The Paris Motor Show opens for electric vehicles amid the EU-China trade war

PARIS (AP) — Car manufacturer compete to convince drivers of this go electric are introducing cheaper, more technologically sophisticated models at the Paris Motor Show, targeting everyone from luxury customers to students who have yet to get their driver’s license.

The biennial exhibition has long been an important industry showcase, dating back to 1898.

Chinese manufacturers are participating vigorously despite threats from the European Union Impose punitive tariffs on imports of their electric vehicles in a brewing trade war with Beijing. Traditional European manufacturers are fighting back with new efforts to win over consumers wary of high-priced electric vehicles.

Here’s a look at the show’s opening day on Monday.

More new models from China

Chinese electric car startups Leapmotor and XPeng introduced models that supposedly contain artificial intelligence.

The company Leapmotor, founded in 2015, introduced the B10, a compact electric SUV. It will be made in Poland for European buyers, said Zhong Tianyue, head of product planning at Leapmotor. Leapmotor hasn’t announced a price for the B10, which launches next year.

Leapmotor also announced that a smaller electric commuter car, the T03, which was unveiled in Paris, will retail from a competitive 18,900 euros ($20,620). The examples sold in France are imported from China but assembled in Poland, Zhong said.

Leapmotor also announced a starting price of 36,400 euros ($39,700) in Europe for its larger family car, the C10.

Sales outside of China are carried out through a joint venture with Stellantis, the fourth largest automobile manufacturer in the world. According to Leapmotor, European sales began in September.

XPeng prepares for tariff increase

Ten-year-old Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer XPeng was at the Paris show for the first time and introduced an elegant sedan: the P7+.

CEO He Xiaopeng said XPeng plans to start shipping in Europe next year. Planned European pricing for the P7+ wasn’t mentioned, but the CEO said it will start in China at 209,800 yuan, which is equivalent to 27,100 euros or $29,600.

XPeng President Brian Gu said the EU’s looming import tariffs could complicate the company’s expansion plans if Brussels and Beijing do not find an amicable solution to their trade dispute before a deadline at the end of October.

Brussels says subsidies are helping Chinese companies unfairly undercut EU industry prices, with Chinese-made electric cars rising from 3.9% of the electric car market in 2020 to 25% in September 2023.

“The tariff will put a lot of pressure on our business model. “This is a direct hit to our margin, which is not very high anyway,” Gu said.

Vehicles for young teenagers

Manufacturers of small electric vehicles, which can be driven without a license in Europe, are finding a growing market among teenagers aged 14 and over and their parents, who prefer to travel on four wheels rather than motorbikes for safety reasons.

Several two-seater manufacturers are presenting themselves in Paris, including the French manufacturer Citroen. The starting price for his Ami or “Friend” is just under 8,000 euros. The plastic vehicle, launched in France in 2020, is now also sold in other European markets as well as in Turkey, Morocco and South America.

“It’s not a car. It is a mobility object,” said Alain Le Gouguec, Citroen’s product manager for the American.

European legislation allows young people aged 14 and over without a full driving license to drive the Ami and similar buggies after an eight-hour training course. You are limited to a maximum speed of 45 kilometers per hour (28 miles per hour).

The vehicles also find markets among adults who have lost their licenses due to driving violations or who have never obtained a full license, as well as outside cities in areas with poor transportation access.

Renault subsidiary Mobilize said its plastic-shelled, two-seat, license-free duo could travel 100 kilometers (over 60 miles) between charges, even in the energy-sapping cold of winter. A phone app acts as a door and ignition key.

Another French manufacturer, Ligier, sells its license-free two-seaters in both diesel and electric versions.