JD Power China has released an annual survey of car brands that sell the most technologically advanced vehicles in China. Each company is awarded the so-called Tech Experience Index (TXI) – an index of manufacturability and innovation on a 1000-point scale. Fuel and electric cars of the mass and premium segments were evaluated: in the overall standings, the Chinese Li Auto and Xpeng overtook Mercedes-Benz and BMW, and Nio turned out to be the best among the premium ones.
The study involved car owners who were asked to evaluate eight standard and 30 “smart” systems of their cars. Built-in online navigation and voice assistant became the most popular technologies in 2023 – every second car has them. Also gaining popularity is an on-board communication system (found in 39 percent of cars) and an over-the-air system update function (38 percent).
In general, the assessment for the market reached a record high – 528 points against 505 points a year earlier. Moreover, cars with internal combustion engines are progressing faster than cars powered by alternative energy sources (including hybrids and electric cars): their average scores are 556 and 519, respectively, and compared to 2022, the gap between them has increased by 10 points.
In terms of model rankings, the top three brands producing premium ICE vehicles are Mercedes-Benz (574 points), Lincoln (557 points) and BMW (545 points). The best among mass brands were Chinese Lynk & Co (559 points), Tank (545 points) and GAC Trumpchi (543 points). Among the manufacturers of expensive electric cars, the startup Nio received the highest rating (629 points).
The top three companies producing the most technologically advanced mass-market electric cars are as follows: Li Auto and Xpeng (643 points each) and Geely’s Zeekr, which scored 641 points.
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