Dongfeng-Huawei joint venture's first model Yijing X9 launches; brand GM says 'first car not profitable'

By Reporter Gao Feichang

The Yijing X9, the first model from the Yijing brand—a joint venture between Dongfeng Motor and Huawei Qiankun—was launched on September 24 with a starting权益 price of 279,800 RMB (all four variants are extended-range electric vehicles). The model enters the increasingly competitive six-seat SUV segment as the latest entrant.

Product Highlights and Pricing Advantage

The Yijing X9 is equipped with six intelligent solutions from Huawei: Qiankun Intelligent Driving ADS 5, HarmonyOS Cockpit, Chitu Platform, Intelligent Vehicle Optics, Intelligent Vehicle Cloud, and Jingqi Communication. It also debuts technologies such as HarmonyOS Cockpit 6, Butterfly Wing Dual-Link Soft Light Screen, HAMOMO AI Companion Robot, and AMS In-Cabin Fusion Perception System.

Currently, other "Huawei-powered" models with comparable configurations are priced at 400,000 RMB or even above 500,000 RMB. The Yijing X9 offers a significant price advantage.

"The Best of Huawei in Yijing"

Wang Junjun, Chairman of Yijing Auto, stated at the launch: "The best of Huawei is in Yijing." He explained that Dongfeng and Huawei have established a 1:1 deep-binding, long-term symbiotic, and continuously invested cooperation model, enabling full value-chain co-creation across R&D, production, supply, sales, and service. The Yijing X9 is the first strategic outcome of this "full-stack native co-creation" system.

With the launch of its first model, Yijing Auto now enters the market testing phase. The full-stack native co-creation system, brand positioning, product definition, and sales service of Yijing will all be evaluated by the market and consumers.

First Model "Not Profitable" but Built for Market Entry

In a post-launch media interview, Zeng Qinglin, Brand General Manager of Yijing Auto, said: "To be honest, the first model is not profitable. You can calculate it—Huawei's full suite of top-tier configurations, including the million-pixel headlights, ADS 5, 896-line LiDAR, and four-laser system, are all typically found in Huawei's 500,000 RMB-level models, along with CATL batteries... We hope to show our sincerity with the first product, so that users can feel our commitment and outstanding performance, and help us open up the market."

"Jing" vs. "Jie": Different Paths

Yijing is one of the two "Jing" brands (Qijing and Yijing) resulting from Huawei's collaboration with automakers. It is a new brand jointly created by Dongfeng and Huawei, with the Yijing X9 as its debut model.

Regarding the cooperation model for the "Jing" brand, industry observers previously believed it differed from the Hongmeng Zhixing "Jie" brand, where Huawei only provides intelligent technology without full involvement in product development, production, and sales. However, according to Yijing Auto, Dongfeng and Huawei have built a "1:1 full value-chain co-creation" relationship, indicating a much deeper level of Huawei's participation.

As a result, the Yijing X9 is fully equipped with Huawei's six intelligent solutions, maximizing its "Huawei content."

Zeng Qinglin commented on the relationship between "Jing" and "Jie," stating that each has its own path. He believes Yijing's current full-stack native co-creation model is the best cooperation model, leveraging both the traditional automaker's strengths and Huawei's intelligent capabilities. He noted that even Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei highly recognizes and supports this model. "It's not one-way empowerment, but a two-way effort."

Cheng Jinwen, Vice President of Marketing at Yijing Auto, added: "The Tianqiong Intelligent Shield safety architecture is the best, most advanced, and highest standard in the industry. Without the full-stack native co-creation model between Dongfeng and Huawei, this architecture would not exist. Even with a similar cooperation model, if it weren't two strong players like Dongfeng and Huawei working together, it couldn't be achieved."

Safety Architecture and Target Market

According to Yijing Auto, the Yijing X9 features the industry's first full-time safety architecture, the Tianqiong Intelligent Shield. This architecture integrates intelligent driving safety, active safety, passive safety, battery safety, rescue safety, and daily cabin health into a complete system. It treats vehicle risks along a timeline from "before danger occurs" to "after an accident" and a spatial axis from distant to near risks, achieving full-time safety protection through pre-event prediction, in-event intervention, and post-event backup.

Cheng Jinwen stated that the Yijing X9 targets the family flagship segment, not the business luxury segment. Its customer base is elite families seeking high-quality family life. These customers want "value for money," refuse to pay high premiums, and demand high standards in product, experience, and service. These needs shaped the Yijing X9's product definition and justified its pricing under 300,000 RMB.

Zeng Qinglin said: "Our philosophy is to create products that are extreme but not expensive, luxurious but not extravagant. I believe the consumer market will continue to reduce premiums and return to normal, value-for-money pricing. Our path aligns with the trend in the domestic consumer market."

Targeting "Top Three" in the Segment

Regarding sales expectations for the Yijing X9, Zeng Qinglin set a target of "top three in the segment." Official data shows that the Yijing X9 received 9,157 firm orders within 24 hours of launch.

The six-seat SUV market is highly competitive, with models such as NIO ES8, AITO M9, BYD Tang EV, Zeekr 9X, XPeng GX, and Leapmotor D19. As a latecomer, the Yijing X9's advantages lie in Huawei's intelligent solutions combined with Dongfeng's manufacturing expertise, along with a price advantage for comparable configurations.

Sales and service capabilities are also critical for a new brand, affecting consumer reach and service experience delivery.

Channel and Service Network

In terms of channels and services, Yijing has adopted Huawei's channel standards, with over 60% of its dealers being among the top 100 nationwide. By October this year, Yijing stores will be operational in 90 cities, with service coverage in 150 cities and 400 experience touchpoints. All stores are built to Huawei's highest terminal standards and adopt Huawei's Huizhi service standards. Throughout the vehicle ownership experience, the "Huawei Cloud Magpie Platform Voice" provides online guidance, dedicated butler follow-up, and real-time response. For charging, the ecosystem integrates Dongfeng and Huawei, with access to over 2.8 million charging points via a single click.

Zeng Qinglin said: "Our channels are fully supported by Huawei and Dongfeng. Most of our dealers are among the top 100 nationwide or strong local players, such as Zhongsheng and Yuantong, many of whom previously operated high-end and luxury brands. This proportion is over 60%, with the remaining 40% being very strong local dealers. You can see that many Yijing stores have been renovated from former BBA luxury brand outlets. Our channel locations and capabilities are very strong."

Yijing Auto aims to provide high-quality service from the very beginning and to make service a competitive advantage in the future.

Future Product Plans

The launch of the Yijing X9 marks the official entry of the Yijing brand into the market competition. Over the next few years, the brand plans to launch new models at a pace of "five models in three years." Cheng Jinwen indicated that the future five models will also focus on family use and are unlikely to enter the hardcore off-road or business travel segments.

Zeng Qinglin revealed that the pure electric version of the Yijing X9 will begin deliveries around December this year. Next year, the brand plans to launch three models: one in the first half, one mid-year, and one in the second half. "These three models will feature very special technology. I believe they will surprise everyone next year."