The Yellow Peril Is Us: Multinationals Start Exporting Cars From China

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

The feared takeover of the world by Chinese cars so far was a non-starter. We’ve always said that cars built at Chinese joint ventures with Western (or Japanese) companies would be best suited to break that spell. But so far, the Western (or Japanese) joint venture partners wouldn’t play ball. Why invite a Chinese joint venture abroad where it competes in your markets? Now the first international brand will export a low-end car it developed for China to Latin America. For starters. Guess who?

Congratulations! You guessed right! Shanghai GM, a joint venture between GM and China’s SAIC Motor Corp, started to export Chevrolet New Sail autos on Thursday to Chile, Economic Times reports from India. The New Sail was introduced in January in China, at a price of $8,540, set against names like Geely and Chery.

The New Sail is a Chevrolet, and “the first locally developed and manufactured passenger car from an international brand to be exported,” Terry Johnsson, Shanghai GM vice president of vehicle sales, service and marketing, said in a statement. “It represents a breakthrough in our strategy to create products for China and other emerging markets.”


The small family sedan will eventually be sold in all of South America, North Africa and the Middle East. If this is successful, analysts expect other multinationals to follow.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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18 of 26 comments
  • Slavuta Slavuta on Oct 21, 2010

    DECLARATION I will never buy a Chinese car or car made in China or car with majority components from China. I will not buy car made in Mexico unless the only other option - China My dollar is a vote. And I vote against our or any cars being assembled in China and/or Mexico

    • See 4 previous
    • Musiccitymafia Musiccitymafia on Oct 21, 2010

      From China to Mexico??? Do the penguins in your 'hood live in igloos?

  • Bertel Schmitt Bertel Schmitt on Oct 21, 2010

    So nobody is worried that GM has to split the profits with the "Chicoms?" Or leave them with all the profits, because it's impossible to get your money out of China, as a certain hardline faction claims?

    • See 1 previous
    • Jellodyne Jellodyne on Oct 22, 2010

      I'm pretty sure GM buys enough parts in China that there's nothing left to 'get out'.

  • Porschespeed Porschespeed on Oct 22, 2010

    Oh yeah, all my statements are easily verified by googling. What's that? Can't google in PRC?

    • See 6 previous
    • Porschespeed Porschespeed on Oct 29, 2010

      Oh, atlas_snored, You show the sum of all Faux-news/Palin talking points for the uninformed. Thankfully, some here are still literate. We all know full-well that China would still be a Third-World backwater were it not for a tiny fraction of Americans getting their greed on and granting MFN status to China. Period. They'd be accepting IMF loans for the Three Gorges (or it just wouldn't happen, like it didn't for years) were it not for political chicanery here in the US. Duh effen duh. Once again, you have obviously never read one of my posts, and respond in some retardo-Rovian manner any time someone knows the facts and has an IQ north of 150. Please feel free to quote one, just one, of my posts that indicate in any anyway that I am not fully aware that a tiny few in the US gave up our manufacturing supremacy to the ChiComms for a relative few dollars allocated to the .1% who own those who make the law in the USA. Please. Oh wait. You can't. I know it, and if you have actually read my posts, so do you. Toss straw-man arguments all you want. I'll call you on them. Snored? Oh yeah, the lack of any cogent argument gives me one...

  • Carlos Villalobos Carlos Villalobos on Oct 23, 2010

    Actually, GM Chile has been importing cars from China like from 2 or 3 years now. It was the Corsa. Instead from bring it from Brazil, it was cheaper to import it from China. Is a sedan.

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