Global brands face challenge of rising domestic car quality

• Source: Global Times
• [14:26 January 20 2011]
• Comments

Climbing the ladder

Mitsubishi Motors President Osamu Masuko agreed, saying he was impressed when he recently test-drove BYD's F6 sedan.

"For a company that's only been in this business for a few years, it's remarkable," he said. "And they're going to keep improving with every model change. One day, Chinese automakers could be a formidable competitor."

Toyota Motor's R&D chief, Takeshi Uchiyamada, also said he saw big improvements in the interior and exterior packaging as he walked around the auto show.

"These are show models so I don't know how they would actually drive, but the products on display look a lot better than they did in the past," he said.

Some analysts have said that Chinese brands could become rivals outside their native market sooner than most automakers reckon.

"Chinese car companies are climbing the technology and quality ladder at such a pace that we believe within a few years, some domestic brands will able to compete with global brands both at home and overseas," Nomura International analyst Yankun Hou wrote in a recent report.

Hou said he saw SAIC, Geely, BYD, Great Wall Motor and Chery as potential winners down the line.

Reuters