Chery officially apologizes for the accident of Tianmen Mountain ladder guardrail being damaged

A domestically produced SUV lost control and slid down the 999-level steep stone steps. White smoke rose and the guardrail broke. This is not a movie shot, but a real scene that happened in Tianmen Mountain, Zhangjiajie on November 12, 2025. During the extreme hill climbing test, Chery Fengyun X3L's safety rope fell off, causing the vehicle to slide backwards and crash into the guardrail of the "ladder" in the scenic spot. There were no casualties, but public trust was shattered.

This was a technology demonstration that fell short of expectations, and it was also a controversial business practice. Chery tried to recreate the highlight moment when Land Rover successfully climbed the ladder, but an accident occurred due to omissions in details. Its original intention may be to prove the off-road capabilities of 100,000-class domestic vehicles, but the result is that it exposes the contempt for risks, the encroachment on public space, and the deep-seated flaws of the industry's exaggerated marketing.

The extreme hill climb test itself is not without value. It can truly test the vehicle's torque output, four-wheel drive response, tire grip and chassis passability on non-paved roads - these parameters are difficult to completely restore in the laboratory. Especially for SUVs that focus on outdoor scenes, actual measured data is more convincing than parameters on paper. If you successfully reach the top, it will undoubtedly be a powerful technical endorsement.

But the problem is that technical verification must be carried out within controllable boundaries. Real engineering testing emphasizes standards, repetition and safety, while the scenic "ladder to heaven" is neither a professional venue nor a closed environment. Although tourists are guided to take the elevator instead during the test, the public tourist passage can be turned into a testing ground for car companies, which itself blurs the boundaries between business and public interests. When companies transfer risks to scenic facilities and base traffic on potential safety hazards, the so-called "technological exploration" has been transformed into "risk speculation."

What is even more alarming is that such behavior is becoming industry inertia. From "small cars hitting heavy trucks" to "floating on the water", from plateau racing to cliff climbing, some car companies no longer compete for safety, durability and user experience, but compete to create visual spectacles. Chery had previously made a high-profile announcement of "an unprecedented test for Chinese cars", but social media has quietly deleted the post, which just confirms the essence of this event: not for users, but for hot searches.

Technological advancements don’t need to be demonstrated on tourist hiking trails. The real confidence comes from thousands of simulations in the laboratory, from the accumulated reputation of users for thousands of kilometers, and from the awe of every bolt and every weld. Driving your car up the ladder may win you a moment of applause; but only by putting safety first can you go further.

When the flame of marketing reaches the boundary of public order, what extinguishes it should not be just an apology statement, but the introspection of the entire industry. The wheel can climb upwards, but the responsibility of an enterprise must always be firmly grounded.