How automakers are arming the Chinese car invasion
How important is the Chinese market to such automakers as Volkswagen, Honda and General Motors? Important
enough that virtually every major automaker is not only building modern plants in the Middle Kingdom but sharing their
proprietary technologies. The Toyota Prius, for example, is assembled in China as well as Japan. And the Chinese automakers are just not learning technology. In the past, most Chinese automakers would stockpile parts for their vehicles. Now they are learning just-in-time techniques from their foreign partners, becoming more efficient while maintaining quality products.
"I've seen the Chinese vehicles in China from various, various brands,” said Tom LaSorda, CEO of Chrysler, “and I've said it's a threat that will come to the U.S., I think, by the end of the decade.”
Specific details, such as how the Chinese Lifan Group is trying to buy an advanced factory by DaimlerChrysler and BMW, or how Shanghai Automotive started their own brand while in partnership with General Motors and Volkswagen, can be found at the link.
[Source: The New York Times via CRIEnglish]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ZoomZoomin' 4:17PM (3/18/2006)
D'uh...have rope, will travel.
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ZoomZoomin' 4:33PM (3/18/2006)
"I, for one, welcome our new Chinese overlords"
People are so caught up in the "terrorism" hysteria, that they forget that China is also one of our biggest looming problems. Not Japan, not the EU, it's going to be China that could rise up and sweep them all. It has a few social instabilities that could hinder them a bit, but in terms of resources, they've got quite a few good things in their favor, plus the strong will to crush us and just about everyone else.
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Car-la 6:22AM (3/19/2006)
China gets more and more scary every day. With all the manpower they have, and the knowledge they are slowly acquiring, China will be even more of an industrial power in the future. I can't really understand, why western companies try everything to protect their developments in the western world, but then go to China, the country that is best known for its disregard of copyrights, and simply hand out their knowledge to the local industry there.
In the end it's up to the consumer, though. If we buy local stuff, our industry will survive.
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Ernest Michaelson 7:17AM (3/19/2006)
I hope for China's sake that their cars are better than their motorcycles. I saw many Japanese motorcycles in China because the China made one were not reliable.
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Artie43 12:03PM (3/19/2006)
We have the greed and corruption of Detroit management and the UAW to keep our products from being world class and price competitive. China has the Communist party doing the same thing. Until China rids itself of the corrupting influence and graft of the Party, they will find it hard to develop world class products. It will be somewhat easier since their labor base is so low, but it will still be a major problem for them.
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