Mobile Toilet - Liandongyun
Liandongyun is dubbed as 'the first mobile toilet for young people' due to improper user behavior during its operation. The specific reasons and background are as follows:
1. User Group Characteristics and Usage Threshold
Founded in 2016, Liandongyun focuses on gasoline-powered car-sharing rental services. With financial support from Baoneng Group, it quickly attracted users through a low-price strategy and a low rental threshold (only requiring a driver's license). Its core user base consists of college students and young people who have a driver's license but do not yet have the ability to purchase a car. This group has relatively weak awareness of vehicle care, and the lack of range anxiety associated with gasoline SUVs further reduces their usage concerns.
2. Vehicle Management Out of Control and Improper Behavior
Liandongyun primarily purchases gasoline-powered models such as the Qoros 3 and Qoros 5 from Baoneng Group. Due to their low procurement costs and simple maintenance, these models have become the mainstay of its operations. However, some users engage in extreme behaviors such as reckless driving, smoking inside the vehicle, littering, and even defecating, leading to severe damage to the vehicle interiors and frequent mechanical failures. For example, seats and carpets develop odors due to fecal residue, and the air conditioning system breeds bacteria due to prolonged lack of cleaning. The overall hygiene condition of the vehicles is concerning, ultimately earning them the nickname 'mobile toilets'.
3. Capital Operations and Operational Crisis
Baoneng Group has been purchasing approximately 100,000 Qoros vehicles annually for Liandongyun, which not only embellishes Qoros's sales figures but also reduces Liandongyun's procurement costs. However, this related-party transaction has resulted in inconsistent vehicle quality and accelerated asset depreciation. After Baoneng Group fell into a liquidity crisis in 2021, Liandongyun's capital chain broke, forcing it to withdraw from many cities on a large scale. Vehicle maintenance investments have plummeted, exacerbating hygiene issues. Problems such as difficulties in refunding deposits have also triggered a crisis of user trust.
4. Dual Causes of Decline
The decline of Liandongyun reflects both user quality issues—the low threshold has led some users to lack awareness of protecting public resources—and capital crisis results—Baoneng Group's capital chain break directly cut off operational support, creating a vicious cycle. Ultimately, vehicle scrappage rates far exceeded expectations, the brand's reputation collapsed, and it now only maintains operations in a few regions.
