Already a subscriber?It is fairly easy to count the number of car makers in any country – except China, which has moved from wannabe to a leader in the global auto industry at breakneck speed.
“It’s just how much effort you want to put into things,” says Victor Zhang, director of the China office of global automotive research consultancy SBD Automotive. “I think at this stage Chinese car manufacturers are more committed to get things done.” “Markets such as Australia that don’t have tariffs and non-tariff barriers are extremely attractive ,” says Tony Weber, chief executive of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries. He points out the country is already the third-biggest supplier of new cars to Australia – some from new brands, others from well-established international makers – and that the quality is meeting buyer expectations.
He says some brands will soon leave such a fast-paced market. “So there is a definite process of consolidation to possibly 25 or 26 makes.” This is a reference to the trope that China could use over-the-air software downloads to suddenly “brick” all the Chinese cars on foreign roads. That may be far-fetched, but today’s vehicles do produce vast amounts of data and makers can tap into it – and not just Chinese ones. Some GM owners in the US were recently stunned to find their insurance premiums had increased because GM had shared data about their driving style with the insurers.