Two years, just more, instead of three or four years. This is the time when the great Western manufacturers now aim to develop their new models. Shaking by Tesla, especially by the new Chinese brands and their development practices of the world of electronics, large groups are forced to accelerate.
Two years to develop a new model
This is the case of Renault. Last September, the Diamond brand presented “Leap 100”, a code name for its new vehicle development plan in a hundred weeks, just two years. First model to benefit from him: the future electric Twingo.
“The new development standard in the car is now 18 to 24 months, explains Sébastien Amichi, car associate in Kearney. And with a vehicle that evolves throughout its commercial life.”
An Audi approach is also trying to adopt. The German brand has its new technical director Geoffrey Bouqueot, from Valeo, to “bring the transformation to an organization focused on software.”
“We open to ecosystems, we open to people who come from different worlds to open this separation between software and hardware, how we can accelerate it,” explains the BFM Geoffrey Bouqueot business.
“The idea is to go as quickly as possible while guaranteeing premium service and quality, the new technical director continues. We have shown that we could go faster and faster, so this acceleration, maybe we can go even faster one day.” The deadlines of 26, 28 months do not seem impossible.
Audi, however, leaves long months in their releases, even the most important, such as the new Q6 e-tron last year, under software development errors of the VW group. A situation that seems to be absorbed today.
A trend of the world of electronics
This acceleration of the release of new cars echoes the rapid renewal of smartphones, computers, telephone numbers, a world from Xiaomi, Nio or Byd, the new electric car leaders. The risk, which takes three or four years to launch a new car, is that it is already obsolete when it comes out. This competitive pressure also shortens the life cycles of vehicles. A model no longer really needs a medium age rediling when the model remains only five or six years in the market (instead of eight to ten years), it evolves annually through the logic of the modern years and can update “on the air.”
Accelerate, however, assumes that an organization turns to this action according to Sébastien Amichi. Divide by two time supposes, for example, choosing suppliers before, without having previously developed the piece. To carry out several phases in concert: by increasing the line, the designer draws the day, the engineers calculate the night.
“Many more steps by digital simulation are validated instead of physical validations, explains Sébastien Amichi. Of about one hundred prototypes in a traditional brand, the new Chinese actors only realize twenty.”
The latter, as Tesla, also reduced diversity in options, paintings, equipment packages, which makes less possible combinations to validate. “Now among the general doctors, we only sell 15 to 20% of the variants,” continues our expert.
Time savings also allows you to make money, but requires a very early participation in the commercial department. Therefore, many professions must work in parallel, near each other, in very limited times. Can this approach fall into a teleworking world, leave at a recurring pace? Questions that Chinese brands do not arise in elastic working time and non -existing labor law.
Western groups are increasingly working in China, such as Renault, which has established a development laboratory in the country or Audi that has strengthened its cooperation with its Saic partner. Renault also made an appointment for the next Dacia Electric: Luca de Meo promised to develop it in 16 months.
“I challenge all our competitors to develop such a fast car, even the Chinese manufacturers who come to Europe,” Renault Boss said last month. However, it will be necessary to wait until 2027 to see the market.
Source: BFM TV
