Nio’s sub-brand Onvo introduced a fresh round of incentives on Friday to boost sales of its debut model following slower-than-expected demand in the first quarter of the year.
In a post on Weibo, Shen Fei — newly appointed head of Onvo and former vice president of Nio’s Power unit — announced that from now until June 30, existing owners and co-users of Nio or Onvo vehicles can receive rewards for referring new buyers of the L60.
The referral package includes 3,000 points, 100 community credits, and ten “Invite a Friend” mall vouchers valued at a total of 1,000 yuan ($140). The vouchers are automatically issued after the referred customer takes delivery of the vehicle.
The referral campaign joins two other incentives announced over the last weeks. Customers who place a deposit for the L60 before the end of April will receive a 6,000-yuan ($825) “worry-free” charging bundle, which can be applied to public charging, home charger installation, or battery upgrades.
The offer is equivalent to roughly two years of free charging based on four battery swaps per month.
Buyers are also entitled to five years of free access to Onvo Intelligent Driving, its assisted driving system, valued at 19,200 yuan ($2,600). Owners who have already taken delivery will receive an additional two years of service at no extra cost.
These incentives are stackable with Onvo’s existing five-year, interest-free financing plan, which allows customers to secure the L60 with a 45,000-yuan ($6,150) down payment and monthly installments of 2,350 yuan ($320), with no service fees.
“I just posted an article in both the Nio and Onvo communities, and I’d like to share some good news with everyone here as well,” Shen Fei wrote in a Weibo post on Friday.
“From today until June 30, Nio and Onvo vehicle owners or co-users who invite a friend to purchase the Nio Onvo L60 will receive, in addition to 3,000 points and 100 community credits, an extra reward of 10 “Invite a Friend” car purchase mall vouchers, with a total value of 1,000 yuan, automatically credited after the friend picks up the car,” he added.
The executive made a direct appeal to existing Nio and Onvo customers. “We sincerely welcome all Nio family members and friends to test drive the L60, and kindly ask that if you have friends or relatives planning to buy a car, in addition to recommending Nio, please don’t forget about Onvo, our sibling brand,” Fei Shen wrote.
To all L60 owners, we earnestly ask you to share your genuine experience with those around you who are considering a car purchase. Let more people get to know, experience, and choose this great vehicle, the L60!
“You can go to the Nio/Onvo App – Me – Invite Friends page to generate a poster and share it,” Onvo’s new chief concluded.
Earlier this week and about a week after Onvo brand head Alan Ai stepped down, Nio Group implemented a new series of executive changes affecting its mass-market Onvo brand and broader marketing departments, according to multiple internal emails sent on Thursday and obtained by EV.
Weekly and Monthly Sales
Sales of Nio’s sub-brand Onvo halved to 700 units in the week of March 31 to April 6, marking the lowest result since February as the country observed a three-day holiday from April 4 to 6 for the Ching Ming Festival, which impacted both production and deliveries in the auto industry.
Onvo deliveries reached nearly 6,000 in January, 4,049 in February and 4,820 in March — well below the target of 16,000 units in January and 20,000 in March communicated late last year.
Nio CEO William Li recently admitted that Onvo had “not met expectations” in the first months of this year, pointing to several reasons for the weaker-than-expected demand.
As reported by EV on Thursday, Xia Qinghua, previously Onvo‘s Head of User Operations and Services is now moving to the Group’s main brand as Regional General Manager of Nio’s Shanghai operations.
