"But electric vehicles have advantages that fuel vehicles don’t, such as intelligence and powerful torque."

Flannery was objective, not entirely dismissing electric vehicles. If they were indeed worthless, General Motors wouldn’t cooperate with Tianxing.

Take the Sky StarTianshu’s dual motor all-wheel drive as an example; it only takes 2.81 seconds to go from 0 to 100 km/h. If this were a fuel vehicle, it would at least be a top-of-the-line GT, with a market price of no less than 2 million RMB.

In contrast, the Sky StarTianshu’s price is only 298,900 RMB, and even if the labor and materials at the Detroit factory are expensive, the whole vehicle’s cost, converted to US Dollars, is only 46,500.

They tentatively set the gross margin at 35%, and without surprises, the pre-sale price of General TianxingSky StarTianshu should be 62,800 USD.

However, this price is very difficult to be competitive because Tesla’s Mao Dou 3 from the California super factory sells for only 52,500 USD.

Lu Liang glanced at Flannery and said softly, "Change the price to below 60,000, even if it’s just 59,900."

The domestically produced Sky StarTianshu’s standard model is priced at 298,900 RMB, which is the selling price, not the cost price. The cost price won’t exceed 230,000 RMB, which is approximately 33,000 USD.

It’s true that labor and materials abroad are expensive, but it’s impossible for the cost of each car to increase by 13,500 USD.

Moreover, General Motors is a century-old car company. Apart from the batteries that can only be imported from Ningde, the electronic controls from Tianxing, and other structures, they can completely localize in the United States. The real cost definitely won’t exceed 40,000 USD.

This old bastard Flannery earns at least 7,000 USD from each car in the supply system, making more money than selling cars. It’s simply inhuman.

Flannery looked troubled, "This way, the gross margin would only be 28%, which isn’t conducive to upcoming market adjustments."

Lu Liang rolled his eyes and said angrily, "The level of gross margin depends on the cost of manufacturing the whole vehicle. If the cost can be reduced, even lowering the price, the gross margin can increase."

"The three components of electric vehicles are key. Besides these, any other first and second-tier suppliers that can be replaced, let’s replace them. I don’t believe the cost of each car is really that high?"

He paused for a few seconds and added, "Mr. Flannery, you also know that the Sky StarTianshu entering the global market is more symbolic than practical. To put it bluntly, we’re not in it for the money, or more precisely, not for the money from selling cars."

"Even if every unit sells at a loss, so what? We can always make the money back in other markets."

"But to make money in other markets, you have to deliver a performance that satisfies investors, at least to make them satisfied with the future."

Lu Liang almost spelled everything out; if Flannery still didn’t understand, then there would be something wrong with his head.

Flannery mused carefully, his eyes getting brighter, "Which institution did you contact to raise General Tianxing’s valuation?"

It is possible for General Tianxing to go public independently, and what Lu Liang said indicated he had this idea.

After all, how much money can manufacturing make? To really make money, you have to go into the capital market.

Lu Liang’s influence in the capital market, while not omnipotent, is still considerable.

If he contacts a reputable institution to vouch for them and solidify their valuation,

It’s entirely possible to let this company, with only one factory and no cars ever sold, enter NASDAQ and achieve a market value of billions or even tens of billions of dollars.

If Lu Liang were willing to personally step in, advocate, and directly compete with Musk and Tesla, it wouldn’t be impossible either.

By that time, the market value of General Motors will also rise, as General Tianxing won’t go public so quickly. And the parent company holding 51% of the shares, General Motors, is already publicly listed, naturally receiving feedback from the market.

"Who to contact, I can’t decide that." Lu Liang took a sip of whiskey, frowning deeply; he still couldn’t get used to foreign liquor.

He looked out at the city’s night scene and said softly, "Who to contact in the future depends on the achievements General Tianxing makes in the market."

Although Lu Liang had contacted JPMorgan, and Wilson had said they were willing to invest a billion dollars for a 5% share, pushing the valuation to 20 billion.

But market investors aren’t fools; there has to be results convincing enough for them. Only then will they believe General Tianxing is worth 20 billion dollars, or might be worth that in the future.

Just like Tesla, even though it sold 281,800 units last year, its market value is not in the hundreds of billions.

The bottom line is East Country’s new energy market grows annually, and his Mars immigration, Starlink project, rocket recycling, etc., assure investors that even if it’s not worth billions now, it definitely will be in the future.

The market talks expectations; it’s okay if expectations aren’t met now, as long as they can be met later, then the market will respond.

Flannery contemplated for a long time before saying, "The price can be 53,900, with a gross margin not below 30%. I’ll work on the suppliers to see if costs can be further reduced."

The Sky StarTianshu is positioned against the Mao Dou 3, and its price is 52,500 USD; we can’t be much higher, otherwise, we’ll lose market competitiveness.

Flannery ate the big pie drawn for him without hesitation, willing to earn less or even not at all.

After all, compared to the returns of the financial market, the small profit made as a middleman is negligible.

Even if each car lines up, General Motors’ suppliers combined might earn about 8,000 USD. .

But even if there are ten thousand vehicles, it’s only 80 million USD, and even a hundred thousand is only 800 million.

An 800 million USD profit seems a lot, but it’s still incomparable to an increase of 0.5% in General Motors’ stock price.

Conversely, if this succeeds, even with General Motors’ scale at 160 billion USD, the stock price is expected to rise by at least 10%, or even 20%, equating to 16 billion, or even 32 billion USD in gains.

Lu Liang asked with a smile, "Wouldn’t this be too difficult for Mr. Flannery?"

Flannery replied righteously, "The debut of Sky Star in the North American market should be fully supported by General Motors."

Lu Liang chuckled, and after a pause, said, "Tell me your plans, maybe they align with my schedule."

Flannery said with a hidden excitement in his eyes, "Are you attending the North American market launch?"

"As long as my schedule permits, I’ll go," Lu Liang said with a smile.

"That will fit for sure; whenever you’re free, that’s when we’ll hold the launch," Flannery said.

The Sky Star was officially launched two months ago, with various data long tested over and over, leaving not much to discuss at the North American market launch.

It’s just an announcement that the US version of the Sky Star is on sale. People who like this car no longer need to look forward to imports or pay high tariffs, but that’s about it.

If Lu Liang comes forward, it’s different, as he’s one of the top three post-85 powerhouses on earth.

And he’s the only one who, without relying on his predecessors, broke through Wall Street’s encirclement by himself, successfully fighting back numerous times with remarkable fame, earning the title of "Financial Butcher."

The North American market worships individualism; otherwise, Marvel and CD’s movies wouldn’t be so popular.

Moreover, repeatedly beating Wall Street capital institutions is something people delight in seeing, a dream for every ordinary person who suffers under capital.

When dreams come true,

They accept everything that comes with it.

Musk’s Starlink project, Mars immigration, rocket recovery—a lot of talk, but Lu Liang actually accomplished it.

The last three years of absence on Twitter, despite two million global followers, have increased rather than decreased, proving this point.

If Lu Liang steps forward, even if Tianxing Automobile is slightly inferior to Tesla in algorithms and technology, it may still hold its own.

"Tomorrow I’ll go with you to the United States, planning to stay in New York for three days, please schedule the launch within these three days."

Lu Liang smiled lightly, eyes flashing with a trace of concern. He agreed to attend the launch, but he had no choice.

Sky Star dominates Mao Dou 3 at home mainly because it’s a home game, while domestically-produced Tesla is a reduced version.

Once abroad, they will face Tesla in its entirety and on away ground.

If no measures are taken, they might be at a disadvantage.

Sales must be passable; otherwise, they will disappoint domestic fans and invite ridicule from rival brands for only doing well at home.

"No problem, I’ll arrange the time," Flannery said excitedly, calling the group’s marketing president in front of Lu Liang.

He ordered the reservation of the Super Dome, also known as the world’s largest indoor stadium.

The specific venue for the Super Bowl in the United States, equivalent to the East Country Bird’s Nest, can accommodate more than seventy thousand people.

Lu Liang was speechless, "More than seventy thousand?"

If it’s not fully seated, it would be comical.

"Lu, are you questioning the strength of General Motors, a 110-year-old car company?"

Flannery was proud, as General Motors sponsors major racing events like the United States Rally Championship, European Rally Championship, United Kingdom Rally Championship, Australia Rally Championship, Asia Rally Championship, and an invited team for the F1 Formula Championship.

By that time, they could just bring in a few teams for races and invite some top Hollywood stars to sing and dance along.

A venue accommodating seventy thousand,

He assured, would be packed wall to wall.

Flannery wanted the world’s front pages the day after tomorrow to be full of the US version of Sky Star’s launch and the news of Lu Liang’s presence.

After all, Lu Liang attending his first international launch must be grand to justify his debut.