Unfazed by claims that Chery Automobile’s QQ minicar is a copy of the Daewoo Matiz, some European dealers want to start importing the model.
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“Friends of mine are interested in importing cheap cars from China,” Todor Saslekov, a Hong Kong-based Bulgarian businessman told Automotive News Europe. “Chery seems to have the best designs. We want to start by importing the QQ,” he said.
Saslekov was among half a dozen groups of European entrepreneurs who made presentations in Chery’s VIP area at the show. They lined up to be considered as a distributor.
Most were not worried about quality concerns, illustrated by a licence plate that fell off on one model on Chery’s stand, or other issues such as technology theft.
General Motors is suing Chery, alleging that the QQ is a rip-off of the design of the Daewoo Matiz made and sold in China as the Chevrolet Spark.
Chery claims it paid for the design.
Chery aims to begin exporting to Europe in 2007. Saslekov is optimistic that Chery’s cars will sell in Europe, but cautiously so.
“The problem with Chinese cars is that they are something new. People are not used to Chinese cars,” he said. “It is a risky investment.”
European automaker executives also visited Chery’s stand. Nick Reilly, CEO of GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co., examined Chery’s S16 minicar concept, which was displayed at the show.
“It looks like they put a new top on our platform,” he said.
Qin Lihong, Chery’s marketing vice president, said the automaker plans to export to eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin America from plants assembling complete knockdown kits in Iran and Malaysia as early as this year. Exports to western Europe and the US from these plants would start in 2007.
Lihong said Chery will debut two new models at the IAA in Frankfurt in September that it plans to sell in Europe.
