Cars
Autoshow-A long drive to global dominance for China carmakers
(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-04-23 16:25
 |
Large Medium Small |
Chairman of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Li Shufu sits in a Geely car at the Beijing Auto Show in Beijing April 23, 2010. China overtook the United States as the world's biggest auto market in terms of number of vehicles sold in 2009, helped by Beijing's incentives. [Agencies] |
C-class or just CK?
Competing on the global stage will also require greater innovation from China's auto industry. To date, however, China's carmakers have built much of their success by utilising the technology and designs of foreign competitors.
"We have seen in the past that there was a lot of copying and imitating," Paur said.
The Geely CK, for example, bears a striking resemblance to the Mercedes-Benz's C-Class cars. And on the highway BYD's F3 model, the best selling model in China, could easily be mistaken for a Toyota Corolla.
"I think to be a world market leader you need to bring innovation to the market; you need to be a leader in new products in the next stage of development," said Bonnell.
Green cars are emerging as one bright spot for China, with Chinese carmakers displaying a range of electric and hybrid cars at this year's Beijing Autoshow.
"I see China taking the lead in electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles for a combination reasons. It has a good chance to outride others in terms of the market, in terms of government support and in terms of raw materials supply," said Sharma.
The problem, say analysts, is that there aren't any good companies up for sale.
"After Saab and Hummer slipped through the hands of Chinese car manufacturers, and Volvo has been bought by Geely, I don't see relevant international acquisition targets for domestic car manufacturers in the near future," said Paur. But he expects carmakers to intensify collaborations across borders, which would mutually benefit Chinese and foreign and manufacturers.
Instead of buying brands or technology, BYD signed an agreement last month with Daimler to jointly develop electric cars for China.
