Automakers are increasingly showing a reluctance to hold product launch events.

In late July 2026, Zeekr directly announced the launch of the 9X five-seat version through a single poster. A few days later, GWM Wey skipped the pre-sale event for the V8X and opened reservations directly. By early August, Li Auto updated the i8 with a minor facelift via a single long image, pushing it to market.

There were no countdowns, no applause, and no final price reveal on a presentation slide. These highly anticipated models completed their most critical market moves in this manner.

This is happening in a year where even company leaders feel there are too many launches. Great Wall Motors Chairman Wei Jianjun noted that there are an average of two to three auto launches per day in the first half of the year, admitting he "trembles a little at the sound of a launch event." Li Auto Chairman Li Xiang labeled the practice of holding repeated events for a single model 鈥?from preheating, unveiling, pre-sale, to launch and facelift 鈥?as "launch inflation."

While the stage is already overcrowded, some highly anticipated models are choosing to step back from it.

A single slide from Volkswagen Group's half-year report in July 2026 highlighted the market's contradiction: according to its data, its sales in China fell by about 20% in the first half of the year, yet it listed over 500 "new models" for 2026.

Although the number of 500 models is disputed, it underscores the fierce competition this year. Automakers must constantly update versions to give their products a reason to be re-evaluated, while the attention span consumers have for each car has not increased. A single launch can push traffic to a peak within two hours, but if momentum can't be sustained, the more lively the night, the greater the post-buzz disappointment.

Automakers should focus more effort on the period after the novelty fades. Only when people still buy the car at that point can a model be said to have broken the "three-month curse."

Inflated New Models

The speed of model updates in 2026 can be glimpsed from the "500 models" on that Volkswagen Group slide.

However, this data is debated. Li Yanwei, a member of the expert committee of the China Automobile Dealers Association, explained that this is a consolidated figure. For example, a model with three trim levels is counted as three different models.

Based on insurance registration data, excluding minor adjustments like sub-models, option packages, and price reductions for older model years, over 160 products that reach the level of a generation change or significant facelift were recorded in the first half of 2026.

If model year updates, color changes, configuration tweaks, and range adjustments are also counted as "new launches," the number of "new cars" swells from double digits to hundreds.

This data is still quite dramatic year-over-year. According to statistics from Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the China Passenger Car Association, the number of new models launched in 2025 was approximately 170. A report from CMB International indicated that the annual number of new models, including generation changes, was also around 167.

The purpose of this frequent model refresh is to maintain sales momentum through a continuous new product strategy. By comparing sales data on the launch date and within three months, Li Yanwei pointed out that among new energy products, vehicles launched less than three months ago contributed 17.2% of new energy sales in the first half of 2026, while the figure for fuel vehicles was 9.8%.

Combined with depreciation data, it's clear that new versions not only generate traffic but also leave automakers with less room for discounts. Older cars compete with larger discounts, while changing versions provides an opportunity to re-price.

Direct price cuts lead to comparisons based solely on the reduction amount. Changing the version allows for a re-combination of hardware and benefits, offering a new pricing structure. The actual transaction price for consumers might still be lower.

However, the flood of new products is also shortening the window for a model to gain attention. A source from an autonomous driving supplier told Wall Street News that a new car may only have three to six months to capture market attention. If production capacity can't keep up, or if hype fades first, consumers quickly move on to the next car. Using a project they participated in as an example, if a supplier's technology is first adopted by one brand, other brands may quickly follow. If the process of preheating, unveiling, pre-sale, and launch is still followed step-by-step, the original unique selling point may no longer be scarce by the time the launch event arrives.

This has led to some reflection within the market. Li Xiang set a simple standard for launch events: an event is only worth holding if users would miss important information without it. If it's just repeating existing content, it's unnecessary.

Looking at the launches over the past two weeks, a clearer change is happening in the communication path of individual products. Preheating, pre-sale, and launch no longer necessarily correspond to separate, complete events.

The Zeekr 9X perfectly illustrates this trade-off. In 2025, the six-seat version used a full communication cycle to explain the new architecture, technical capabilities, and high-end positioning. For this year's five-seat version, the architecture and positioning have already been explained. The new information mainly involves space, pricing, and benefits. Zeekr directly opened for orders. The Li Auto i8 rear-wheel-drive long-range version took a similar approach, with pricing, range, and purchase entry points directly available online. On July 29, the GWM Wey V8X also didn't wait for a separate pre-sale event, opening reservations directly without announcing a pre-sale price.

Dismantling the Suspense

Some automakers haven't canceled their launch events, but they have removed the suspense that is most commonly used in them.

On the evening of April 8, 2026, Dongfeng Nissan directly announced the price and benefits for the NX8 during a 30-minute official launch event, followed by a product exchange session with the media. This unconventional approach garnered significant attention. Dongfeng Nissan claimed that the NX8 received 8,423 orders within 30 minutes of its launch.

The launch event for the Leapmotor A05 on the evening of August 11 was also the brand's shortest ever, lasting less than 20 minutes, which is rare in the industry.

A marketing executive from a traditional automaker told Wall Street News that, based on their experience, projects in the past would typically allocate about 40% of the budget to the launch event and pre-launch phase, with 60% reserved for subsequent sales. Now, some projects use 70% of the budget in the first month, leaving only 30% for the regular sales period.

The consumer electronics-style initial hype doesn't align with the long test drive, delivery, and usage cycle of an automobile.

This mismatch becomes apparent quickly. Users focus on key concepts promoted during the launch of a new model, such as whether it has a sunroof or if the tent is original equipment. As the first batch of cars is delivered, owners immediately start asking about supporting accessories like mattresses and interior essentials. Other feedback directly points to defects, spare parts, and repairs. While the launch event can clearly explain the selling points, delivery requires resolving product and service issues one by one.

Communication teams are also moving from a strategic, top-down role to being on the ground at dealerships. The aforementioned marketing executive said they need to anticipate what questions users will ask when they visit a store, then translate product differences into sales scripts. For brand direct-sale stores with insufficient natural foot traffic, they also use local targeted advertising to attract people to specific stores. In-store events are first used as prototypes to verify which methods can truly drive foot traffic, then replicated across other sales networks.

A brand management executive from another automaker told Wall Street News that every online topic in the past six months must first answer one question: can it drive store visits and sales closures? After the launch event, the volume curve quickly loses its explanatory power. The team must face a series of store-level and customer issues.

A senior executive from a traditional automaker stated that the problems arising after the launch event are actually the most critical for the company. During the sales of a previous model, after switching to online sales, the first night of the launch sparked controversy due to different fee standards among dealers. This also affected the model's subsequent performance. Subsequently, the brand began to unify delivery standards across different sales models.

Especially now, with the accelerating pace of new model launches, orders flow in faster. If the subsequent steps can't keep up, it's easy for competitors to "intercept" customers. Aspects like in-stock inventory, delivery timelines, and service cannot be left to be resolved after the launch event.

After the Novelty Fades

Currently, new cars universally face a "three-month curse." However, how a car can survive longer in the gaps of frequent new launches has become more important than how much buzz it can generate on launch night.

Under the "three-month curse," automakers push traffic to a peak in the first month, push deliveries in the second month, and by the third month, the marketing team has already moved on to the next car. A durable good that took years to develop is managed according to the pace of consumer electronics after its launch.

The budget curve that leans heavily into the first month often has consequences that appear only after the first batch of owners takes delivery. The selling points from the launch event become a delivery checklist. Whether the configurations can be delivered and whether service can keep up determines whether these first owners will explain the product for the brand or advise the next batch of consumers to stay away.

A marketing executive from an automaker referred to car owners as "the best marketing officers." Especially for high-end models, a significant portion of sales relies on recommendations within the same social circle. The launch period fights for the first batch of orders. The first batch of owners can then bring in the second and third batches. If word-of-mouth breaks down at the delivery stage, no amount of new versions will do anything more than buy new traffic.

The executive's company compiles user issues daily, summarizes VOC (Voice of Customer) weekly, and holds monthly reviews for senior management. This rhythm isn't just for making more reports; it's to ensure that issues can be fed back to specific teams for correction. If the team has already moved on to the next car, even the most complete feedback will only remain in the reports.

For a car to have a long life, the marketing department alone cannot ensure it. Another senior executive from an automaker told Wall Street News that their company is no longer pursuing product quantity this year, but instead aims to make each model a flagship product. In their explanation, if suppliers are willing to invest early and share modules based on a jointly predicted scale, automakers can then have the space to lower costs and ramp up production.

Whether the first batch of owners is willing to recommend the car also depends on how the brand treats them. If a new version quickly adds features and revamps pricing, early owners may feel they bought too early. Frequent version changes can attract new leads but may also erode the willingness of existing owners to make recommendations. A long-selling product certainly needs updates, but these updates should allow old owners to continue believing in the car, rather than starting a new version every time hype fades.

The first three months after launch cannot be solely focused on the daily sales report. Issues raised by the first batch of owners need to be resolved before the next batch of consumers enters the store. Only then can sales staff confidently answer questions, and existing owners are willing to continue recommending.

What automakers truly need to extend is the time a single model can continue to sell well without changing its version or relying on repeated rounds of new benefits. Only when, three months later, a store can still get the next batch of orders from the previous batch of owners can the car be said to have truly broken the "three-month curse."