Herbert Diess' comparison of ID. family sales with Nio, Xpeng, and Li Auto has sparked an interesting discussion.

At a time when executives at car companies usually avoid direct comparisons with their competitors, Volkswagen doesn't seem to care, sparking an interesting discussion.

Volkswagen AG CEO Herbert Diess took to Weibo on Wednesday to celebrate the company's ID. family's steady sales growth in China in October, saying "this surpasses domestic competitors including Nio, Xpeng Motors, and Li Auto."

His words can be translated as:

The ID. family continues its steady growth momentum in the China market.

In October, ID. models sold nearly 13,000 units in a single month, surpassing domestic competitors including Nio, Xpeng, and Li Auto.

The Volkswagen brand ranked third in October sales of new energy vehicles.

In addition, Diess also emphasized that safety is still a top priority for electric vehicles, and the ID. models have a good safety profile.

Data tracked by CnEVPost shows that in October, VW ID. models sold 12,736 in China, Nio was 3,667, Xpeng was 10,138 and Li Auto was 7,649.

(Graphic by CnEVPost)

Diess' Weibo is seen by some as a challenge by VW to the new Chinese carmakers, with one Weibo user commenting that the traditional brand and the new carmakers are going head-to-head in the battlefield.

But some users have also called on the company to step up its efforts to optimize the in-car systems of the ID. models, and hope they get Bosch to speed up chip deliveries.

Others believe that as traditional car companies increase their efforts in the new energy vehicle market, the increased competition means more opportunities.

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