Does Russia have a way out of the Chinese auto industry?
- October 26, 2023
- 0
Sales of Chinese trucks in our country are growing at a rapid pace, which is causing serious concerns among experts. Is it worth worrying about the strategic industry
Sales of Chinese trucks in our country are growing at a rapid pace, which is causing serious concerns among experts. Is it worth worrying about the strategic industry and isn’t it time for the state to intervene in the situation so as not to be held hostage by the one and only partner that currently rules this segment? The portal “AvtoVzglyad” discovered this after carefully listening to the experts who participated in the “round table” recently held in the online publication “Reedus”.
During the first nine months of this year, sales of Chinese trucks in Russia have – without exaggeration – simply shown explosive growth. For example, for the Sitrak brand they grew more than 17 times (compared to the same period in 2022), and for FAW, for example – 4 times. Such “heavenly” brands as Foton and Dongfeng are also actively gaining momentum.
On the one hand, it is good that the vacuum created after the European G7 fled our market is being filled. This means that market mechanisms worked and prevented the formation of a shortage in this extremely important economic niche. On the other hand, Chinese trucks are still a dark horse in a sense and there are many questions about their quality.
“Transport companies obviously need to modernize their fleet, which became outdated during the pandemic, but safety issues are also of great importance,” says the chairman of the Association of Transport Experts and Specialists. Taras Koval, who noted that with the change of supplier, each dealer began to carry the warranty on the equipment sold independently, although sellers turned a blind eye to warranty obligations. At the same time, a number of Chinese cars have not yet proven themselves from the positive side and their defects have already led to accidents.
“For example, Sitraks have a sore spot: bridges, and it is extremely difficult to find spare parts for them,” Vladimir Matyagin, chairman of the Gruzavtotrans association, supported his colleague. “I think in a year or two we will see a decline in Chinese truck purchases. There are no spare parts, no service: the packaging is nice, but the quality is not the same…
According to the director of the analysis agency “Avtostat” Sergei Tselikov We have so many old freight vehicles in our country (their average age is 22-23 years old) that it is still a question of who we should be more afraid of: our dead cars or the new “Chinese”. It is important who uses this technology and how. And this is what you really need to monitor and control the situation. The dealers themselves also want to ensure that there are no excesses on the roads.
“Currently, precisely those companies that worked with European brands are engaged in distribution and dealership,” says the general manager of the Avtodom Subscription project. Maxim Shishkowho emphasized that comtrans dealers have an interest in ensuring that the warranty is maintained and that the cars do not break down.
Experts also discussed the question of whether it is possible to localize the production of trucks in the Russian Federation, making them cheaper and more accessible. The difficulty here, however, is that domestic automakers currently cannot plan anything more than a quarter in advance. And the state is in no hurry to intervene and, if possible, force Chinese partners to open their staging areas in our country.
“We have a problem with the contradictions between consumers and the interests of our automotive giants: all support is now focused on the latter, which greatly hinders the development of the market,” says Taras Koval. — In Europe, for example, there is a system of artificial stimulation of the car market. There are eco-standards that allow parks to be renovated according to current standards; many countries have introduced fees for travel on highways, also related to environmental requirements. We also need market stimulation. It can be redesigned, placing higher demands on vehicles, weight and size controls, work and rest schedules…
— At present, 80% of the Russian automotive industry consists of enterprises inherited from the USSR. In the passenger segment it is AVTOVAZ, in the truck segment it is KamAZ and Ural, in the light commercial segment it is GAZ,” emphasizes Sergei Tselikov. “At the same time, our car companies represent different pieces of a puzzle that no one can now put together. And without this it is impossible to understand what the real capabilities of our automotive industry are and how to distribute them correctly…
In short, the country lacks a coherent development concept that would allow us to make plans for at least 5 to 10 years. Therefore, all the talk about import substitution in our country basically goes in circles and leads to us again going to foreign manufacturers for the same car parts (now mainly to Chinese ones), because they will still make it better, faster and cheaper.
Photo: avtovzglyad.ru
Photo: avtovzglyad.ru
Photo: avtovzglyad.ru
During the first nine months of this year, sales of Chinese trucks in Russia have – without exaggeration – simply shown explosive growth. For example, for the Sitrak brand they grew more than 17 times (compared to the same period in 2022), and for FAW, for example – 4 times. Such “heavenly” brands as Foton and Dongfeng are also actively gaining momentum.
On the one hand, it is good that the vacuum created after the European G7 fled our market is being filled. This means that market mechanisms worked and prevented the formation of a shortage in this extremely important economic niche. On the other hand, Chinese trucks are still a dark horse in a sense and there are many questions about their quality.
“Transport companies obviously need to modernize their fleet, which became outdated during the pandemic, but safety issues are also of great importance,” says the chairman of the Association of Transport Experts and Specialists. Taras Koval, who noted that with the change of supplier, each dealer began to carry the warranty on the equipment sold independently, although sellers turned a blind eye to warranty obligations. At the same time, a number of Chinese cars have not yet proven themselves from the positive side and their defects have already led to accidents.
“For example, Sitraks have a sore spot: bridges, and it is extremely difficult to find spare parts for them,” Vladimir Matyagin, chairman of the Gruzavtotrans association, supported his colleague. “I think in a year or two we will see a decline in Chinese truck purchases. There are no spare parts, no service: the packaging is nice, but the quality is not the same…
According to the director of the analysis agency “Avtostat” Sergei Tselikov We have so many old freight vehicles in our country (their average age is 22-23 years old) that it is still a question of who we should be more afraid of: our dead cars or the new “Chinese”. It is important who uses this technology and how. And this is what you really need to monitor and control the situation. The dealers themselves also want to ensure that there are no excesses on the roads.
“Currently, precisely those companies that worked with European brands are engaged in distribution and dealership,” says the general manager of the Avtodom Subscription project. Maxim Shishkowho emphasized that comtrans dealers have an interest in ensuring that the warranty is maintained and that the cars do not break down.
Experts also discussed the question of whether it is possible to localize the production of trucks in the Russian Federation, making them cheaper and more accessible. The difficulty here, however, is that domestic automakers currently cannot plan anything more than a quarter in advance. And the state is in no hurry to intervene and, if possible, force Chinese partners to open their staging areas in our country.
“We have a problem with the contradictions between consumers and the interests of our automotive giants: all support is now focused on the latter, which greatly hinders the development of the market,” says Taras Koval. — In Europe, for example, there is a system of artificial stimulation of the car market. There are eco-standards that allow parks to be renovated according to current standards; many countries have introduced fees for travel on highways, also related to environmental requirements. We also need market stimulation. It can be redesigned, placing higher demands on vehicles, weight and size controls, work and rest schedules…
— At present, 80% of the Russian automotive industry consists of enterprises inherited from the USSR. In the passenger segment it is AVTOVAZ, in the truck segment it is KamAZ and Ural, in the light commercial segment it is GAZ,” emphasizes Sergei Tselikov. “At the same time, our car companies represent different pieces of a puzzle that no one can now put together. And without this it is impossible to understand what the real capabilities of our automotive industry are and how to distribute them correctly…
In short, the country lacks a coherent development concept that would allow us to make plans for at least 5 to 10 years. Therefore, all the talk about import substitution in our country basically goes in circles and leads to us again going to foreign manufacturers for the same car parts (now mainly to Chinese ones), because they will still make it better, faster and cheaper.
Source: Avto Vzglyad
Donald Salinas is an experienced automobile journalist and writer for Div Bracket. He brings his readers the latest news and developments from the world of automobiles, offering a unique and knowledgeable perspective on the latest trends and innovations in the automotive industry.
