What are the reasons behind the fact that the quality of new energy vehicles is generally worse than that of fuel vehicles

　　Why is the quality of new energy vehicles getting worse and worse

　　The development time of new energy is not as long as that of gasoline vehicles; emphasis is placed on marketing rather than products; the supply chain cannot keep up

　　If you give such a response, it means you acknowledge these two questions and have thought about them.

　　If you are secretly dissatisfied and even thinking, "Where did you come from not being responsible? I shamelessly say that the quality of new energy vehicles is not as good as that of gasoline vehicles, and the quality is getting worse and worse. Why bother with it

　　Then you are either a rationalist with highly dialectical thinking who is not easily confused by suggestive questions, or most likely a new energy vehicle owner who fights for their car.

　　At this point, the problem naturally changed.

　　Which type of vehicle has better quality, new energy vehicles or fuel vehicles

　　Has the quality of new energy vehicles and fuel vehicles deteriorated

　　Unfortunately, even after researching for a long time, the author was unable to find the answers to these two questions. Since that's the case, why not start a debate and directly present the arguments and viewpoints of both sides, allowing readers to make their own decisions.

　　If you have an answer in your mind or want to add evidence, please feel free to politely discuss in the comment section.

　　Pro: Fuel powered cars are more reliable

　　Based on life experience, fuel vehicles have been accumulated for a long time, and their supply chain products have been perfected and polished over time, so the quality should be better. Not to mention the short development time of new energy, incomplete supply chain, frequent problems such as black screens on the center console, battery self ignition, and car loss of control.

　　If experience is too subjective, we don't lack objective data either.

　　Based on data from nearly 100000 car buyers or renters in 2024, the "2024 American New Car Quality Study (IQS)" shows that gasoline cars have an average of 180 problems per 100 vehicles, while pure electric cars have as many as 266 problems, exceeding gasoline cars by 86.

　　According to data, electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have more problems than gasoline vehicles. J. Frank Hanley, Senior Director of Automotive Benchmarking at D.Power, stated in a report that "owners of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles encounter more serious problems, with a repair rate three times higher than that of owners of gasoline vehicles

　　The quality issues of new energy vehicles are not only concentrated during the new car period, but also more when the vehicle has passed the running in period and entered the optimal use period.

　　Based on an extensive survey of 30595 car owners in the United States (with a vehicle service life of 3 years), the 2024 US Automotive Reliability Rating shows that the average PP100 index for gasoline vehicles is 187, for hybrid vehicles it is 191, for plug-in hybrid vehicles it is 216, and for electric vehicles it is 256.

　　Can foreign markets be the same as domestic markets? What's there to prove with foreign data

　　For greater persuasiveness, we will now focus our attention on the domestic market

　　Despite the intricate connections among various car companies, J D. The authority of Power research has been questioned, but the industry has been deeply rooted for many years, and its reports also have some reference value.

　　In June, Jundi China released the "2024 China New Energy Vehicle Quality Study (NEV-IQS)" (hereinafter referred to as the New Energy Vehicle Quality Study). This study analyzed and measured the quality issues encountered by new energy vehicle owners during their 2-6-month ownership period.

　　From the results, the number of quality problems with new energy vehicles is comparable to that of fuel vehicles, but the increase is significant compared to last year, indicating a worrying performance.

　　The data shows that the overall number of quality problems in the industry in 2024 is 210 PP100, a significant increase of 37 PP100 compared to 2023, and the growth rate of quality problems is accelerating compared to 2023 (+21 PP100).

　　In September, the "2024 China New Car Quality Research SM (IQS)" study on fuel powered vehicles showed that the number of problems per 100 vehicles for new fuel powered vehicles increased by 8 PP100 compared to 2023, reaching 212 PP100.

　　Although domestic survey results indicate that new energy vehicles are slightly ahead of fuel vehicles with an advantage of 2 PP100, their rapid growth trend is worrying. If they continue to develop in this way, the number of new car quality problems in 2025 may exceed that of fuel vehicles.

　　Due to the fact that Jundi China only provides quality reports for the initial use of new energy vehicles, a comparison of the number of long-term vehicle quality issues is currently unavailable.

　　In addition, both domestically and internationally, J D. Power research also points out that the number of quality problems has increased compared to the previous year, whether it is a new car or a car that has already passed the running in period, whether it is a new energy vehicle or a fuel vehicle. That is to say, the reliability of automobiles is showing a downward trend.

　　Based on the above data, it seems that the quality of new energy vehicles has been significantly inferior to that of fuel vehicles, but is this really the case? Let the opposing side argue.

　　On the contrary: New energy vehicles are superior

　　Although there have been frequent quality issues with new energy vehicles since their introduction, many of these problems have been properly resolved with technological upgrades.

　　In September, Chezhiwang and Kairui Saichi Consulting jointly released the latest results of the "2024 China Automotive Product Quality Performance Study (AQR)" (hereinafter referred to as AQR).

　　The AQR project characterizes the respondents' views on all vehicle quality issues based on market quality performance (market quality performance=number of problems X complaint degree; data is a negative numerical value, the lower the value, the better the quality).

　　In 2024, the research covers 51 mainstream automotive brands, with domestic brands accounting for 56.9%; Covering 22 segmented markets with 128 models, including 46 new energy models, accounting for 35.9%.

　　With J D. The conclusion drawn from the Power study is opposite. The research results indicate that compared with the previous study year, the market quality performance value in 2024 has decreased by 43%, ending the "three consecutive rises" trend. The quality level of both fuel vehicles and new energy vehicles has improved.

　　The results of comparing the quality of fuel vehicles and new energy vehicles are also contradictory. The AQR results show that the overall performance of energy vehicles is better, especially in the intelligent cockpit module, where the appearance, interior, and functional configuration are also better than those of fuel vehicles.

　　However, it should be noted that the market quality performance relied upon in this report depends on the number of problems and complaints, which has a natural advantage for new energy vehicles.

　　According to data released by the Ministry of Public Security, as of the end of June 2024, the number of motor vehicles in China reached 440 million, including 345 million fuel vehicles and 24.72 million new energy vehicles. The number of fuel vehicles far exceeds that of new energy vehicles, which will inevitably lead to a deviation from the actual situation.

　　In addition, it's a bit rogue to talk about general classification without looking at segmented car models.

　　In that case, it is necessary to introduce a third ranking: the 2024 China Automotive Quality Ranking released by China Automotive Quality Network for the first half of the year. This list ranks the quality of cars in the form of averages, excluding the potential impact of the large number of fuel vehicles.

　　The 2024 China Automotive Quality Ranking for the first half of the year is based on models that have been sold in the market for at least 6 months (excluding imported models), and evaluates data from five dimensions: complaint faults, defect risks, reliability, safety, and environmental friendliness. The lower the score, the better the quality.

　　After summarizing and summarizing by the author, it was ultimately found that new energy vehicles perform better in compact MPVs, medium and large MPVs, medium and large SUVs, and other models. However, there is a significant gap between compact cars, small SUVs, and fuel vehicles.

　　Design defects have become a common problem

　　Although there is still no consensus on which quality is better for fuel vehicles or new energy vehicles, a common trend can be found from multiple reports above: the number and proportion of design defects in automobiles are increasing.

　　In J D. In the reliability research of Power, automotive quality issues are classified into fault and design defect categories - fault refers to problems that affect normal function after a fault occurs, while the responsibility for design defects lies with the host manufacturer. Due to design defects causing inconvenience to users, design defect problems have always been high from new energy vehicles to fuel vehicles.

　　The overall number of quality issues in the domestic new energy vehicle industry has surged by 37 PP100 this year, a staggering increase. What's even more frightening is that among the 37 newly added PP100s, design defects account for 35 seats, which is a solid bombshell.

　　Fuel cars are even worse off. In the reliability research of fuel vehicles this year, although faults are still the main source of complaints, the quality has improved by at least 1 PP100 compared to 2023.

　　The problem of design flaws directly conceals this fact, raising PP100 by 9.1 points, directly leading to an overall decline in the reliability of fuel vehicles. The top five issues that users complain about in the category of information and entertainment system design problems are all design defects, including: insensitive touch screen operation, Bluetooth pairing/connection problems, frequent inability of built-in voice to recognize commands, in car Wi Fi pairing/connection problems, and inaccurate in car navigation systems.

　　At the same time, the total number of design defects in fuel vehicles has reached 84 PP100, almost on par with fault related issues. In other words, on average, 86 problems per 100 fuel vehicles are caused by inherent defects in the car's design.

　　The phenomenon of new car models being launched with problems is also reflected in AQR: the proportion of the industry's first quality problem occurring within one month is almost half, with domestic brands accounting for 51% and multinational brands accounting for 48%.

　　Research shows that the key issues with fuel powered vehicle products are focused on engine malfunction lights, engine stalling, and engine crashes; The key issues with new energy vehicle products are focused on vehicle system crashes and machine freezes. The common issues of lagging and crashing in both car models can also be classified as design defects.

　　Whether it's the proponents who believe that gasoline cars are of better quality, the opponents who insist on new energy vehicles being more reliable, or the author who is currently writing, the ultimate goal of everyone gathering together to express their opinions is not to take advantage of each other's opinions, but to use the opportunity of discussion to find problems, provide opinions, and promote the development of the automotive industry.

　　In this regard, I would like to once again spark some thoughts: why are the number of design defects in cars so large and constantly increasing? How to reduce design defects and be responsible to consumers?

　　Regarding the previous question, Yang Tao, General Manager of J.D. Power's Automotive Products Division in China, pointed out that the pace of new car releases in the Chinese market is accelerating and the research and development cycle is constantly shortening.

　　AQR believes that the wave of price reductions across the industry in 2024 has focused users' attention on prices, reducing demand for certain products and sensitivity to issues.

　　The shortened development cycle of new cars and fierce price competition have indeed led to the compression of research and development, component, and testing costs, which are the main reasons for design defects in automobiles. But when the design problems of the host factory are transferred to consumers and they need to buy it, it may be difficult for anyone to accept.

　　Technology is constantly advancing, and design flaws are inevitable, but at least they should not be ignored and allowed to grow.

　　After the price war, quality competition is inevitable. In this context, the question of "how to reduce design defects and be responsible to consumers" needs to be left to car companies to answer through their actions. Whoever answers more satisfactorily to consumers is undoubtedly more likely to occupy the minds of consumers.

　　How to maintain high reliability and durability of products while ensuring the speed of new car launches and reasonable pricing will become a key challenge for future car companies to balance in the long run.