To date, no Chinese car brands have been sold in North America. Chinese-built cars sold on the continent have been limited to cars from established brands (Buick Envision) or extremely low-volume failures (Coda EV). But while the Chinese car invasion has yet to reach North American shores, automakers from the People’s Republic have been making inroads in other markets.
In Australia, for example, we’ve seen the likes of Geely, Chery, Great Wall, Foton, JMC and ZX Auto. Ute (pickup) brands like Foton and JMC have struggled to find meaningful volume, perhaps because of entrenched brand loyalty among ute buyers. Brands like Geely, Chery and ZX Auto have dwelled in obscurity and then disappeared, their products just too low-tech and frumpy to attract even the most budget-conscious buyers.
Great Wall was the first Chinese brand to find any meaningful success with its range of budget utes and SUVs, only to flame out when reliability and quality issues became impossible to ignore. That leaves three that are experiencing significant growth: MG, LDV and Haval.
Commercial vehicle brand LDV arrived here in 2013 before switching distributors and relaunching the following year. Like MG, LDV is a resurrected English name, if a less well-known one. It was formerly Leyland DAF Vans and was part of the Rover Group before it was bought by Russian GAZ in 2006. GAZ proved a poor parent for the brand and it changed hands a couple of times before SAIC Motor acquired them in 2010 and commenced Chinese production.
LDV’s first product here, the V80, is known as the Maxus in other markets such as the UK. There, it’s available in a raft of variants such as a chassis cab and a battery-electric van and, although they remain a bit player, the company is expanding. The V80 is an old design, dating back to the early 2000s, and is hardly the last word in refinement or safety. The only engine is a VM Motori-sourced 2.5 four-cylinder diesel producing 134 hp, sending power through a six-speed manual transmission to the front wheels.
More impressive is LDV’s newest van, the G10, first launched in Australia in 2015. Unlike the V80, the G10 is a clean-sheet Chinese design. It’s smaller and rear-wheel-drive and offers the choice of petrol and diesel engines. There’s a 2.0 turbocharged four-cylinder gas engine, mated to a ZF-sourced six-speed automatic and producing 221 hp and 243 ft-lbs. If you want a manual but don’t want a diesel, your only option is a naturally-aspirated 2.4 four with 140 hp and 147 ft-lbs – that’s quite a drop and the manual is only a five-speed unit.
A 1.9 turbo diesel four was introduced later, producing 140 hp and 258 ft-lbs, mated to either a six-speed manual or six-speed auto. Interestingly, G10s with automatic transmissions have a different rear suspension set-up with five-link coil springs instead of the manuals’ leaf springs. The G10 also has a people mover variant, available only with the turbo/auto powertrain.
The fresh-looking G10 undercuts venerable rivals like the Toyota HiAce and Hyundai iLoad by $1-3k. It’s a clever play, going for a segment with less competition and with buyers motivated by low pricing. Although it’s safe to assume some fleet buyers are pragmatic types and suspicious of upstart brands, logo-emblazoned G10s have started popping up on local streets with regularity.
Vans are just one small piece of the Australian pie, however. Our best-selling passenger vehicle is the Toyota HiLux and, like the US and Canada, this is the land of the crew-cab pickup (“dual-cab ute” in our parlance) – ours are a little bit smaller though, North Americans. Into this fiercely competitive segment, LDV recently lobbed the T60 pickup.
The T60 rebuffs criticisms of Chinese car safety by boasting a five-star ANCAP crash rating, the first such Chinese ute to do so. The range is split into Pro and Luxe models, the former an unpretentious work ute, the latter a chrome-laden model in the vein of up-spec Rangers and Colorados. All are powered by a VM Motori 2.8 common-rail turbodiesel four with 147 hp and 265 ft-lbs, mated to either a six-speed manual or an Aisin-sourced six-speed automatic transmission. It’s the most promising Chinese ute yet and though it hasn’t matched the HiLux or Ranger, if LDV can keep reliability and quality in check, they could eke out a comfortable niche in the pickup truck market. Plenty of people bought Great Wall pickups, after all, and they were festering garbage in comparison.
Finally, there’s the D90 SUV. It competes in a segment that’s almost completely extinct in North America: the rugged, mid-size, body-on-frame SUV segment. Although it’s down to just the Toyota 4Runner and Jeep Wrangler over there, here in Australia there’s a swag of rivals including the Holden TrailBlazer and Isuzu MU-X twins, as well as the Ford Everest, Toyota Fortuner and Mitsubishi Pajero Sport.
Ignore the big, rather Masonic logo on its grille and the D90 could pass for a Hyundai. The huge difference, however, is in sticker price: a base D90 retails for around $6k less than a base Santa Fe. Yes, they’re very different cars – one’s body-on-frame, one’s unibody – but the D90 has plenty of features to entice bargain-loving buyers. Even the base D90 comes with a 12-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and a whole suite of safety features such as lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, autonomous emergency braking and forward collision alert. Shifting up the range, you can get luxury mod-cons missing from some rivals like ambient lighting, a panoramic sunroof, and ventilated seats.
The D90 comes solely with a 2.0 turbocharged gas engine, producing 221 hp and 265 ft-lbs and mated to a six-speed automatic. As befitting its rugged underpinnings, the D90 has a low-range transfer case and a rear electronic locking differential. Like the T60, the D90 has received some encouraging if cautionary reviews from the automotive press. It’s been praised for its value proposition but also its rather good fit-and-finish and smooth powertrain. Journalists have been unanimous that LDV isn’t quite there yet, with some of its engines a bit underpowered and the big question mark of long-term durability and reliability hanging over the brand. Nevertheless, it’s a promising start for a Chinese brand and LDV’s products are leagues ahead of past Chinese offerings.
Buyers seem to be noticing. Australian LDV sales increased by 135% year-over-year in 2018 to 6064 units. That puts it ahead of brands like Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, MG, Mini, Peugeot, Porsche and Skoda. But Toyota’s HiAce van, the best-selling van in Australia, sold a few hundred units more than the entire LDV line. It’s early days, however: LDV has only recently launched the D90 and T60. Some markets are going to be tougher for them – for example, the punitive Chicken Tax will hinder any attempts to crack the US market – but LDV is proof the Chinese are advancing.
Related Reading:
CC Capsule: 2009-14 Great Wall X200/X240 – Don’t Laugh, The Chinese Will Get There Eventually
Missing Out? The American-Branded Cars You Can Only Buy In China
Missing Out? The Japanese And Korean-Branded Cars Sold Only In China
JMC and Chery? I’m sure that General Motors will have their lawyers blocking the use of those names here.
It goes deeper than just the similarity of the names. This is an old issue –
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-12/18/content_401235.htm
It was rumored that the Chery doors were a direct bolt-on to the GM product.
That was in…2004. As in 15 years ago.
Yes, that was my point –
Intellectual theft. A common theme with all things branded Chinese.
I see lots of LDV branded vans here, couriers are starting to use them so durability will be proven or not, the ute market here is dominated by the Ford Ranger,its the best selling vehicle we get, I drove some new ones last year and can see the appeal, Fotons have been here a while the Cummins engine is a good selling point, Great Walls sold ok and there are lots of them still in use, actually our ute market is pretty crowded with Ram now available RHD but a nice one starts @ 120k, you name a brand of ute I’ll probably see it, my local Peugeot Citroen Suzuki dealer has taken on Haval, I’m wondering what the connection is Suzuki uses Peugeot diesel emgines, is Haval a product of the PSA/Dong Feng joint venture?
If those light duty trucks had been around say 15 years ago I might of taken a chance on one. Instead I kept my full size truck as a part time hauler and got a Audi instead. I miss the little A3 but not the truck so much.
As far as the the US is concerned, Zotye has been talking to prospective dealers the past 6 months or so and want to start sales in 2020, with a budget CUV. Obviously possible tariffs are the big question mark.
There’s one other small brand looking too, but the name escapes me at the moment.
While the V80 Maxus might be considered old now, the van it replaced in 2004 had its origins in the 1960 Morris J4, evolving on the way to become the Sherpa in 1974, K2 then 200/300/400 from 1982 and finally Pilot/Convoy in 1993.
After you are done with looking at Chinese trucks, maybe their Indian competition is worth a look? I thought the Tata Telcoline was a nice size, about the same size as the old Toyota Hi-Lux. The newer mid-size trucks are becoming dangerously close in size and price to the full sizers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Telcoline
THAT’s why I want to hang on to my 2011 Ranger for as long as possible. It (along with the Mazda versions) & any of of the base 4-cylinder Toyota Tacomas up to 2014 (2015 marked the end of the Regular Cab models) were truly the last of their kind in the United States as far as small pickups are concerned. My truck is almost at equal height with this Tacoma at Lowe’s back in March last year about a month after I first got it. Without even seeing it in person I already know the 2019 Ranger will be nothing like the old one.
If we’re going to be accurate, Honda sold Chinese Fits in Canada before any one else sold Chinese cars in North America.
I’ve been hearing for years how the Chinese were coming to sell cars here in North America and the US specifically, but it has yet to happen. Whether a combination of regulatory issues and/or tariffs, we’ve done a fine job keeping them out of the US, at least.
I’d be curious to see these giant-killers. Not to disparage Chinese engineers and workers, but many of these cars and trucks seem like copies of existing vehicles. I imagine that’s done for a number of reasons, expediency being one of them. But maybe the demand is so great in China that it doesn’t matter.
30+ years ago, it was interesting to see Japanese manufacturers try to define their premium cars as premium cars. Toyota seemed to ape Mercedes, while Honda made bigger Hondas and Nissan went it’s own way. It will be equally interesting to see how the Chinese marques define themselves and the image they project in “export” markets.
Once the Chinese economy matures(give it 10 years), they won’t care if the Western Hemisphere buys a single screw from them. There’s 4-5 times the customers in China alone compared to North America. India has about the same number of customers. Then there’s the rest of Southeast Asia and Indonesia. Comparing the US to China will soon be like comparing the US to the UK. We don’t need the UK to buy anything from us and if they never do it won’t be felt.
10 years is about the time when some predict that the Chinese will begin falling off a demographic cliff with significant population declines, and a worker/retiree ratio spiraling the wrong way.
http://www.kandigroup.com.cn/InfoDetail.aspx?kid=316
Here comes the news. As no English version found, I hope you have translation tools on your browser.
Kandi is selling two EVs in Uniteds States. Accoring to its offical site, the company has finished some fedreal tax refund. Geely has affair with Kandi which let Kandi have the access to Geely’s platforms but Geely has its own EV division. Kandi never has a good quality and because of its out-dated technology, its range is limited. NO ONE would purchase such a crap even here.
I used to be a stater engineer in one of Geely’s factories, where the Kandi EX3’s body is made. That means the EX3 has a petrol sibling. The market name in China is Yuanjing (Vision) X3, and it is exactly my commute car. I paid 70,000 CNY, about 10,000 USD, to get 100hp, manual 5, ESC, cruise, LED everything, 8-inch screen, navi, CarPlay, leather interior, tire pressure moniter, just cheap and well-equipped.
When I was in Ecuador last year the Great Wall Winglet “ute” was everywhere, though slightly outnumbered (comparing late model trucks only) by the Chevy D-Max and Toyota Hilux. I can’t say I noticed a disproportionate number of Wingles broken down by the side of the road so I’m surprised at the “festering pile of garbage” reputation. Between elevation, traffic, and potholes Ecuador seems tough on vehicles. I saw Havals also, and a few other Chinese brands. Just waiting for the tide to start here in the US.
Great Wall utes were everywhere soon after they started selling them here in Australia, based on price being several thousand cheaper than Japanese rivals. But nowadays it’s really a “Wow!” moment if you see one. From hero to zero in less than ten years. Quality?
I used to see them in the Middle East too. The Deer was a popular model and was supposedly a badge engineered Toyota Hilux. However, they seemed to have mostly disappeared.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Wall_Deer
Quality and the asbestos thing
I know a lot of new motorcycle brands from China and South Korea are slowly becoming established here, so (if past history applies like Hyundai and VW) the chinese will keep throwing darts at the USA’s board until one sticks. Their first cars will be on the level of the Hyundai Pony or the very early 50s Beetle and quality will slowly catch up. They’re going to have to offer a level of honest service and warranty coverage to make inroads. I wouldn’t contemplate buying a Chinese car today or in 2020, but by 2035 or 2040, who knows?
https://www.thoughtco.com/cheapest-motorcycles-available-in-america-2399402
As someone who put 10,000 miles on a Jinan Qingqi 150cc scooter in three years (ten years ago), I found out that the Chinese can make some damned good vehicles. While not as modern as the Yamaha Zuma 125 that replaced it a couple of years later (air cooled and carbureted vs. liquid cooled and fuel injection), it was comfortable, reliable, and served its purpose well. The biggest negative is, like all Chinese scooters, they’re imported by local distributors rather than a national corporate distribution, and by year four our supplier was starting to have a difficult time getting parts in So, I let it go.
Just the same, it showed me that Chinese motor vehicles are far from junk.
Haval = Great Wall
Well I’m a few days late getting here, but an interesting read. LDV has been around in New Zealand for decades, with the old 1993-2006 Convoy being particularly popular in either box body of chassis-cab as as prisoner-transport vans, ambulances and motor-homes. So when the Chinese LDVs were launched here in 2012, it was to a market that was well aware of the brand, and which happily started buying loads of them. We had two different tradesfolks here last week, both driving new LDV V80 vans because of the combination of huge size (they were the high-roof versions) for reasonable purchase price. Our next-door neighbours have not one but two new LDV T60 pickups, which replaced a troublesome Toyota Hilux. There seems to be new LDVs around than any of the other Chinese brands.
As an aside, when I started reading this story, I had to laugh at the Google-ad at the top:
cash conscious tradies and chinese loyalists seem to buy Chinese vehicles at least where I am. be interesting to see how that develops.