Celicamaro

But maybe some of y'all might find it interesting.

GM's China market share exceeds VW's

Variety of new models, competitive pricing and marketing strategies are credited for the success.

By Eugene Tang and Stephen Engle / Bloomberg News


General Motors Corp. ended Volkswagen AG's 20-year run as the biggest overseas automaker in China, the world's third-largest vehicle market, after releasing five new Chevrolet and Cadillac models in the first six months of 2005.

Sales by GM and its three local ventures rose 19 percent in the first half to 308,722 vehicles, giving the carmaker a record 10.9 percent share of China's market. Volkswagen, which began making cars in China 12 years before GM, said it sold 262,198 units in the same period.

"New models, competitive pricing and appropriate marketing strategies are fueling GM's efforts to get ahead of rivals, including Volkswagen," said Yale Zhang, an analyst with CSM Asia Corp. in Shanghai.

China contributed an estimated 25 percent to GM's 2004 global profit, as the economy's 9 percent growth rate made cars affordable to more people. GM, which invested almost $2 billion in China since 1997, last year announced $3 billion of additional funds to double production in the country by 2007 while reducing output in the United States and in Europe.

The world's largest car company, which makes vehicles in 32 countries, re-badged five new models from Australia, South Korea and the United States for production in China in the first half. Volkswagen, the world's fourth-largest carmaker, released only the Caddy multipurpose vehicle in the same period.

China's car sales increased 15 percent last year, after surging 76 percent in 2003 and rising 50 percent in 2002. Customers who postponed purchases last year to hold out for discounts by competing carmakers are being drawn back to show rooms by new models, GM said.

"There's no question that this year's numbers are recovering very nicely and we expect the market to grow between 10 and 15 percent for the year," GM's China President Kevin Wale said.

GM's five new models in the first half included Chevrolet compact cars, under the Chevrolet brand, Cadillac luxury sedans and a so-called premium Buick car for business users under the Buick marque.

With this story, I'm now convince GM vehicles are worth no more than Chinese made ones, thatt americans are being ridiculously charged. So yes, I will consider a $7000 chinese car since millions put their faith in GM cars that aren't worth anymore.

Kaban

Oh no...not only will GM build crappy unsafe cars in North America, now they will start building crappy unsafe cars in China. I feel bad for anyone in China who drives those.

Celicamaro

The chinese don't have enough ambulance chasers yet and the people there can't drive worth crap, so trying not to run someone over cuz one can't drive takes precedent over ones car not working right. Just having a car or being able to afford one is already a luxury, so GM is safe for now.

mmarshall

Well, unsafe cars alone in China are not the whole problem. I'm not trying to sound racist here or degrading, but China today has some of the world's most unskilled drivers and horrendous accident and fatality rates. The country is just now starting to make the transition from a primitive ricksha and bicycle society to a modern motor-vehicle-based one....one reason why oil prices are up from demand. Many Chinese drivers, new to the world of cars and driving, besides not knowing basic safety rules, simply do not grasp the inherent danger of 1-3 tons of vehicle moving down the road at up to triple-digit speeds, the enormousness of impact forces, and the laws of physics in braking and cornering.........and the Chinese system of issuing drivers' licenses doesn't help much either. Chinese drivers, on some occasions, have been known to enter a fast-moving freeway, decide it's not the road they want, DO A U-TURN, and drive BACK right down the SAME lane into oncoming traffic trying to get back to the entrance ramp.

GS3Tek

iTrader: (8)

Mmarshall, sounds exactly like southern California driving to me
You have the 10 minute right turn, merging into lanes without looking, brake checking literally every minute, using a sheet of newspaper to cover the blinding sun but can't see didly squat ........ .
Wait, I'm getting off topic here

st-187

wow! gross generalizations.....

first things cool guy, lets see you try and make sense of street signs in Cantoneese, or Mandarin, then learn to co-exist with hundred of scooters, buses, and rikshaws surrounding you as you drive down a very crowded street.

That is true, however the blame cannot be completly placed upon the people them selves, I belive that this has more to do with their government, and the way they run things. Not making excuses but, how are the people of China suppossed to learn to drive, if over half of its populous is can't read? And if they can't read how on earth are they supposed to take a written exam? And if they can read, depending on where they take the test, the language might be diffrent, so they're still screwed

Well I can say this for sure, Fewer cars, means less people on cell phones while driving, (yes they have those in china as well) and less people putting on make-up in their cars (you know who you are )

Celicamaro

You're right, it's a combination of many things, but I still stick with my generalization that the people there in general can't drive as well as we do here in the US. We and many other modernize nations have more experience at being bad drivers than they do.