Tata also calls the shots at JLR, again that doesn't make it an Indian company.

Get back to me when Geely sets up their own dealerships in the U.S. and can actually sell at volumes comparable to other established brands. That's what the Japanese and Koreans did, and what the Chinese have tried and failed to do for decades.

 

I don't think dealerships are in the cards for EV's like Polestar and other startup EV companies. The direct sell model with "spaces" will be the model, cutting out the middleman, or the Fat if you would

 

You misunderstand, I am not talking about Polestar or Volvo, I am talking about the Geely brand itself and the other domestic Chinese brands. Polestar can always fall back on Volvo dealerships if they need to.

 

That wouldn't be smart business for Geely to try and sell their existing brands like Maple, Zhidou ect. Those are specific to China (and brands intended for the European market) that Americans in large enough numbers would never buy. They are already selling brands that are known like Lotus, Volvo etc. They will probably expand on existing brands that are known, and maybe create a brand specifically for Americans. I think if the Polestar brand does well, they will expand on it

 

And therein lies the core issue of Chinese brands, and why they can't successfully replicate what the Japanese and Koreans have done. If they have to deceive customers and hide the fact that they're Chinese under existing brands from other countries, they have failed to establish themselves in the market and cannot gain public trust for their products.

Ask any Jaguar or Land Rover customer if they would buy a Tata badged vehicle... not gonna happen, assuming they even know what Tata is.

 

I would say it's extremely smart business to hide behind a brand, and if they do it right they will later build the trust of the consumer. The Polestar is a great example of that. Built in China with a Swedish facade. I'm totally impressed by the build quality and have no regrets with my purchase

 

People buy Mexican-built cars all the time, doesn't mean they'll buy a Mexican car brand. What's funny is that Mexico has more marketshare of U.S. vehicles than China does.

 

China has most of the materials that go into batteries, produce the most batteries and are going all in on electric vehicles. If they don't succeed in the U.S. market it won't be for lack of trying.

 

It's not like they didn't have the resources to build boatloads of ICE vehicles for decades. What powers the vehicles won't make any difference if they can't invest in setting up the brand itself here.

 

Makes all the difference this time, without the necessary materials and manufacturing capacity it doesn't matter how much tech and brand power a company theoretically has. Why do you think Tesla is in China, with a battery factory a mile away supplying them.

 

Then more OEM's can just build their cars in China. Unless the Chinese government can somehow bar every other foreign company on using their resources and monopolize EV's for their domestic brands, which would be both physically impossible and economic suicide, they have to put in the hard work to establish themselves globally like the Koreans and Japanese.

Notice that it's Tesla establishing themselves in China, not some Chinese brand establishing itself in the U.S.

 

I think we've beat this to death, but I just want to say quickly there is a huge difference between a car being assembled in Mexico and one built in China. There is no Mexican company that has ownership in the cars they are assembling. Only cheap labor is being used. China on the other hand has factories, raw materials, knowledge, labor, and lastly lots of money which gives them ownership. They are in the perfect position when it comes to the EV market. And they are using that position by investments in battery and EV motor tech.

It's not me saying this, but numerous experts in the auto and financial fields. I've said it before and I'll say it again... the Chinese and Koreans automakers will dominate the EV market, which is ripe for them. As another said, if they fail there will other forces at work

 

Then they will have to build their own factories in China like Tesla did, otherwise it will stay as it is now you'll get a GM built in a China owned factory.
https://www.thedetroitbureau.com/202...-s-operations/

 

But if no Chinese brand establishes itself in the U.S. or other global markets, then what difference does it make whether the car is built in China or Mexico?

They are in a position to build EVs, but their position when it comes to setting up factories, dealerships, and establishing a brand reputation in other countries hasn't made much of any progress, and that is what has always held them back.

We talk about them as one entity, but the truth is that "the Chinese" are not one singular company, they are many companies: some privately owned, some government owned, and some startups- that are fiercely competing against one another merely to survive in their home country. Global expansion is the last thing on their mind when they are already sitting in the most cutthroat, growing car market in the world. There are far more competing domestic companies in China than there are in South Korea and Japan, where Hyundai Motor Group and Toyota Motor Co. rule with an almost iron fist in their protectionist markets, which China does not afford to the same level as its domestic brands.

 

But it'll still be a GM product. If people don't care that their cars are built in Mexico by GM then I doubt being made in China will scare them away.

Nio is a startup and an ant compared to other Chinese brands like Great Wall, they are essentially in the same position as Lucid. What they do is far from representative of what other established Chinese brands will do. Their startup status gives them more flexibility to do something like this than any Chinese OEM.