Huawei’s Richard Yu Praises Efficiency of Extended-Range EVs

On July 7, the 14th China Auto Bluebook Forum was held in Wuhan. Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei’s Terminal Business Group, said at the forum that extended-range electric vehicles are a good choice for the first car in the family. He suggested that pure fuel vehicles should be eliminated as soon as possible, and that extended-range electric vehicles could save about half of the gasoline compared to fuel vehicles.

Yu said that Huawei has invested a lot in automobiles, with more than one billion dollars spent in a year. Automobiles are Huawei’s only loss-making business, with 7,000 direct investments and more than 10,000 indirect investments. Regarding the newly released AITO M7 on July 4, Yu said that the model received more than 50,000 orders.

After the launch event on July 4, Yu told the press that it was nonsense to say extend-range electric vehicles are only a transitional choice. According to Yu’s perspective, how come a pure EV with an additional extended-range engine is outdated?

Extended-range electric vehicles are pure electric vehicles equipped with a small auxiliary generator package that charges the battery with the engine in case of a low battery charge. Extended-range electric vehicles are vehicles that are directly driven by an electric motor, without the involvement of an engine. The engine only provides power to the battery. Even if the electric vehicle runs out of power, it can still rely on the engine to generate electricity to drive the vehicle.

Extended-range electric vehicles are more efficient than fuel-based cars, because the latter constantly clutch shift, and the engine works inefficiently. Furthermore, although extended-range cars generate electricity, this electricity can be recovered, making it much more efficient than fuel cars.

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Yu has previously argued with Li Ruifeng, CEO of WEY, a smart car brand owned by Great Wall Motor, on social media about extended-range electric vehicles.

On July 6, Yu said on social media that it took time to improve and popularize charging piles, and that extended-range electric vehicles are the most suitable new energy vehicle mode at present. On the same day, Li Ruifeng said on social media that it takes a good blacksmith to make good steel. In addition, it is the industry consensus that the hybrid technology of adding programs is backward.