Huawei’s managing director and chairman of its smart car solutions, Richard Yu, announced at an annual forum organized by the EV100 think tank that the company anticipates resolving production and delivery delays for its Luxeed S7 sedan starting from next month.
These delays were primarily due to a shortage of semiconductors and issues related to factory relocation, as reported by local media outlet Cailianshe on Saturday.
Earlier complaints from Chinese automakers Chery and Changan Auto regarding production issues with a computing unit manufactured by Huawei had caused delays in deliveries of their flagship models, including the Luxeed S7 sedan.
Despite these setbacks, the Luxeed S7 sedan, the inaugural model for Chery’s Luxeed EV brand, garnered around 20,000 orders as of November 28, with prices starting from 249,800 yuan ($34,716.62). In January, Luxeed had offered reimbursement of up to 10,000 yuan for buyers experiencing delays in picking up their cars as promised.
See also: Luxeed Secures 10,000 Pre-Orders for 1st Model Luxeed S7 Electric Sedan
Huawei had high hopes for its smart car unit, launched in 2019, aiming to become the equivalent of German automotive supplier Bosch in the intelligent electric vehicle (EV) era by supplying software and components to partners.
However, the unit has been the only money-losing division among Huawei’s main six, generating just one billion yuan in revenue in the first half of 2023, a fraction of the company’s total revenue of 310.9 billion yuan.
See also: Huawei Executive Asserts Luxeed S7’s Superiority Over Tesla Model S
Despite these challenges, Yu expressed optimism at the EV100 forum, stating that the autos business unit is expected to turn a profit from April onwards, driven by strong sales of mid to high-end models developed by its partners.
Last year, Huawei announced plans to spin off the unit into a new company, which would inherit the unit’s core technologies and resources and receive investments from partners such as automaker Changan.
