Double Take

[pompei]

Chinese look-a-likes

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/pic ... -2009.html

 

Could also be included in the Girls from AS thread

[Guest]

It's quite frightening how quickly the Chinese car industry have progressed - they have cars that look at least Western.

 

Are any of them any good? I remember reading a German report on the Jiangling Landwind saying it was an utter deathtrap in a crash. One of the Byd s didn't do very well either......

 

I think if anything, the Chinese will come on faster than the Japanese did, because they've learned that to entice the West, your cars have to look Western. What an Occidental predicament. I'm sure there's an anthropology paper in there somewhere...........

[Richard]

I don't know about the cars but Chinese motorbikes are still made of shit.Didn't the early Japanese cars mostly look western?

[Guest]

Thing is, as well as the comical tossboxes from the likes of Chery and Geely, some of the Chinese stuff looks pretty nice. The Brilliance BS4 and BS6 look top notch (Italian designed I think) and I'd love them to join the fleet. They have Mitsubishi engines if I recall.

 

 

Lovely! I read an Autocar review of one of them (think it was the 6) and they moaned about it not having traction control - GOOD. Get rid of the ABS while you're at it.

 

To be honest, I think too much fuss is made about EuroNCAP tests. The crash test results of most new Chinese cars are probably equivalent to what would happen if you did the tests nowadays but with early 90s European stuff. The Landwind is just an old Frontera chassis if I recall. Not only that, but they are just tests - I haven't heard of a single manufacturer who has come out badly in the tests and said that they're just going to leave it like that and everyone can just sod off.

 

Thing is that the motoring press largely continue to make out Chinese cars as ridiculous, cheap and nasty as if they'll never become anything other than a joke. Didn't they learn their lesson with all the other foreign car industries over the years?

 

In conclusion, Chinese cars are coming, I can't wait. A whole new selection of definite "future shite" to behold, just think of all the old models they'll dredge up to rebadge, old 626s and things. Can't wait!

[RedSparrow]

I agree it will be interesting to see what appears on the roads in the next few years.Shame they can't produce imitations of cars that looked good in the first place!

[VWPowered]

most may look good but are they going to turn origami when you crash one

[Father Ted]

most may look good but are they going to turn origami when you crash one

Simples - dont crash one.Whats your daily driver these days? Mine is a K11 - an OLD K11 with extra rust - bet it crumples up more than one of the new Chinky motahs does. And even if it doesnt people have become too complacent about being indestructable in a car these days. I say let all new drivers drive round in a Moggie 1000 with a sharp spike protruding from the steering wheel centre - we would have some much more considerate and careful drivers on the road.

[Father Ted]

 

KWOLITY - a 4 door mini-clone.

Im up for one of them

[Ratdat]

The Japanese motor industry pretty much had to start from scratch after the war but by 1960 they were producing credible cars and a decade later were on their way massive success in export markets. By the 80's they were producing products on a par and better than some other countries. The Koreans have done the same but if anything in less time than the Japanese. Look at what Hyundai were making 25 years ago compared to now. The Chinese will do it even faster. They may not currently have to automotive technical experience to build on a par with Europe now but give them 5 years and they'll be there. The way the western manufacturers, motoring press and media in general refer to Chinese built cars with derision makes me chuckle as it seems they haven't learned anything in the last 50 years. They looked upon Japanese cars in exactly the same way in the 1950's and 60's and now Toyota rule the world in car manufacturing.

[carlo]

And can you imagine the state of our car industry when the Chinese do finally come on strong?Probably reduced to pushing out a few Tatas with Jaguar badges on the front.

[Pillock]

Look back 15 or 20 years. Anyone buying a Skoda back then was either a skinflint or a weirdo, and the jokes were created to suit. Unreliable, outdated technology, poor dealer network and deathtrap cars.Now? Octavias are proabably the most reasonable purchase out of all the VAG-platformed cars, and you can't go wrong with a Fabia either.I give it a couple of decades before we have a dealer network for the Chinese cars, they've phased out the blatant copies in favour of standing on their own two legs and saying "look, we can design stuff too" and execs are realising they can get a luxo-barge with heated seats, vibrating sunvisors and electric glovebox lids for £25k new and pocket the change out of their allowance.

[trigger]

 

At least they are keeping to original designs and not copying any other manufactures...

 

 

Oh, Whoops