Exploring Jia Yueting’s American-made cars： the 21-acre factory is empty and deserted

Jia Yueting, who "suffocated for her dream", started to build cars in 2014. It has been nine years since then, and finally delivered the first FF91 to users in August this year, achieving a breakthrough from "PPT building" to "actual delivery". On November 23rd, FF announced that it had signed an agreement with two companies in the Middle East to start business in the Middle East from 2024.

Nine years ago, under the pressure of huge debts, Jia Yueting flew across the Pacific Ocean to Los Angeles, trying to restart his life and create Faraday’s future by building a car.(hereinafter referred to as FF)And claimed to build a smart electric car beyond Tesla and subvert the traditional automobile industry.

How is the California factory carrying Jia Yueting’s dream of building a car operating at present? Can FF 91 really become a "subversive of Ferrari and Maibakh" as Jia Yueting said? National business daily reporter recently flew to California for an in-depth investigation, which unveiled the mystery of FF California factory and FF 91.

FF factory stayed for 4 hours: empty factory, scattered garbage, no workers.

FF factory（FF ieFactory California）Located in hanford, California, USA.（Hanford）Suburb, sandwiched between Los Angeles, the largest metropolitan area in California, and Bay Area, the second largest metropolitan area.(Silicon Valley)middle This is an area dominated by agriculture and animal husbandry, and it is difficult to connect it with the manufacture of intelligent electric vehicles.

The picture shows the pasture beside the San Jose-hanford road.

There are many farms along the way, and heavy trucks carrying fruits, vegetables and livestock are seen from time to time on the road, but there are almost no large factories on both sides of the road.　

The picture shows the FF factory from the highway.

Turn left at the intersection 4.8 miles south of hanford and about 9 miles out of the city. The reporter finally saw the FF factory.

The picture shows the unique logo of FF factory.

According to the satellite map, the entire FF factory covers an area of about 20.8 acres and is surrounded by iron fences about 3 meters high. On the outside of the iron fence, there is a parking area about 5 acres in size, which can be freely entered and exited.

Schematic diagram of FF factory marked according to Google satellite map

The picture shows the entrance to the gate of FF factory.

The reporter tried to enter from the main entrance of the factory by car, but was stopped by a female security guard: "We won’t let anyone in unless you get permission from insiders."

She said,At present, the factory is under construction, and cars can be seen in the factory, but you need to make an appointment to visit.When the reporter asked who to make an appointment with, she just used "someone"(sb.)"Answer, did not tell the specific way to make an appointment.

The reporter can only leave the FF gate temporarily and drive to the other end of the factory along the parking area mentioned above.

The picture shows FF factory building and parking area.

Here, the reporter found a small door and planned to get close to find out. At this time, a male staff member got out of an old car parked at the gate of the factory. He found the reporter and took the initiative to ask. The reporter tried to enter the door on the grounds that he wanted to go to the bathroom, but he refused. The reporter looked inside through the door and found that the doors and windows of the factory were closed, so it was impossible to see the internal situation, but there was no sign of personnel activities in the open-air area of the factory.

The picture shows the small door on the other side of the factory and the scene inside the door.

In the parking area outside the factory, the reporter found that the ground was covered with hundreds of parking spaces, but most of them were vacant, and the vision was very broad. During the reporter’s stay in the parking area, there were no vehicles coming in and out.

The picture shows the parking area in front of FF factory.

The reporter walked along the iron fence in the parking area and found that there were about 20 windows and dozens of landing doors on the side of the factory building, but most of them were closed and a few doors were half-covered, and no workers were seen entering or leaving. There are no valuable items such as materials and goods piled up outside the factory building to make cars; The open space in front of the factory building is littered with odds and ends of garbage, which seems to have been left unattended for a long time.

The picture shows the FF factory photographed from the parking area.

The day is a working day.(Thursday)The reporter stayed around and near the FF factory from 11 am to 3: 30 pm.However, no signs of workers’ activities were found in the factory, and no sound of mechanical operation was heard in the factory.Not only that, the reporter only saw a Tesla Model 3 enter the gate for about 30 minutes near the gate, and no other vehicles drove out of the factory.

But if you look around the FF factory, it will present a completely different picture.

Next to FF factory is a sand and gravel factory. Sand and gravel materials are piled up outside the factory gate, and semi-trailer trucks come in and out, which is dusty. The large-scale machinery in the factory area is operating in a tense and orderly manner, and there are rumbling sounds.

The picture shows the sandstone factory next door to FF factory.

The reporter drove around the whole factory several times. Except for the shabby signboard at the door and the conversation with the security guard, the whole factory seemed to find no more FF elements.

The picture shows the FF factory and parking area taken from the highway.

In a McDonald’s parking lot in hanford, the reporter asked a local passer-by, "Have you heard of a luxury car manufacturing factory nearby?" He was unclear, and said, "Asian faces are rarely seen in hanford." The reporter then got the same answer at the McDonald’s clerk.　

Test drive FF 91: BUG under surging power, strong kinetic energy recovery, strong drag and drop to produce dizziness.

Jia Yueting once claimed that FF 91 was "the pioneer of the ultra-luxury and super-spire market with extremely intelligent technology in the era of intelligent electric vehicles" and "the subversive of the traditional ultra-luxury automobile civilization represented by Ferrari and Maibakh". But up to now, the delivery volume of FF 91 is only 8 vehicles, and the public’s impression of this car has always stayed on PPT and video, not to mention the personal experience of this car.

During the investigation in the United States, national business daily reporter finally got a glimpse of FF 91 at FF Los Angeles headquarters, and conducted a test drive on the spot.

FF Headquarters: There are about 5 FF 91 in the test workshop, but none of them have been completed.

The reporter arrived at FF headquarters around 10: 30 in the morning. When they arrived, the two gates along the road were closed and unguarded. But on a side path, there is a door that can enter normally. As soon as he entered the door, the security guard stopped asking the reason. After learning that the reporter had made an appointment in advance, he asked to register the certificate and report it.

The picture shows the entrance of FF headquarters.

During the waiting interval, the reporter went straight into the building through a door opposite the parking area. About five or six staff members are busy working inside, but none of them are in uniform.

According to Scott, global product marketing director and delivery ambassador of FF, who came to be responsible for the reception, the reporter’s location is a test workshop, and all the "test cars" are parked to test different components, including performance, air conditioning, interior and chassis.

According to the reporter’s observation, about 5 FF 91 test vehicles are parked in the whole workshop.From the outside, the vehicles are unfinished to varying degrees.Some seats are not installed, some steering wheels are missing, some front covers are opened, and some computers are being plugged in for debugging.

After meeting Scott, the reporter offered to meet Jia Yueting at FF headquarters. Scott said,"Jia Yueting comes to work early almost every day, and he was here this morning.".He then led the reporter to the large office area on the second floor of the headquarters building. According to Scott, Jia Yueting’s office is in a separate room in the large office area. However, after going to this room, the reporter didn’t see Jia Yueting.

The picture shows the office area of FF headquarters building.

“YT(English name of Jia Yueting)Busy, maybe out. "Scott explained. He told reporters,Jia Yueting brought the "overtime culture" to Los Angeles. Both the employees and he got off work very late, and even they often had meetings after work at night."Are foreigners the same?" Asked by the reporter, Scott said, "No discrimination."

Static experience: the interior is luxurious and the rear row is large.

In the delivery exhibition hall, the reporter finally saw a complete FF 91 test drive. After close observation, the reporter found that FF 91 continued the design of the prototype when it debuted in 2017, and it is not outdated today.

The picture shows FF 91 seen by reporters in the delivery workshop.

The front of FF 91 is designed with a penetrating LED light group, and the LOGO formed by turning the letter FF counterclockwise by 45 will still glow. The body lines are smooth and concise, with hidden door handles and rearview mirrors on the sides. All four doors are designed with "opposite doors", and the 22-inch oversized wheels highlight the sense of movement. In the rear design, FF 91 has oversized taillights.

The picture shows the lighting effect of FF 91 taillight.

Entering the back of the car, the reporter’s first feeling is luxury. A reporter with a height of 175cm can feel that there is plenty of leg space and head space, and the seats are very soft and fit, as well as massage, heating, ventilation, memory and other functions. According to Scott, the body length is 5250 mm, the height is 1602 mm, the wheelbase is 3200 mm, and the rear seats support 180 degrees. However, in today’s "hundred flowers blossom" of electric vehicles, the function of "boss seat" has been standard on domestic electric vehicles ranging from 250,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan.

The picture shows the back row of FF 91.

Software and hardware coordination: the menu is deep, the response is delayed, and the door cannot be closed.

FF 91 has no less than 10 screens, including head-up display, LCD instrument, streaming media rearview mirror, 15.4-inch central control screen, 17-inch co-pilot screen, 27-inch rear entertainment display system, etc. The interior is also wrapped in soft materials, and the door panels, central handrails and center console are decorated with layered lines and white decorations.

The picture shows the front row of FF 91

FF 91 is remarkable in creating a visual sense of "top luxury technology". However, in terms of operating experience, the reporter did not feel really convenient.

Scott showed reporters that a series of daily operations such as adjusting the seat back, steering wheel, rear screen and stereo in the car were all done with the car screen, but the reporter found that,Many controls need to click on multiple submenus to open the screen, which is very inconvenient.For example, to adjust the controls of the seat back, you need to click to enter the submenu before you can operate it, and the reaction of the seat is still lagging behind after the instructions are issued.

In addition, when Scott demonstrated how to enjoy the audio-visual entertainment function on the rear entertainment display system with his mobile phone, there was a delay of nearly 2 seconds in the transmission response between software and hardware.

The picture shows the rear door screen of FF 91.

Since the reporter entered the car, Scott has been carefully explaining the adjustment of various comfort functions of the vehicle, but the reporter found thatEven a simple switch door needs a touch button. butWhen the door was repeatedly opened and closed, the reporter even found that the door could not be closed and there was no response through touch operation in the car.When Scott saw it, he quickly repeated the reporter’s operation, but the door still didn’t respond. Finally, he closed the door through the remote control of the mobile phone.

In the subsequent test drive, when the reporter actually operated the automatic door closing function equipped with FF 91 from the driver’s seat, the door did not respond again, and the door was closed after the second deep braking. The explanation given by Scott is that he also gave instructions to close the car door, which may conflict with the reporter’s operation.

From the above details, it can be seen that although the FF 91 is luxurious in appearance, the coordination and fluency of software and hardware are not enough, and it is not even comparable to the domestic electric vehicle whose price is only one tenth of it.

Dynamic test drive: the acceleration is fierce and the curve is stable, but the kinetic energy recovery force is too large, which causes discomfort under strong drag.

After the static experience, Scott took the reporter to the test drive.

In Jia Yueting’s eyes, the FF 91 2.0 series can be called an all-round product, which is comfortable and luxurious, and at the same time has the pleasure of driving and the "sense of control" of racing. He once described the driving experience of the FF 91 as "you can see an elephant dancing" in several scenes.

The test drive area is the open-air parking lot of the headquarters building, with a total area of about 1.5 football fields.

At the moment when the vehicle started, the reporter experienced the "heavy feeling" of the model in the back row. The suspension system of the vehicle tended to be comfortable, the power output was smooth and stable, the delay or jitter was well controlled, and the driving sound was low and dynamic, without the hum or sharp sound common in ordinary trams.

In "HyperDrive"(high performance)Mode ",Scott stepped on the accelerator, and the reporter felt a strong sense of pushing back; When cornering at high speed, the vehicle shows strong stability, while in the elk test, the reporter can feel the feedback of road conditions in the car, and there is no sense of tilting like a comfortable car and SUV when hitting the direction.

Then the reporter conducted a test drive. Compared with other large-size ultra-luxury cars, FF 91 vehicles do not feel bloated when driving, the steering wheel is very light, the steering virtual position is not big, and the feedback is clear. Subsequently, the reporter slammed on the accelerator to accelerate the vehicle to a speed of about 80KM/h, and quickly stepped on the brakes to stop the vehicle in a short time to experience the braking performance of the car. Subjective feeling isThe brake is soft, the brake is smooth, and it will not be too tired.

In addition, if the throttle is released when the FF 91 is driving normally,The vehicle has a strong sense of towing and kinetic energy recovery, and a sense of dizziness is coming, which seriously affects the dynamic driving experience.

In this regard, Scott explained to reporters that some drivers have also fed back this problem, but in order to ensure the mileage of FF 91, the kinetic energy recovery is indeed relatively strong and cannot be adjusted for the time being; If adjusted, the current 381 miles.(about 613 kilometers)The cruising range cannot be guaranteed. The reporter noted that even for mainstream electric vehicles below RMB 300,000 in China, the adjustment of kinetic energy recovery intensity is a standard configuration.

For the above problems of FF91, some people in the automobile industry pointed out to reporters, "The acceleration performance of trams must consider the changes of other indicators, and truly excellent car companies need to cooperate and adjust the electronic control system.A more linear deceleration experience in the process of kinetic energy recovery is a problem that needs to be considered for electric vehicles with more than 100 thousand yuan. "

FF declared in its WeChat official account that FF 91 has "FF aiDriving", which is the first privately-owned unmanned vehicle launched in the industry with multi-modal integrated sensing and industry-leading computing power. However, in this test drive, Scott didn’t show the reporter what official website described as "completely unmanned private domain".

Revealing the business model of "co-creating delivery": innovation or copying the "star-studded" LeTV system?

Along with the emergence of FF 91, there is Jia Yueting’s "co-creation delivery" model. FF explained that co-creation business model is an open UP2U.(It’s up to you)Business model, which allows users to become partners of FF, thus achieving value co-creation.

In the process of communicating with the national business daily reporter, Scott also explained:"Co-creation means’ guests and we provide resources to each other’." He also gave a reporter an analogy. "For example, Jason sells luxury houses. It is helpful for us to’ create’ with us and make a video to describe the luxurious life in Southern California."

Jason in Scott’s mouth is American real estate agent tycoon and Netflix star Jason Oppenheim.(No.2 delivery owner of FF 91).

Image source: every drawing

According to FF, Oppenheim is an American celebrity, a luxury real estate agent, the president and founder of The Oppenheim Group, and the star of Netflix’s global popular reality series Sunset Mansion and Orange County Mansion; His real estate agency has offices in Los Angeles, Newport Beach, San Diego and Cabo Sanlucas.

FF WeChat WeChat official account shows that considering Jason’s influence in the luxury circle and luxury lovers including luxury cars, FF and Jason have reached an agreement that Jason will provide social media content for the company and attend company activities for a fee.

Source: FF official WeChat WeChat official account

As of now,The delivery volume of FF 91 is 8 vehicles. Except Jia Yueting himself, the delivery targets are celebrities with certain social influence or online celebrities with a large number of fans.

Talking about the production plan of FF 91, Scott said, "（FF 91）At present, it is still customized, and there is no mass production. Just have a production scheduling plan, communicate with customers about the preferred configuration, delivery time and place, and then schedule production as needed. At present, customers who are interested and have paid the deposit have been scheduled for the beginning of next year. "

After the reporter expressed his intention to buy, Scott said that if he is interested, he can make a reservation first and then make "internal deployment". When a reporter says that his friend is a venture capitalist.（VC）It may become a potential customer of FF. Scott immediately showed great interest in the reporter’s friend and let go of the reporter. "If your friend is a VC, you can help introduce investors or invest yourself. Generally speaking, Gongchuang will give priority to getting the FF 91 car. Leader in different industries(leader)It will give our brand a good boost, so we welcome Leader from different industries. What is your friend’s name? His social account can also be provided to me, if he can provide some resources, let’s internal(delivery)There is some room for coordination. "

This may have broken the essence of FF’s "co-creation and sharing" model-pulling investment.

It is worth noting that FF, a business model of co-creation and sharing, can’t help but remind people of the past years when domestic entertainment circles got together to become shareholders in LeTV.

On May 7, 2016, LeTV.com disclosed the reorganization, and the company intends to issue shares to 44 shareholders of LeTV and pay cash. Among these 44 shareholders, there are many movie stars. For example, in October 2014, Zhang Moumou subscribed for a new registered capital of 2.083 million yuan of LeTV Pictures, which was later increased to 12.0153 million yuan. In May 2015, Guo bought 5 million shares of LeTV at the price of 1 yuan per share.

According to LeTV’s statement at the time, "it is all market-oriented investment and shareholding". However, at that time, the stars got together and became shareholders in the LeTV Department, which was quite a bit of what is now called "creating and sharing".

According to reports, due to the high price that LeTV gave to LeTV at that time, it meant that the original investment income of the stars soared, and many people estimated that the floating profit reached more than 10 times. Letv also makes full use of the resources of big-name stars to promote the company’s new TVs and mobile phones. In 2015, the LeTV super mobile phone conference invited big-name star platforms such as Huang Moumou.

Not only letv film, but also star shares are the way for letv sports to attract investment and expand shares. According to reports, in 2015, the valuation of the A round financing of LeTV Sports was 2.8 billion yuan, and in 2016, the valuation of the B round financing has soared to 20.5 billion yuan; In the B round of financing of LeTV Sports, many stars have also emerged.

With the exposure of the capital chain problem of LeTV, LeTV Sports and LeTV Pictures in the LeTV ecosystem have not been spared. On April 26, 2019, LeTV bid farewell to A-shares, and the acquisition of LeTV by LeTV, which had been planned for three years before and after, became a bubble, which meant that the dream of trying to enter the capital market through LeTV was finally shattered.

The triple dilemma faced by FF: market, capital and investors.

Although the FF 91 2.0 Futurist Alliance was finally delivered successfully, in nine years, the whole new energy vehicle market has undergone earth-shaking changes-Tesla has already taken off, and traditional car companies and technology manufacturers have also entered the market. FF 91, is there still a market?

Dilemma 1: How much market space is left for electric vehicles?

FF pricing is as high as $309,000(about RMB 2.261 million),In the pure tram system, it is higher than Tesla Model S/X Plaid and even surpasses the luxury pure tram system of top car companies.

Image source: every drawing

At FF headquarters, Scott took Tesla as an example and constantly emphasized the high horsepower and high performance of FF 91. "They（Model S/X Plaid）They are all 1030p horsepower, while FF 91 has achieved 1050p horsepower. They(battery pack of Model S/X Plaid)It’s 100 kWh, and we’re 142 kWh. We think the battery pack should be at least 140 kWh, so（FF 91）Ultra-high performance is the biggest feature, and users are most concerned about performance. "

High performance means high price, but are consumers really willing to pay for high-priced cars? An executive director of an investment company that has been engaged in the investment of new energy vehicle companies for a long time told reporters, "Now there are many car companies in the high-end car market segment with a price of more than 500,000 yuan, whether it is BYD’s hope, Tesla or traditional BBA.(Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi)Pure trams are actually developing towards high-end cars.At this time to grab the high-end market, there may not be new brand space."

At present, the electric vehicle market is fierce. Domestic brands such as BYD, Ideality and Tucki, and American brands such as Tesla, Chevrolet, Ford and Rivian have all formed their core competitiveness.

From the perspective of the domestic new energy vehicle market, from January to September 2023, BYD’s market share accounted for 35%, and Tesla accounted for 12%.　

Image source: every drawing

In the US market, in the first three quarters of 2023, Tesla ranked first with a market share of 57.4%.

Image source: every drawing

Can FF 91 be accepted by the market under the fierce competition of domestic and international electric vehicle ecology? The executive director of the above-mentioned investment company believes that "except for a few new energy car companies such as Tesla, BYD and Ideality, most car companies now sell cars with negative gross profit because the market is extremely involved. It is more difficult to sell a new car company. "

"About two or three years ago, Wang Xingtou(capital)At the end of the ideal, there is an argument,(market)Finally, it’s the knockout round of 12 into 3. This knockout has been started one after another, so new energy vehicles are no longer in the cycle of the birth of too many new brands under this industry node. "

Dilemma 2: Can cash flow support continuous mass production?

With the official appearance of FF 91, can the company’s cash flow support FF to continue mass production?

From the perspective of R&D, the related expenses of FF are decreasing. FF financial report shows that in 2022, the company’s R&D expenditure was 311 million US dollars, and in 2021 it was 175 million US dollars; In the first three quarters of this year, FF spent $105 million on R&D, compared with $260 million in the same period last year.

Image source: every drawing

From the perspective of cash flow, the problem of FF is more serious. In the first quarter of 2023, the company’s cash flow was $31.769 million; The cash flow in the second quarter of 2023 was $17.893 million; The cash flow in the third quarter of 2023 was only $6.714 million.

The financial reports of FF Company in 2021 and 2022 show that the cash flow generated by its operating activities has been negative since its establishment. In 2021, the company’s accumulated deficit was $3,476.6 million; In 2022, the accumulated deficit was $2,907.6 million. It can be seen that the hole is still very big.

Dilemma 3: Can you still win the favor of investors?

The executive director of the above-mentioned investment company believes that the whole investment primary market will basically stop looking at the early new energy OEM, and now only cares about the parts enterprises in the upstream of the supply chain."For a company like FF, the best destination may be that a big factory will acquire it." He said.

"Jia Yueting was the first to shout out to build a car. If he really had production capacity and supply chain ability, he would have already come out." He said, "Building a car is not a difficult thing, but it is definitely not a simple thing. It requires very, very high trading ability for No.1. He must understand the automobile industry, organize automobile design and production, and understand user needs and sales."

When asked who might be willing to be the receiver, he bluntly said: "For investment or M&A targets, business reputation may not be completely important. What matters is whether the company has value in the current market. At present, the main funders of the new energy vehicle market are consortia and established car companies in the Middle East and Europe. Their requirements for M&A targets or investment targets are that they must have sufficient mass production capacity and technical support. Therefore,If new car companies want to get a good’ home’, the indicator investors look at is simply sales volume, and they must be able to sell cars in batches."

He lamented: "In the elimination stage of new energy vehicles, PPT cars have long fallen behind."

In view of the co-creation mode of FF, the core competitiveness of FF 91, the mass production plan of FF and the challenges that FF may face, the reporter of national business daily sent an interview email to FF, but as of press time, FF did not give any reply.

This article comes from WeChat WeChat official account:Headline of each warp (ID: nbdtoutiao)Author: Cui Fu (pseudonym), Wen Qiao, editor: Lan Suying, visual: Shuai Lingqian