Europeans Would Rather Buy Chinese Cars Than American Ones: Study

"This year's IAA could almost be considered a Shanghai Auto Show exurb, with all the Chinese brands swarming the exhibition halls and announcing grand plans. It can be overwhelming. This year, yet another Chinese brand, GAC, announced its intention to bring the somewhat reasonably priced Aion V to Europe. There are a lot of Chinese brands in Europe, surely they can't all be doing well, no?"

"Escalent surveyed buyers in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy between May 21 and July 31 of this year, and learned that the perception of Chinese brands is surpassing that of American brands. Specifically, the firm found that buyers are more willing to consider a Chinese car over an American one by a somewhat substantial percentage. The study showed that 47% of potential buyers surveyed would consider a Chinese car, compared to 44% of the same buyers considering an American car."

A strong presence of Chinese automakers at the IAA reflects aggressive European expansion plans, including GAC's intent to sell the Aion V in Europe. Escalent surveyed buyers in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy between May 21 and July 31 and found rising consideration for Chinese cars. Consideration rose from 31% in 2024 to 47% in the current survey, while consideration for American cars fell from 51% to 44%. Trust in Chinese goods increased from 12% to 19%. Chinese brands are building advertising, marketing and dealer networks to support these gains.

Read at InsideEVs