»Automobil Industrie« China

As representatives of the “technology-driven” business in both the auto parts and OEM sectors, ZF and Leapmotor will rely on their strong technical know-how and shared corporate culture values to realize the rapid implementation of the project together. In addition, Leapmotor will also enter the European market, where ZF will be able to leverage its brand recognition to support Leapmotor’s overseas expansion.

“As a leading automotive component and system supplier and a global technology company, we are delighted to enter into a strategic partnership with Leapmotor, a market-recognized and leading automotive startup in China,” said Stephan von Schuckmann, Member of the Board of Management of the ZF Group. “The partnership with Leapmotor further demonstrates that our ‘circle of friends’ is growing, and we will continue to invest and innovate, continue to strengthen our localization strategy, and work with more partners to play an increasingly important role in an open automotive ecosystem to jointly drive the development of China’s electric vehicle business and move together towards ‘Next Generation Mobility’.”

“We are very honored to establish a strategic partnership with Leapmotor, and this milestone marks the beginning of a friendly cooperation between the two companies. We are confident that with the strong combination of Leapmotor’s software and ZF’s hardware, Leapmotor will surely have a strong market performance. We look forward to a deeper cooperation and supporting Leapmotor in terms of overseas expansion ,”said Michael Ebenhoch, Senior Vice President，Asia Pacific, Division Active Safety Systems, ZF Group.

As one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, ZF is committed to providing comprehensive system solutions and products for passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles and industrial technology, from software to hardware. With its forward-looking concepts, ZF helps vehicles to see, think and act. Through continuous efforts in the four core technologies of vehicle motion control, integrated safety systems, automated driving and e-mobility, as well as its extensive cooperation with OEMs and technology partners, ZF is advancing its “Next Generation Mobility” vision with sustainable development, a diverse and differentiated product portfolio and solutions, leveraging its century-long history and technological expertise.

Leapmotor is a Chinese new energy vehicle company founded in 2015. As a technology-driven company, Leapmotor has always adhered to technological innovation and independent research and development since its establishment, and has achieved full self-research in the core field of intelligent electric vehicles with a pioneering spirit. With the trust of nearly 200,000 vehicle owners, the company has become one of the fastest growing automotive startups at an accelerated pace which is recognized by the automotive industry.

“In the current drive for intelligence in the auto industry, we have chosen an excellent partner like ZF to be stronger and more competitive in the field of intelligent chassis. The strategic cooperation with ZF is a very good start, and we look forward to working together with ZF in more areas in the future,” said Cao Li, Senior Vice President of Leapmotor.

In May 2023, Leapmotor delivered a total of 12,058 cars, with deliveries of the C series exceeding 10,000 units and the C11 alone exceeding 7,100 units, a double record high. Data shows that the average selling price of a Leapmotor car last year was RMB 136,000, while in 2023 it was increased to RMB 168,000, meaning that Leapmotor has made an upward leap in its product portfolio.

In the first quarter of 2023, Leapmotor completed the upgrading of all existing models - C11, C01 and T03, creating a "barrel of cars" with an excellent price-performance ratio in the market. It is worth mentioning that in order to meet the diversified needs of customers, Leapmotor C11 launched an extended range model to start the "pure electric + extended range" dual power layout, while the Leapmotor C11 extended range version has become an important growth driver, and subsequently Leapmotor will offer more extended range models across its entire fleet.

In recent years, ZF Group has been actively expanding its “circle of friends” , not only maintaining close cooperation with international OEMs, but also accelerating interaction and cooperation with a wider range of partners in the Chinese automotive ecosystem. As the top priority of ZF’s global market, ZF has been shifting its gravity to the Asia-Pacific region in recent years and 2022 saw ZF launch a series of new production and R&D projects in Jinan, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Shenyang, Zhangjiagang and Rizhao. This year, business in the Asia Pacific region continued its strong momentum. On May 25, ZF announced the start of the second phase of its automotive steering wheel project in Rizhao. On May 26, the company inaugurated the phase 2 plant at ZF Automotive Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. In addition, a groundbreaking ceremony for the ZF New Energy Vehicle eDrive Project took place in Shenyang on June 13, which is the third e-mobility plant that ZF has opened in China. In the third quarter of this year, the ZF Guangzhou Technology Centre will go operational and groundbreaking ceremony will take place for its Guangzhou electronics plant.