A number of Chery vehicles in SUV, mini hatch, panel van and sedan shapes, have been spotted at the testing facility of Gerotek, north of Pretoria, the capital city of South Africa. The vehicles, obviously going through familiarisation with that country’s unique environments, were snapped parked near Gerotek’s technical testing centre.
No clear indication yet of which of the Chery models will eventually make their market appearance in SA towards the end of 2008, joining other Chinese names like GWM, Foton, Meiya and others. Chery has the benefit of producing near-Korean quality vehicles, but their designs have come under constant fire for being plagiarised from other automakers. The company sold 381 000 vehicles in 2007, up 24.8 percent from 2006.
More often than not, western markets raise the question of quality when it comes to Chinese-manufactured vehicles, yet everyone acknowledges that many of their toys, electronics, sneakers etc, boast a “made in China” sticker where the eyes can’t see. Chery is a Germany TUV-certified company, not meaning they match German quality, but rather that they meet the minimum standards required, whatever those may be. No need to panic then. Or is there?
Chery cars spotted in SA
4WheelPilot / Red Chery, anyone?
Chery's global expansion continues
By Thami Masemola
February 17, 2008 5:04 PM
Filed Under: Chery, Spy Photos
Comments
paiva
February 17, 2008 6:01 PM
These retardeds who look like children playing car companies, somehow, managed to take the old daewoo matiz and the old toyota hiace (!!!!) and make them even uglier. Chery guys, just because you're selling in the 3rd world to poor people doesn't mean you have the right to make fun of them!!! Grow up...
smokeonit1
February 17, 2008 6:56 PM
but the vw lupo has normal sized wheels, not miniature sized wheels...
smokeonit1
February 17, 2008 6:58 PM
and the van is one ugly mofo...
from the license plate space it looks like the sedan is for the US market...
Bremen_Koenigsegg
February 17, 2008 8:11 PM
How do the Chinese do it? How do they show up at work every day and think, "Yup, today is another day. Another opportunity to show to the world exactly what we're capable of." How adept must they be at constantly, consciously ignoring criticism? They are an embarrassment to the automotive industry.
eddy
February 17, 2008 9:16 PM
They are a growing industry. They began building cars just about 10 years ago and they get better with each new generation of that products. Just think of that what Hyundai was in the 90s or what Nissan and Toyota were in the 70s and 80s (in that years the American automotive industry CEOs thought that Japanese brands would never become a danger for them). And the Chinese are even faster at getting better than the Japanese and the Koreans were in their market-entry time.
joelynn
February 17, 2008 10:57 PM
I find the need to copy other makers designs incomprehensible... how much would you have to pay a designer (maybe from europe if they want european design) to create fresh cars- not much I'd have thought. if there's no-one else I'll do it...
radmeister
February 18, 2008 9:47 AM
Its not just about those costs, you have to remember most of the parts for quite a few of the manufacturers are made in china anyways so why not use what you already make in china? Mix a little bit from here, from there to create a somewhat new car with a minimal design and production cost. Who really cares if they are copying if they can offer a VERY similar product for half the price who cares?
wolff
February 18, 2008 10:44 AM
this is where the Chinese r shpwing their superiority when it comes to business over other conventional American and European companies.. rather than build cars for the mighty n the rich, they r building it for the poorer lot and make as much money!! n one must remember that India n China r still only growing in this industry, n r not pros like the European n American companies.. so, their start might now look all ugly n obscure.. but thats how all auto companies started.. who knows, tomorrow Chery could be he world's largest auto maker!! :O give time n not just sit n criticise..
Bremen_Koenigsegg
February 18, 2008 6:22 PM
There is nothing more intrusive in an automobile's appeal than signs the car was built solely as a product of a faceless manufacturer. The Chinese ought not be commended for their "successful" business strategies since they are diluting our rich automotive culture with the equivalent of automotive saline. History shows this strategy has worked for Japanese and Korean cars, but that was decades ago, when the industry wasn't as uncertain as it is now -- when the rules and the technology weren't so aggressive. You can only get away with being competitively inexpensive for so long, and doing so now is harder than ever.
joelynn
February 19, 2008 1:26 AM
the Chery QQ isn't so bad but another of their cars, the Amulet shows precisely why the chinese car industry has a long way to come- watch it's crash test, and those on the Landwind and Brilliance BS6- they're really quite frightening. I worry that people will buy these cars without realising the safety sacrifices they are making.
pscs
February 19, 2008 3:02 PM
im in SA and i can see more and more of these cars on the roads.
that red car is just basically the old version of the Daewoo Matiz / Chevy Spark. these cars have been so common that the original developer somehow released the 'blueprint' so they can make their own aka generic.
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