The VW Tayron is the third best-selling SUV in China in July. Factory shipments to dealerships, or wholesales, continue to decline in China with July marking 13 consecutive negative months but at -4.3% to 1.808.000 units, this is the slimmest year-on-year drop since the Chinese market abruptly started to hit…
Jinbei LCV sales gain 8% in a market down -24% in June. Wholesales of Light Commercial vehicles in China freefall -24% year-on-year in June to 231.047 units, tilting the year-to-date tally down -5% to 1.606.503. Wuling (-34%) easily remains the best-selling carmaker despite a devastating loss, distancing Foton (+4%) one…
Honda posts the largest year-on-year gain in the Top 13. A last minute sales rush in June to clear out non-compliant vehicles ahead of the implementation of Stage 6 emissions standards means the Chinese retail market is actually up 4.6% over H1 2019 to 10.630.614 units. It has been a…
Roewe retail sales more than double year-on-year in June. There is now a May 2019 Retail sales article here. Up 41.7% year-on-year, retail sales in China this month offer us the starkest possible contrast with wholesales figures, down -9.6%. Before Stage 6 emissions standards come into place in two-thirds of…
The Chery eQ1 hits a new volume record just under 9.000 sales. There is now a New Energy May 2019 article here. After hitting the brakes in May (-1.7%), the New Energy market in China is back with a vengeance, up 184.8% in June to an all-time record 211.378 units,…
In a remake of the 2018 European Summer, Alfa Romeo sales are up 1098.1% before State 6 emissions rules are put in place. There is now a China Imports May 2019 article - see here. In June, we can clearly witness the clearing of unsold State 5 stocks ahead of…
The Hongqi HS7 has arrived. After detailing national trends in our June 2019 wholesales update, it is now time to focus on the all-new locally-produced launches for the month, so you can make sure you are updated on the fastest-evolving automotive market in the world. Note these updates are based…
Honda manages to swim upstream in China, and the facelifted XR-V will continue the trend in H2. It's a Semester to forget for new light vehicle wholesales in China, down a ghastly -12.4% year-on-year over the First Half of 2019 to 12.323.000 units. This cancels four years of growth, represents…
The new Aion S EV helps GAC sales up 28% in a market down -9.6%. The loop is looped: with a -9.6% year-on-year decline in June, the Chinese wholesales market has now been down for a full year or 12 consecutive months, something that hadn't happened in at least 30…
The Foton Light Truck teases the Wuling Mini Truck for the #1 LCV spot this month. Whereas it had managed to hold up extremely well so far this year, the Chinese Light Commercial Vehicle market falls off a cliff in May at -15% to just 250.843 units, tilting the year-to-date…
It's thumbs up from me on the BYD Tang EV. I kept the best for last, and this final iteration of this China Test Drives 2019 series following the Shanghai Auto Show details the most impressive car I got to drive this year: the BYD Tang EV. BYD (for Build…
The Baojun RS-5 in Tongliao, Inner Mongolia. Last year we test drove the extremely successful Baojun 510 and 530, and in 2019 SAIC-GM's low-cost brand has taken a complete u-turn with a semi-premium stand at the Shanghai Auto Show in April in opposite trajectory with its heritage and DNA. The truth…
Geely Binyue in Kunming, Yunnan. One year ago I tested the Geely Boyue and was thoroughly impressed by its almost rally car-like handling thanks to particularly brazen sales people. I did not expect that from the "soccer mum SUV" the Boyue is. Since, Geely has released the smaller Binyue to…
Bestune T77 in Tongliao, Inner Mongolia. We interviewed the Bestune team at the Shanghai Auto Show last April to try and uncover the secrets behind the success of FAW's new brand, and the logical next step was to test drive its unique model for now, the T77 SUV, which one…
Dongfeng Aeolus AX7 in Dali, Yunnan. We continue on our series of Chinese dealership test drives with the second Dongfeng this year, this time from the Aeolus sub-brand, a Westernised name for the Chinese label Fengshen. Note that it may as well be a different brand altogether so much so…