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Paris: Low cost vehicles were absent, and medium or even high quality vehicles equipped with advanced technologies were overshadowed by the products unveiled by the Chinese car manufacturers who are present at the Mondial de Lotomobile World Fair in Paris, aiming to conquer the European market, which is becoming more and more dependent.
The most important Chinese companies, such as BYD, Great Wall Motors and Ceres, were present on Monday on the first day of the Parisian fair, unlike many of the historical companies operating in the sector, with the exception of the French ones.
“It’s a popular car show in the heart of Europe. We’re here to get public attention,” said BYD Europe spokesman Mike Pellenfante.
In an official ceremony, the Chinese company handed the car keys to its first French customers at its stand on Monday.
BYD exhibits three models at the Paris Mondial, including two luxury cars, “Han” and “Tang”, and the price of each of these two cars is over $ 70,000. The company tries to consolidate its presence throughout Europe and not settle for the north of the continent (Scandinavia, Belgium, the Netherlands …), where its presence is currently concentrated.
“We’re competing with technology, not price,” said Mike Bellenfante.
BYD already has extensive experience in the car battery industry, including a more compact model that is less likely to catch fire if damaged, according to the manufacturer. This innovation aroused the interest of “Toyota”, which equipped some of its vehicles.
No sales targets have been set, Pellenfante underlined, as “what matters is to create the image of our brand”. The domestic market remains a priority for the company, which sold 200,000 cars in China last month.
As for “Ceres”, owned by the Chinese giant “Dongfeng”, it presented two vehicles destined for the European market, one of which “Ceres 3” and the second “SF5”, which will be homologated at the end of 2022.
The “Series 3”, an electric SUV for cities, is sold at a price of 33,990 euros, which “is not a low price, but it is in line with market prices,” said Thomas Misnil, marketing director of the company. which deals with the import of “Serie” cars.
Misnil hopes to supply 70 outlets for “series” vehicles by the end of the year in France, which the company has chosen as the starting point for its cars in Europe, noting that the goal is to sell around 1,500 cars. in 2023.
Another brand distributed by his company, “If France” in France, is “Leap Motor”, considered one of the newest in the Chinese auto industry, since it was founded in 2016. The company now sells ten thousand cars a month in La China, which is a large volume of sales for a startup.
The company has introduced the T03 electric car dedicated to cities on the French market, which it also exhibits at the “Paris Mondial”, and its price is less than 20 thousand euros after deducting the “environmental premium” of seven thousand euros.
Another new car model in France and more generally in Europe is the “Great Wall Motors” (GWM), and the manufacturer has a large stand on display to highlight its models dedicated to the old continent.
Great Wall Motors Europe President Henri Myung described the Paris Motor Show as a “perfect opportunity”. This company, with 40 years of experience in the sector, including ten in the field of electric and hybrid cars, began sales in Germany on Monday with the hybrid SUV “We Coffee 01” for 55,900 euros, and is expected to be launched on the French market. from 2023.
The keen interest of banks and their proprietary leasing services in Asian automotive products reflects the growing importance of the companies that manufacture them.
The automotive services divisions of these banks are partnering with several Asian brands, as did France’s Credit Agricole with China’s Always and Vietnam’s Finfast to increase their offerings.
