Shanghai Autoshow: The Vanishing Ripoff

by Bertel Schmitt

Published: April 19th, 2011

Remember the Brilliance A3 SUV that the German press called “a brazen BMW X1 rip-off, with inspirations from Audi?” After BMW spokesman Frank Strebe said that the matter would be taken up with their joint venture partner Brilliance, Strebe had said: “Maybe the vehicle won’t be at the show.”

Lo and behold, BMW showed its X1 in Shanghai. At the Brilliance booth however was no A3 to be seen. Instead, there was a gaping hole in the array of Brilliance cars. Asked about the matter, Strebe said his prediction was caused by “intuition.”

#BertelSchmitt #Brilliance #China #Ripoff #ShanghaiAutoShow

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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5 comments

Philadlj on Apr 19, 2011

I'm not shocked that Brilliance would simply Xerox an existing design. I'm also not shocked that they decided to leave the A3 out of the show, so as not to upset their partner BMW. What does surprise me is that they copied that awful s*** brown color of the X1! Maybe the auto show lighting is throwing it off, but it looks horrendous in the photo. Word to BMW: if you're going to make a hideous car, at least paint it a pretty color!

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- Sinistermisterman on Apr 19, 2011
  
  It's not sh*t brown, it's somewhere between vomit and sh*t. But you're right, it really is horrendous color.
  
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- Accs on Apr 27, 2011
  
  Philadlj: I absolutely completely disagree. The only paint colors BMW and the rest of the Germans can figure out.. is a dozen shades of shiny primer... dark blue and or black. There is NO COLOR in buying a GERMAN CAR. To find a brown in a shiny tint... is fantastic! What other color would you expect?!
  
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Wallstreet on Apr 19, 2011

Bertel, Will you happen to have any interior shots of new M5?

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- Bertel Schmitt on Apr 20, 2011
  
  I'll have tons of exterior shots. Coming up later. Am sitting in the departure lounge of Shanghai Apt., internet connection butt slow. No interior shots. 1.) That thing was tinted off darker than a triad boss's daily driver. 2.) No access.Tightly roped off. What am I saying:Metal barrier! My hunch is, the interior will come later. Or they did not want to ship it to China just yet.
  
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