What's Your Take On Chinese Cars In America?

The Chinese cars are coming. In spite of the Trump administration's opposition to imports, seemingly of any kind, it is starting to feel inevitable that the U.S. market will soon see Chinese-branded imports. Just a couple of weeks ago Ford CEO Jim Farley mentioned that he thinks it'll happen within five to ten years. For better or worse, the automotive market is increasingly international, and the Chinese brands understand that better than anyone in Detroit seems to. Breaking into the world's second-largest automotive market would be a huge boon for the BYDs, Xpengs, and Xiaomis. 

Take today's question of the day as something of a temperature check on Chinese cars in America. There are already plenty of Chinese-built cars here, including some Volvos, Polestars, Lincolns, and Waymo's imported Zeekr robotaxis. I remember seeing BYDs and Great Walls at the North American International Auto Show over 20 years ago, touting plans to import their cars that have not yet come to fruition. Maybe the market conditions weren't right, maybe the cars weren't good enough, or maybe the American buying public wasn't comfortable enough with "Made In China" labels yet, but we've been on the verge of Chinese brands having dealerships here for most of my life. Is it finally going to happen? 

If it is going to happen, how do you feel about it? Are you an American-made loyalist, or do you not really care where you car is built? If China launched a competent Mazda MX-5 competitor tomorrow with a slick manual transmission and great driving dynamics, and it was priced at, say, 15,000 smackaroonies, are you buying one, or do you stand on some kind of anti-Chinese principles? Whatever your thoughts, your reasonings, and your feelings, I want to hear about it. 

Sound off in the comments below with your thoughts on Chinese imports and we'll discuss it. Then I'll pick a few of my favorites to recap for everyone else on Monday.

This is an extremely complex topic, and there are way too many variables to say definitively what is going to happen in the next five to ten years, but I think the industry is in for a real shake up. Look back through the history of the American car market, and you'll get an eye on what might happen. Perhaps you remember back to the 1970s when Japanese cars came on full-steam and started tearing market share out of the hands of the Big Three. Or you remember the 1990s when Japan got so good at building cars the Miata basically ended the little British car, the NSX sent Ferrari back to the drawing board, and Lexus launched the LS400 to punch Mercedes-Benz right in the face. Also in the 1990s we saw Korean cars cutting their teeth, and Kia/Hyundai/Genesis/Magma are currently in their 90s Japanese era. 

China has had a couple of decades to develop their own flavor, and unlike the Japanese or the Koreans, they haven't focused their export efforts on the U.S. market. Right now the Chinese brands are pushing through the Global South like a wildfire, grabbing massive market share in countries that have largely been ignored. Over the last five years Chinese brands have pushed into the European theater like an overly confident Risk player. In 2021 Chinese brands accounted for just 0.5% of the European car market, but their influence has expanded to 10.9% back in June. These aren't cheap junk cars, they're competent and competitive. 

American consumers are incredibly price conscious, and brand disloyal. If Amazon could drop ship you a brand new pickup truck from China for $25,000, they'd be sold out by next week. Things are about to get really interesting, and based on their current offerings, I'm not sure Detroit can keep up. Maybe Germany can't either. Japan still has a few good decades left, if they're lucky.