Chinese cars sell well in Russia

In a Chery franchised store in the south of Moscow, the Russian capital, various models of the Tiggo series are neatly parked. February 3rd is a working day, and there are still many customers in the store who come to see the car for a test drive. Garlick, a car salesman who has worked in this store for four years, said that except for the store being closed for a period of time during the epidemic, sales have been rising steadily in recent years.

In recent years, Chinese cars have gained brand awareness in Rusia with high quality, economy and reliability, and won many fans. Nowadays, in the traffic flow on Russian roads, apart from the local Lada brand cars, there are many Chinese brands of cars.

Open hundreds of sales stores a year

According to a recent survey jointly conducted by the Russian "Auto Business Review" magazine and a local commercial bank, by the end of 2022, the number of Chinese brand car dealers in Russia will reach 1,041, accounting for almost one-third of the total number of Russian car dealers.

Last year, Russia opened 487 Chinese auto sales stores. The rapid expansion of stores is due to the strong demand for Chinese cars in the Russian market.

In 2022, Russia will import a total of about 117,000 passenger cars from China, an increase of 40% over the previous year. China has become Russia's main source of imported passenger cars.

In addition to ordinary consumers, Russian car rental companies and taxi companies are also actively purchasing Chinese cars. Since July last year, the Russian Yandex car-sharing company has begun to update its fleets in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi and other cities in stages, and has purchased hundreds of Geely's Curry, Haval, Chery Tiggo and other Chinese brand cars , will continue to update the fleet this year.

The Russian "European Project" car rental company said that the Russian car rental industry is particularly concerned about Chinese-made crossover cars, and is quite fond of Chinese car brands such as Chery, Geely, Haval, and JAC. VTB Rent a Car is sure that the share of Chinese brand cars in the Russian market will increase significantly. Russian auto expert Bulgazliyev said that before the end of this year, the share of Chinese autos in the Russian market is expected to increase to 40%.

In view of the good market prospect, Avitator, a large Russian car manufacturer mainly engaged in assembly, has begun to assemble Chinese Cowing brand cars, and is actively discussing cooperation with other Chinese car brands.

"Made in China" was affirmed by Russian counterparts

Morzaleda, a member of the public relations committee of the Federal Highway Agency of the Russian Ministry of Communications and a well-known auto expert, said in an interview with this reporter that the sales of Chinese cars in Russia benefited from the outstanding performance of Chinese auto companies to prove themselves. If it is said that some Russian consumers had prejudices against Chinese cars before, they have changed their previous impressions and have a good impression of Chinese cars.

Two years ago, Artyom, a Muscovite, bought a sports utility vehicle (SUV) from the Trumpchi brand of China's GAC. For him, this car fully meets the needs of a large family of 3 children and has all the configurations needed.

"For two years, I haven't reported it for repairs. Everything is normal and I am very satisfied." He said, "In terms of quality and comfort, it is much superior to Korean cars and Japanese cars."

Chinese cars entered the Russian market in the early 21st century. Russian consumers have always been cautious about foreign things, but as Chinese auto companies absorb senior experts in the world's automotive field and continuously improve technology and services, they have established a firm foothold in the Russian market and are increasingly consolidating their positions.

Russia's "Experts' Choice" website said in a market analysis report that in recent years, the overall quality of Chinese cars has improved rapidly, and the technology has become more advanced. Some models are not only as good as the cars of the world's leading brands, but even better in some aspects.

At present, most of the Chinese cars sold in Russia are in the middle price range, ranging from 1.8 million rubles (about 172,000 yuan) to 3.5 million rubles (about 334,000 yuan).

Analysts in the Russian industry pointed out that compared with other foreign cars of the same price, Chinese cars can often provide more fashionable exterior designs and richer and more interesting configurations, achieving a perfect balance in terms of trim level, price and technology. Moreover, the warranty time or mileage of Chinese brand cars is also longer, even reaching 7 years or 200,000 kilometers, providing consumers with practical protection. Among many foreign car brands, Chinese cars stand out.

Inject vitality into the Russian auto market

In February last year, after Russia launched a special military operation against Ukraine, Western car companies withdrew from Russia one after another, resulting in a large gap in the Russian auto market. Russia's local car brands are very single, and the Lada brand is the absolute leader in the Russian car market.

Lada cars are produced at the Volga Automobile Plant in Samara region. It previously assembled cars for Nissan, Renault and other foreign car companies, but the cooperation was interrupted after the Russian-Ukrainian conflict broke out. Last year, due to the lack of some parts, the old car factory stopped production.

Affected by Western sanctions, sales of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in Russia plummeted by about 59% year-on-year last year, and the auto market fell into a downturn. Kalitsev, chairman of the Automobile Manufacturers Committee of the Association of European Enterprises in Russia, said in January that the Russian auto market has great potential and there is a positive development trend; several new Chinese auto brands will appear in Russia this year, and the richness of brands will promote the development of the Russian auto market .

Experts in the Russian auto industry and the media are paying close attention to the movements of Chinese auto companies, tracking the progress of new launches and delivery of various brands, analyzing the performance of new models and predicting market prospects. News about Chinese autos often appears in the newspapers.

Although Western sanctions against Russia have raised costs, including tariffs and freight, resulting in a sharp increase in the price of Chinese cars sold in Russia, Russian consumers still favor Chinese cars. According to the sales data in January this year, Chinese cars became the champion of foreign car sales in Russia. Among them, among the top 10 best-selling sports utility vehicles in Russia, 8 are Chinese cars.

Russian auto expert Bruy said that although Chinese car companies currently bring low-end and mid-range cars to the Russian market, Chinese first-tier cars have already surpassed European brands and will become an excellent substitute for them. He hopes that more Chinese brands will join the Russian market as soon as possible.

At present, the Volga Automobile Factory has listed Chery and other Chinese automakers as competitors. Russian experts believe that the diversification of market participants is conducive to healthy competition.

In the future, under the eager expectation of Russian consumers and auto assemblers, it is foreseeable that more and more Chinese brands will come to fruition in Russia, injecting fresh vitality into the development of the Russian auto market.