On November 13, Chery Auto’s stock opened slightly higher but quickly reversed gains, sliding to HK$30.42 intraday with losses widening to over 3%. It ultimately closed down 2.17% at HK$30.70.
On November 12, an incident occurred during an extreme hill-climbing challenge at the Tianmen Mountain scenic area in Zhangjiajie, Hunan, involving Chery Auto’s new SUV, the Fulwin X3L. The vehicle suddenly slid backward midway through the climb and only came to a stop after crashing through multiple sections of guardrails.
Following the accident, Chery Auto issued an official apology in the early hours of November 13, explaining that the direct cause was the “unexpected detachment of the shackle at the anchor point of the safety protection rope for the testing device, leading to the rope tangling around the right wheel and obstructing power output.”
Subsequently, the topic “Chery Apologizes” climbed to the top of Weibo’s hot search list, sparking widespread discussion. Some netizens openly questioned the event, asking, “What is the point of driving up stairs? Tests should be conducted at testing grounds—why hold them in a scenic area?”
Public records indicate that the Tianmen Mountain staircase is nearly 300 meters long, with a vertical drop of 150 meters and a total of 999 steps. Additionally, the average slope of the staircase is 45 degrees, with certain sections exceeding 60 degrees, while the step width is only 30 centimeters.
Faced with such extremely demanding performance test conditions, it was evident that Chery Auto had come well-prepared.
It is reported that the vehicle performance marketing plan had been finalized as early as September this year. On September 21, Chery Auto’s Executive Vice President had already teased the event in a Weibo post, stating: “The slopes at Tianmen Mountain range from over 20 degrees to nearly 45 degrees, placing extremely high demands on power control, overall vehicle performance, and the four-wheel-drive system.”
Regarding this incident, automotive engineering expert Cong Jie analyzed that the Tianmen Mountain test exposed three major technical shortcomings: the smoothness of power output under extreme slopes, the real-time road condition perception capability of multi-sensor fusion, and the boundary definition of human-vehicle cooperative driving strategies.
Technical analysis pointed out that the slippery surface of the Tianmen Mountain steps and the high-frequency impacts (each step has a height difference of about 15 cm) posed a dual challenge to tire grip. Although the Fulwin X3L is equipped with an FSD variable damping suspension and a cast aluminum H-arm rear suspension, under extreme tilt angles, the shift in the vehicle’s center of gravity could still exceed physical limits.
Despite being equipped with the “Kunpeng Golden Range Extender” powertrain and claiming “100% hill-climbing capability,” the four-wheel-drive system’s response speed and tire grip revealed limitations under the dual challenges of slippery steps and extreme slopes.
The “backfire” of this marketing campaign triggered a strong reaction in the capital market the very next day after the incident.
On November 13, after a slight opening increase, Chery Auto’s stock price quickly fell, dropping to HKD 30.42 at one point with a decline of over 3%. Although it recovered slightly before the close, it still ended down 2.17% at HKD 30.7. In a single day, the market capitalization evaporated by HKD 3.95 billion.
Discover more from ChinaEVHome
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
