Details have appeared about new Dongfeng products in Russia in 2024 – Chinese cars

In 2024, Dongfeng will strengthen its Russian line with eight new products. Why the brand needs so many cars and how they differ from each other, “Chinese Cars” tried to find out from Pyotr PROTOPOPOV, head of the product department of the Motorinvest company, which sells Dongfeng cars.

“All cars announced for the Russian market must arrive to us before the second quarter of 2024,” the expert noted. — We monitor various segments and see that new products coming out in Russia are accepted by the market in a volume sufficient for success. First of all, we are talking about the B-SUV, C-SUV and D-SUV segments – they still have reserves to sell cars in large quantities. And a decent model range is extremely important, including for dealers. The fact is that there are agreements with them, according to which branded showrooms must be large and spacious. Dealers are starting to rightly ask, why are these needed, what can we put there? Today the choice is really modest: the Aeolus Shine Max sedan, the DF6 pickup and the 580 crossover. But when a person walks into a car dealership and sees only a few crossovers, it’s a completely different matter

It turns out that in just a few months, 11 passenger cars will be offered in Russia under the Dongfeng brand, almost like Changan. The example of this brand, noted Peter Protopopov, is clear: it speaks of the right policy.

“Look, they don’t have any seriously failed sales models,” our respondent noted. — In general, the capacity in the SUV segment has not yet been filled, and we will help fill this gap

According to Pyotr Protopopov, all upcoming new products are exclusively crossovers and only with internal combustion engines. There is no point in developing the electrical theme in Russia under the Dongfeng brand. In the Motorinvest orbit there are related brands for this purpose – Voyah and Evolute.

Only under the Dongfeng brand

All 8 new products of 2024 will be sold in Russia under the Dongfeng brand. This is an important clarification. Depending on which countries the Chinese company exports its models to, it manages to play with names. For example, cars can be supplied to Malaysia under the Seres brand (this is the name of the plant where the models are produced). Somewhere they go under the Fengon brand.

“We believe that Russia needs a large model range specifically under the Dongfeng brand,” the expert said.

Four new crossovers announced for Russia are also assembled at the Seres plant. Among them are the small crossover Dongfeng 500 (B-SUV), the 6-seater Dongfeng 600, the ix5 coupe crossover, and the all-wheel drive 7-seater ix7 with a 2-liter turbo engine under the hood. There is also the Aeolus line, which is produced at another company plant. In Russia it will be represented by the all-terrain vehicles Aeolus AX7 (C-SUV), Aeolus Huge and, perhaps, the most beautiful of all – Aeolus Mage (C-SUV). Plus the Paladin frame SUV (D-SUV), created on the basis of the DF7 pickup truck, with a gasoline turbo engine and a 5-seater interior.

Two cars from the Aeolus line are fresh. Huge has only been on sale in China for about six months, Mage has only just been launched. The frame Paladin, according to Peter Protopopov, is designed for those Russians who recently turned their attention to the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport. Its current competitors include the Tank 500 and Haval H9.

The motor is simpler and the price is lower

The release of models will be extended over time. According to a representative of Motorinvest, this is necessary “to have news feeds to attract public attention.” The first to arrive in Russia will be the Dongfeng 500, followed by the Dongfeng 600. The pilot batches will be approximately 500 vehicles each. Factories have certain quotas that they are ready to meet.

Crossover Dongfeng 500 / photo Autohome

The most affordable of the upcoming eight will be the Dongfeng 500. Our interlocutor was careful not to name prices for now, citing the fact that they will become known closer to the time of official sales. Unlike most of its relatives, the “500th” will also be equipped with an atmospheric engine. “This is a relatively light crossover, we plan to use it for car sharing, where a turbo engine is not at all necessary. They care about a simpler engine and a lower price,” noted Pyotr Protopopov. Some new products will have the same engines. A good example is the Aeolus Mage and Huge models.

According to the expert, the first new items in the Dongfeng model range are currently being prepared for shipment to Russia. And the employees of the company’s Russian office are working to ensure that the cars arrive at the dealers at the same time as the consumables.

“We will purchase spare parts directly when the cars come out,” says Pyotr Protopopov. — Why do the parts lie like dead weight in the warehouses of the DC or our central warehouse? It’s just that the money that was spent on logistics and so on could have been spent on something more useful.

Vladimir PETROV (@chinamashina)