According to China Finance Company News on January 1 (Reporter Zhang Yipeng), after entering the 'final month' of 2024, the 'sprint battle' among various brands has become increasingly intense. In the report by the financial news agency, among the eight 'new brands' incubated by traditional auto manufacturers and cross-industry ICT, more than half achieved year-on-year growth in December delivery volume, with companies like Deep Blue Auto and ZEEKR seeing their growth double.

On January 1, 2025, Xiaomi founder, Chairman, and CEO Lei Jun was the first to unveil the annual performance report: Xiaomi's deliveries in 2024 exceeded 0.135 million units, with a delivery target of 0.3 million units for 2025. 'In the new year, we will continue to expand production capacity to ensure deliveries.'

In December, Xiaomi Auto opened 50 new stores, bringing the total to 200 across 58 cities nationwide, effectively covering all provinces, cities, and autonomous regions in the country. According to the plan, 16 new stores are set to open in January this year, expected to cover cities such as Hohhot and Luoyang, along with the launch of 29 Xiaomi Car Service Centers and authorized service centers.

GAC Aion, which had experienced nine consecutive months of year-on-year negative growth, achieved 'turnaround' in November and December, with monthly sales of 46,851 units, showing positive growth both year-on-year and month-on-month. Among them, the sales of Aion RT exceeded 0.016 million units in the month following its launch, setting a new monthly record. According to plan, Aion's third global strategic model—Aion UT will begin pre-sales on January 6.

Deep Blue Auto, which has risen to the first tier, disclosed that 36,577 units were delivered in December, nearly doubling year-on-year, marking the fifth consecutive month of record-setting deliveries; the total deliveries for 2024 reached 243,894 units, an increase of 78.14% year-on-year. On December 30, the fortieth thousandth vehicle rolled off the production line, achieving a leap from '0 to 0.4 million' in just 29 months. According to plans, in 2025, Deep Blue aims to challenge global sales of 0.5 million units, targeting an increase of 105%, with 0.4 million units expected in the domestic market and 0.1 million units in the overseas market. Additionally, in 2025, all Deep Blue models will be equipped with the L2.5+ smart driving system.

Avita, also under Chongqing Changan Automobile, had sales of 11,067 vehicles in December, showing a slight month-on-month decline while maintaining sales above 10,000 for three consecutive months. The sales volume for 2024 was 73,606 units, with a sales target set at 0.22 million units for 2025.

The other two members of the '10,000 vehicle club' in November, Lantu Auto and Zhiji Auto, showed differing performances. In December, Lantu Auto delivered 12,136 new vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 21.15%, achieving over 10,000 units sold for four consecutive months. Among them, the newly launched Lantu Dreamer continues to hold the title of the best-selling new energy MPV, with single product sales exceeding 10,000 units in December; 'In 2025, we will launch more than four new or redesigned models, with a more complete product line of SUVs, sedans, and MPVs, further meeting the personalized needs of a wide range of users,' said Lantu Auto CEO Lu Fang, announcing a sales target of 0.2 million units for the whole year of 2025. In contrast, Zhiji Auto's sales in December were only 5,563 units, a significant month-on-month decline, dropping out of the '10,000 vehicle club.'

In the last few months of 2024, ZEEKR Auto performed increasingly well, with December deliveries totaling 27,190 units, a year-on-year increase of 101.77%; the total deliveries for the year 2024 reached 222,123 units, up 87.15%. In 2025, ZEEKR adjusted its delivery target to 320,000 units, an increase of 44.06%.

As of the time of writing, Hongmeng Zhixing, which has completed its "Four Realms" assembly, has not yet released its sales data for December 2024 and the whole year. On January 1, Chongqing Sokon Industry Group Stock announced that its new energy vehicle sales in December 2024 reached 37,319 units, and the total new energy vehicle sales from January to December amounted to 426,885 units, a year-on-year increase of 182.84%. According to reporters from Hongmeng Zhixing, the main selling model that boosted Chongqing Sokon Industry Group's significant sales increase—the Wanjie new M7—had a cumulative delivery volume of 195,900 units in 2024.

December is the year-end sprint phase, and major auto manufacturers are making every effort to achieve their annual sales targets. As subsidy policies for vehicle scrappage and trade-ins approach their conclusion, coupled with the pre-Spring Festival car buying boom, the market's demand for car purchases has been piqued ahead of time. It is estimated that the terminal sales of passenger vehicles in December will be around 2.9 million units, with a significant year-end tail effect. The total terminal sales of passenger vehicles in 2024 are expected to reach 23.6 million units, with a year-on-year growth rate of about 8%.

Looking ahead to the first month of 2025, the China Automobile Circulation Association believes that as the Spring Festival in January approaches, the number of working days decreases, and most consumers return home or travel for vacation, leading to a cliff-like drop in customer traffic in stores. "Due to the pain period of price recovery, the transaction rate will also decline, and January sales are expected to significantly decrease compared to December."