Ford experience significant to Chinese auto companies

• Source: Global Times
• [23:02 June 10 2009]
• Comments

Some Chinese enterprises own too many brands to develop. The sales volume of a single brand or a single model is very small.

Some models or brands performed well for a year or two in the market, but the prosperity was “easy come, easy go.” This caused an enormous waste of brand resources, research and development resources and sales resources.

Chinese motor companies have not realized globalization like the three automakers in the US. But their scattered production and R&D is far worse than that of their American rivals.

Automotive factories are everywhere and each one has a similar R&D center. This has something to do with the development stage of China’s auto industry, to be sure. But lacking cooperation is really to blame.

Chinese car companies should concentrate on the development of their core brands and then improve the integrity of their production platforms. The industry must be centralized, with improvements in research and development and sales.

The American auto industry will look different after the crisis. Small, fuel-efficient cars will be popular. Ford has started on meeting the changing market two years ago, with developing fuel efficient vehicles, like hybrid and electric cars.

GM, on the other hand, provides us with a bad example. It gave up an early advantage it had in building electric vehicles, and continued producing high horsepower vehicles despite increasing oil prices.

China has realized that alternative-fuel cars are the only chance its automotive industry has to excel. That’s why the government is making an effort to foster research and development in this area.

The problem is that China doesn’t have a clear national policy in this regard.