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Chinese car maker XPeng is on the verge of expanding its factory-backed presence in Australia – but how much oversight it will take from its third-party distributor is yet to be revealed.
An announcement on the future of XPeng in Australia – and how much control its head office may take from its independent distributor – is said to be imminent.
Drive broke the news earlier this year that XPeng is looking to expand its factory-operated footprint in Australia, where the brand's vehicles are currently imported and distributed by third-party firm TrueEV.
It is intended to help the Chinese car maker gain a greater foothold in the marketing, sales, and servicing of its vehicles, and follows BYD head office's takeover of its local operations from distributor EVDirect earlier this year.
TrueEV CEO Jason Clarke told Drive the distributor is "still in the final stages of our understanding of how we [TrueEV and XPeng] work together, but that's very imminent".
"XPeng have been here in Australia and Melbourne-based since, probably, January this year. We speak regularly about how we work together.
"They want to do more in Australia, and that's really exciting for us. Obviously, that is [a] bigger reach, bigger marketing spends, bigger [and] broader aftersales service."
He said an announcement may be made "before the end of the year".
"We're very close to that. I think it's good for XPeng, good for TrueEV. Ultimately, [it's] probably best for existing and future XPeng customers," said Clarke.
The move by XPeng head office may follow in the tyre tracks of BYD, which took control of its Australian operations in June from independent distributor EVDirect, which launched the marque at scale in 2022.
EVDirect was not completely cut out of the sale of BYD vehicles in Australia, retaining partial ownership of a number of BYD showrooms around Australia through a 20 per cent stake in a joint-venture with dealer giant Eagers.
Asked if XPeng and TrueEV would follow the BYD model, Clarke said: "I think if you're looking at how two parties could cooperate together, I think that is something that could happen.
"We're comfortable with what we're doing. We've got 18 locations, we're looking for another seven – at least – next year.
"We keep moving forward with that, but the ambition for XPeng, BYD, and other Chinese OEMs [manufacturers] is to be able to work very effectively and efficiently in countries they export to, and I think that model, we'll see more and more of."
Clarke confirmed TrueEV will not be replaced entirely by a factory-backed operation.
"Well, we have a five-year agreement, with four years yet to run. We're flagging there will be change, but like I said, we've still got four years of an existing contract to run," he said.
TrueEV's deal with XPeng includes an exclusivity agreement, so the distributor will not look to broaden its wings beyond the Chinese brand, managing which Clarke said is "more than a full-time job".
"We're exclusive to XPeng under our current arrangement," said the boss of the local distributor.
"But a number of OEMs have seen how we've positioned XPeng in market – our investment and the quality of showrooms, promoting the brand. We obviously can't take on any other brands at the moment – and won't, unless we don't have exclusivity."
Clarke said the distributor has opened 18 showrooms since launching XPeng in Australia 12 months ago, with seven more on the way, which he said "will be TrueEV-owned and controlled".
Servicing is one area where XPeng head office can invest its resources, as TrueEV's current arrangement sees vehicles maintained through independent servicing network Ultra Tune, as part of a deal between it and the distributor.
"We do have a contract with Ultra Tune, and that will continue for as long as we're providing that in market. They provide roadside assist as well," said Clarke.
"For us to launch a new brand, an unknown EV Chinese brand in market ... You can't reasonably have an expectation that we're going to have TrueEV-owned service capability everywhere, and Ultra Tune has been excellent for us because of the huge reach that they have."
XPeng HQ is also understood to be planning greater marketing spend in Australia, to support a rollout of three new models next year, including an update for the brand's sole local model to date, the G6 mid-size SUV.
Australia has previously been named as a key right-hand-drive market for the Chinese manufacturer, which was only established in its home market in 2014.
"[But] we see Australia as another important right-hand-drive market, so every right-hand-drive model that we are launching international[ly] will be made available in Australia.
"We see Australia possess many other interesting dynamics that is in line with our current pipeline, for example, we’re introducing Super Electric Models [range-extender electric vehicles]."
Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner
