A Chinese Invasion?

In New Zealand, a few attempts have been made by Chinese manufacturers to enter the market. Initial efforts were not successful. here is a brand summary for passenger car sales.

Geely came here in 2010 and after two years of poor annual sales at around the 60 unit mark, wound things down and left. Total sales: 130.  

Chery arrived in 2011 and a peak of 370 registrations was reached in 2013. The importer decided a couple of years later to pull the plug and they left in 2016. Total sales: 1,398.

SAIC MG then decided to give it a go in 2012 but was for some time selling cars in small numbers. By the end of 2018, only 128 sales had been made, and it seemed to be going nowhere. Then in 2019, registrations took off and for the first seven months of 2022, just over 3,000 sales and 4.8% of the market. Total sales: 9,073.

Great Wall Motors turned up in 2017 and immediately made an impact. All its passenger cars (SUVs to be precise) go under the name Haval. The pickup truck model sells as a Great Wall and is classed as a commercial vehicle so not counted here. 

It took 2.1% of registrations in 2021 and is doing the same in 2022 so far. It perhaps needs more models to progress from here. Total sales: 5,804.

LDV arrived in 2017 in the passenger car arena, having already established itself in the commercial vehicle side of things. The V in LDV stands for vans in case you're wondering. Its current car range is based around an SUV model so sales will only go so far with that. Total sales: 777.

BYD has now arrived and has opened four dealerships already with another four by September. It plans yet another four in the first part of 2023 and for a country the size of NZ, a dozen dealers will cover most of the country. 

Its first model is the Atto 3, an electric crossover (pictured above). With government incentives to encourage the take up of BEVs, it should sell quite well although it's too early to tell with just one month of sales to gauge it by. Total sales 20.

Summary: Initial efforts in NZ by Chinese brands were poor but over the last few years have started to make their mark. They are usually priced below comparable cars from elsewhere but are well specified with features so offering value for money. It's not an invasion but they are here to stay this time.