews.gasgoo.com) The rebound came after the Lunar New Year distortion pushed February to what the association called the year’s low point. Even with March’s recovery, the first quarter remained weaker than a year earlier. (autonews.gasgoo.com) Foreign brands are answering that market with more China-specific electric models and more Chinese technology inside them. Audi and Volkswagen both used April announcements to show how much their China plans now depend on local joint ventures. (audi-mediacenter.com, carnewschina.com) Audi and SAIC said on April 17 they had signed a strategic cooperation agreement covering the full value chain for future AUDI models in China and would set up a dedicated innovation and technology center in Shanghai. Audi said four all-new models are planned, with the third scheduled for 2027. (audi-mediacenter.com) Autocar India, citing Audi-SAIC chief executive Fermín Soneira, reported that third model will be a sedan. The second model, the E7X sport utility vehicle, is due to make its public debut at Auto China 2026, which opens on April 24 in Beijing. (autocarindia.com) Volkswagen’s parallel move is the ID. AURA T6, the first model in FAW-Volkswagen’s new ID. AURA series. FAW-Volkswagen said the electric sport utility vehicle will debut at the Beijing auto show on April 24. (cnevpost.com) Reports on the model say it uses the China Electronic Architecture, a vehicle software-and-electronics system co-developed by Volkswagen and Xpeng, and adds a roof-mounted lidar sensor for driver-assistance functions. Volkswagen has said it plans 13 new-energy vehicles in China in 2026. (carnewschina.com, cnevpost.com) March’s 51.5% share means China’s electric-car market is no longer a side segment in monthly retail sales. The next test comes on April 24 in Beijing, where Audi’s China brand and Volkswagen’s ID. AURA line are both set to show how foreign automakers plan to keep up. (autonews.gasgoo.com, autocarindia.com, cnevpost.com)