FAW Benteng takes on Accord and Camry in China
It's a well-known fact that foreign automakers desiring to crack the Chinese market are required by the government to buddy up with a Chinese domestic automaker. First Automotive Works Group (FAW) is in bed with not only Volkswagen and Toyota, but Ford's Japanese affilitate, as well, with which it produces the Mazda6 for the Chinese market. At last week's Hangszhou Auto Show FAW introduced the Mazda6-based Benteng midsize sedan that will take on the Accord and Camry in China with a pair of 2.0L and 2.3L engines, a five-speed manual tranny, ABS with electronic brake force distribution, stability control and six airbags. Inside Line is reporting FAW hopes to sell 10,000 units in China by the end of the year, though doesn't plan to export the sedan to foreign markets.
[Source: Global Auto Index via Inside Line]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Source 1 6:13PM (5/22/2006)
This offering eerily resembles a Nissan Sonata. Well, you know what I mean
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Paqza 6:32PM (5/22/2006)
Source 1, I think it looks more like the Dodge Corvette, personally...*rolls eyes*
And yes, I could see how you could see the resemblance between that and the Hyundai Sonata. Of course, being based on the Mazda6 platform, it probably handles much better than aforementioned Hyundai.
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Source 1 6:42PM (5/22/2006)
I doubt a knockdown unit built in China is going to perform like a world class built, original platform, Hyundai Sonata.
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Ben 7:14PM (5/22/2006)
err ... Hyundai looks pretty knockdown to me ....
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Carlos 7:28PM (5/22/2006)
Well they've certainly caught up in sheetmetal-stamping skills. And styling, too.
I'll be keeping an eye out for Benteng...
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Gimpy 9:14PM (5/22/2006)
Anything made in China is junk. This smells like trash.
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iQuack 11:47PM (5/22/2006)
There will some day be Chinese car brands in the U.S. and some will probably be excellent. But it's not going to happen tomorrow.
This from another article discussing the number of car companies in China:
"However, only two of the 123 Chinese auto manufacturers produce more than 500,000 units a year, with eight others each with an output of over 100,000. There are 95 factories each with an annual output less than 10,000, including 70 each producing less than 1, 000 automobiles every year."
There will be many failures and buy-outs before Chinese auto manufacturing is ready for prime time.
People who buy the first of the Chinese brands to come to the U.S. shouldn't expect too much except very low prices and lousy resale values to offset whatever price advantages there might have been.
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Lucas 7:51AM (5/23/2006)
We should not be so quick discounting China as becoming able to produce world-class cars in a relatively short time. I applaud Chinese manufacturers for their ability to incorporate very current design trends into their products. We cannot expect them to gain "brand identity" overnight! My opinion is that as Chinese customers get more and more informed and educated every day, this will drive their car manufacturers towards making better and better products.
Nevertheless, getting to the level of refinement, reliability, style, etc. of any Western, Japanese, or even Korean manufacturer is still a colossal endeavor.
But Chinese are very patient and methodical...
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icebin 8:58AM (5/23/2006)
http://cn.autoblog.com/2006/05/22/china-guanzhou-toyota-camry-sale-now/
http://cn.autoblog.com/2006/04/26/china-guangzhou-toyota-camry-show/
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icebin 9:00AM (5/23/2006)
http://cn.autoblog.com/2006/05/18/china-faw-new-auto-c301-name-benteng/
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Source1 9:33AM (5/23/2006)
'err ... Hyundai looks pretty knockdown to me ....'
You appear to possess limited understanding of what a 'knockdown' unit is and with that in mind, I will not further discuss the world-class status of the Sonata or the latest offerings from Hyundai. I continue to be amazed at the profound ignorance of people who claim to 'know' the car market but don't have a clue about this manufacturer in 2006.
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Erik 9:40AM (5/23/2006)
"perform like a world class built, original platform, Hyundai Sonata."
Haaa! LOL! Good one!
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Juan 11:11AM (5/23/2006)
How'd this become about the Hyundai Sonata? The Sonata's a good car in its own right, but I'm here to talk about the Chinese. I'm actually immpressed with the design of this vehcile, considering that just a few years ago their designs were complete crap (hideous). I'm interested in seeing how this whole thing will play in the next decade or so and you never know what can/might happen. Remember "It's always the ones you least expect"
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Ben 12:07PM (5/23/2006)
"You appear to possess limited understanding of what a 'knockdown' unit is and with that in mind, I will not further discuss the world-class status of the Sonata or the latest offerings from Hyundai. I continue to be amazed at the profound ignorance of people who claim to 'know' the car market but don't have a clue about this manufacturer in 2006."
last time I check Hyundai was not a "World-class" car manufacturer.
Who gives out these "World-class" status anyway !? .. Do they give these status out in some Source1 family meeting or something ?
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Mr. Jacksmith 11:33PM (5/23/2006)
Chinese cars won't have any success in the U.S. They can't even build gas engines without copying GM/Daewoo, Toyota, Hyundai, Honda, BMW, and other car companies. Their cars can't even pass U.S. emissions. The automobile engine technology is slowly shifting from traditional fuel to hydrogen fuel cells. Current car companies in the U.S. are scrambling to find the best engine technology of the future - hybrids, ethanol 85, bio diesel, hydrogen, fuel cells, and others. Chinese companies are just beginning to figure out how traditional gas engines work! The only way chinese companies can succeed in the U.S. is to offer value cars. Value doesn't mean cheap in price, technology, and quality. The price has to be cheap, but it has to have great build quality. The Chinese have never been able to offer the world any "value" products. Just cheap garbage that's disposable in a couple of months.
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kkrit ilovewasa 2:01AM (6/08/2006)
It's face and it's headlights are looks so VERY GOOD!!!!!
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tio 11:05PM (7/16/2006)
Hmmm looks more like they grafted a long nose on a chevy cobalt 4 door.
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