Chapter 1608 Will Li Ye give us time?
Dong Shan did not believe that the First Factory could launch heavy trucks to the market in such a short time, because it had almost "rebranded" the mature products of Jicheng Heavy Truck, and many unexpected problems had arisen. It even made a big embarrassment during the test in Chuncheng.
The willingness to accept defeat is a rare and precious quality, but Dong Shan lacks this quality. Whenever he loses to an opponent, he assumes that the opponent is cheating.
After bidding farewell to Factory Director Tan, Dong Shan hurriedly arrived at the Jingcheng brand car sales and service station in Weixian County, giving instructions to his assistant and secretary as he walked.
"They were using Kamaz engines before, how could they have switched to Weixian diesel engines in such a short time? There must be a mismatch, there must be a defect. You two, keep your eyes wide open and look carefully later."
"Oh, okay, okay."
Dong Shan's secretary and assistant could only agree verbally, but in their hearts they were thinking about how to keep a close eye on things, because they knew how to drink, how to speak eloquently, and how to navigate social situations, but they didn't know anything about technology, so how could they possibly spot any flaws?
The selection and adoption of talent is never a trivial matter. A leader like Ren from Huawei, who can be talked back to by technical staff without getting angry, is as rare as someone who is willing to accept defeat.
When Dong Shan and his group arrived at the Weixian Jingcheng brand car sales and service station, they felt intense envy even before they started looking for problems.
Because the sales and service station for Beijing-branded cars is called a "station," but it occupies a very large area and is bustling with people like a lively market.
There are hundreds of light trucks, light buses, and small four-wheeled agricultural vehicles waiting to be sold, lined up in rows, which immediately impresses potential buyers and demonstrates the strength of Jingnan Group.
Dong Shan asked himself honestly, when his Southwest Heavy Truck launched its new models, how many vehicles could he actually display in a prefecture-level city? And how many customers would he attract to look at the cars?
"Alas, if you're slow on one step, you'll be slow on every step!"
Dong Shan sighed helplessly, thinking that Li Ye had just gotten incredibly lucky. He had laid out a nationwide sales network in advance, scaled up production, and built a good reputation among users, giving him a significant head start.
However, when Dong Shan arrived at the "heavy truck" exhibition area, he finally felt a little better, because there wasn't a single sample vehicle in the exhibition area, which obviously indicated that there were still production capacity issues.
However, after seeing the enthusiasm of the group of people at the scene, Dong Shan's newly balanced mindset turned skewed again.
"Manager Yu, you told us yesterday that the new car had arrived and asked us to come and pay the deposit, but when we got here, we had to wait in line for a test drive. We've known each other for years, you can't be playing games with me like this."
"Mr. Huang, please calm down. When have we at Beijing Auto ever lied to anyone? We only have two test drive vehicles, and someone just took them out for a test drive. They'll be right back, right away!"
"I've been here for almost half an hour, where are we in the test drive area? Have we arrived in Qingdao yet?"
"With three customers in one car, shouldn't we take turns driving it and give it a try?"
"Three customers on one truck? Where do I rank then? We've got this agreed: if that truck can carry 50 tons (including trailer) and start up the steep slope at the cement plant, I must have five of them in the first batch."
"Yes, don't worry about that. I reckon the people who were taking turns driving ahead will go to the cement plant to test it out."
"."
Hearing this, Dong Shan couldn't help but interject, "Manager Yu, what is the standard load for heavy trucks at your Jingnan Group? Fifty tons? That's way too much!"
Manager Yu looked Dong Shan up and down, then suddenly smiled and said, "Comrade, judging from your attire, you must be someone from the government office, right?"
You may not be familiar with the transportation industry. Although the standard load capacity of our Beijing-registered heavy trucks is twelve tons, the trailer load capacity is generally around five tons, so the total load capacity is less than twenty tons.
However, many transportation companies from Weixian go to Shanxi Province to haul coal, so the road conditions are extremely demanding. If you want heavy trucks to be able to easily handle standard loads in mountainous areas, you need sufficient redundant power. We say 50 tons is just a demonstration, and we do not encourage users to overload.”
I don't believe you for a second!
Dong Shan cursed Manager Yu in his heart for talking nonsense, because during the test in Chuncheng, Dong Shan's heavy truck broke down and had to be withdrawn due to the "three times load test".
In Dong Shan's view, this is Li Ye using the overloading capacity of Beijing-registered heavy trucks to engage in vicious competition with Southwest Heavy Truck's heavy trucks.
But just as Dong Shan was about to rebuke Manager Yu for his hypocritical statement, a group of car owners nearby burst into laughter.
“This guy doesn’t look like he’s in the transportation industry. He wants us to haul 17 or 18 tons. Why would we buy a heavy truck then? Jilin Motors’ 141 truck, with trailer and tractor, can carry 25 tons of coal when it goes to Shanxi Province!”
"Hey, this guy looks like a cultured person. Don't laugh at him; we're all different."
“Yes, different fates. If this guy were to manage the automotive industry, we would have to pay three times the road maintenance fees.”
Hahahaha~
"."
Dong Shan pursed her lips, feeling as if the whole world was against her.
No wonder when Li Ye suggested doubling the load during the test in Kunming, the people from Jiqi didn't object strongly. It turns out that their own medium-sized trucks actually carry more than heavy trucks in actual transport. How are heavy trucks supposed to survive?
Heavy trucks consume two to three times more fuel than medium trucks, and cost three to four times more. As a production tool that must make money, where do you think the future lies for heavy trucks?
Dong Shan actually understands this principle, but their Southwest Heavy Truck's heavy trucks can't compete with the heavy trucks from the First Factory in terms of "robustness and durability," so he brings up the standard load capacity.
Just then, a loud engine roar came from afar, and two heavy trucks appeared before everyone's eyes.
Dong Shan's heart sank.
Both test vehicles were fully loaded and towing trailers, but they handled turning, acceleration, and braking with ease, feeling slightly better than the prototype from Southwest Heavy Truck.
Dong Shan didn't understand the technical solution of "customized tuning" and didn't know that Director Tan had specially optimized the engine tuning for Li Ye, a major client. So at this moment, he felt extremely frustrated.
A group of car owners and transportation company executives' eyes lit up, and they rushed forward, clearly vying for a spot in the test drive.
"Quick, you two help me!"
Without thinking twice, Dong Shan asked his assistant and secretary to help him grab a seat. With the desperate help of his two subordinates, he finally managed to get the driver's seat.
The car owners' faces immediately darkened: "Brother, that's not right. We've been here for ages!"
Dong Shan quickly said, "I'll just drive one lap, just one lap around the site. Xiao Liu, give everyone cigarettes."
Secretary Liu quickly pulled out a whole pack of cigarettes from her bag and smiled as she distributed them to the drivers and bosses around her, which finally calmed down the group of rough men.
Dong Shanzhen drove around the scene once and then got off, his face very gloomy.
The quality of driving experience is relative. No matter how much those A-class cars boast about being the best, once you switch to a B-class car, you'll see a significant improvement in terms of seat comfort, sound insulation, vibration damping, and so on.
The car produced at the No. 1 factory was an upgrade from the test car produced in Kunming, especially the braking system, which was much better than Dong Shan had imagined.
Greater power requires better brakes, a lesson Li Ye learned from certain car models in his previous life, which Dong Shan couldn't understand.
Dong Shan simply asked himself, if he were the driver, the truck owner, or the head of a transportation company, would he choose Li Ye's truck or Dong Shan's truck?
Dong Shan walked back with a gloomy face. He hadn't gone far when his cell phone rang in his bag.
After Dong Shan answered the phone, his face became even more gloomy, because it was Li Ye calling.
"Hey, General Manager Dong, are you here to inspect our sales and service station in Weixian?"
"Hehe, Deputy General Manager Li, where did you hear this news from? It seems you have a really good relationship with Factory Director Tan!"
"Old Tan doesn't have time to deal with your business! It was someone from our after-sales service station who told me. A few days ago, I sent your photo to all the service stations and told them that if you were to make an incognito visit, they should make sure to provide you with excellent service."
【Hey, are you trying to protect yourself from thieves?】
Dong Shan gritted his teeth and said resentfully, "So, Deputy General Manager Li called me to ask if I'm satisfied with your service?"
Li Ye chuckled and said, "Then I don't need to ask, you're definitely not satisfied. I called to ask you if you still want those five hundred engines?"
"Yes, I want a thousand units. I'll give you a kickback of five thousand yuan for each one."
"Wow! Mr. Dong is so generous! But I told you there's a 10,000 yuan handling fee for each engine!"
"Li Ye, I only owe you five million, don't go too far."
"If you had just told me you owed me five million earlier, none of this would have happened!"
"."
Li Ye's cursing was so loud that Dong Shan's secretary and assistant could hear it.
However, Dong Shan did not get angry and silently hung up the phone.
After a long silence, he said quietly, "We need time to develop; temporary grievances are tolerable."
Secretary Liu immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes, yes. The first branch factory only took six or seven years to develop to this point. We started from a higher point than them, so it shouldn't take us six or seven years."
"Won't it take six or seven years?"
Dong Shan suddenly smiled.
He suddenly remembered what he had heard a few days ago at Jingnan Heavy Truck: "After parting ways, you have one more competitor."
Since he is an opponent, will Li Ye give him six or seven years?
(End of this chapter)
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