In the global automobile consumer market, China is a very special existence. Due to the late start of the automobile industry, large population base/land area, and other factors such as purchase restrictions in different cities, some models that are popular in the overseas market have suffered sales in the Chinese market.
In order to "make money" in China, the world's largest auto market, various auto companies have launched localized models in response to the needs of the Chinese market, which is what we commonly call "China's special car supply". However, because some global models have set their first launch locations in China, or because some new cars coincide with "China's special car supply" in some design ideas, many Chinese people mistakenly regard them as China's special car supply. But in fact, these cars are also sold in foreign markets. Today, let’s talk about these 11 “fake special cars” that are often mistakenly considered by Chinese people as Chinese special cars!
When it comes to the most prominent feature of "China's special car supply", many people must first think of is lengthening. In fact, if we look at the "extended" objectively, it is indeed reasonable and necessary for the Chinese market. This is because many cities in China have lottery policies, so many families have one car for the whole family to use, and the space of the vehicle is particularly important at this time. Therefore, a number of car companies represented by German manufacturers will provide consumers with more comfortable and convenient rear space when launching domestic models by lengthening the wheelbase of the vehicle. Among them, BBA's long-axle car is the most representative.
to large sedans such as 7, 8, S, and to Audi A3, Mercedes-Benz A-class , as long as it is a BBA model sold in China, it will almost provide an extended version for Chinese buyers. As time accumulates, this has left an inherent impression on many Chinese people, that is, the extended car = exclusive to the Chinese market.
Indian version long axis 3 series
But in fact, after learning that the luxurious D-class car such as non-7, 8, and S can also be lengthened, many foreigners also cast envious eyes. After all, who doesn’t want to spend the same price to buy a more spacious space? Therefore, after this generation of BMW 3 Series Li was launched, BMW not only brought it to China, a market that loves the most, but also brought this car to Southeast Asian markets such as India for production and sales. It can be foreseeable that in the future, long-axle versions such as the 3 Series Li will appear more and more in overseas markets, because for most users around the world, the space and comfort of the vehicle are far more important than the slight handling advantages brought by the standard shaft.
017 SAIC Volkswagen When launching the replacement model of Tiguan in China, the new car was named " Tiguan L". Due to its "L" naming and the obvious lengthening traces of the second row, many people think that the domestic Tiguan L is a special Chinese car extended based on the overseas standard axle Tiguan.
On: Tiguan / Under: Tiguan Allspace
In fact, this view is only half correct. The Tiguan L is indeed extended based on the new generation of Tiguan, but it is not simply an extended wheelbase, nor is it a special supply in China. Because after the replacement of this generation of Tiguan, it has launched two models: standard-axle version and long-axle version. In addition to the wheelbase difference of 110mm, the trunk area of the vehicle after the C-pillar is also different. The trunk of the long-axle version will be longer, and even a third row of seats can be installed. In terms of naming, the standard axle model sold in Germany is called Tiguan, and the long axle model is called Tiguan Allspace.
When SAIC Volkswagen produced the new generation of Tiguan in China, it directly chose the more practical Allspace version, and it was launched on the market in January 2017 with the United States. However, SAIC Volkswagen did not give up on the standard-shaft Tiguan model. In addition to the original imported standard-shaft Tiguan, the domestic version of the standard-shaft Tiguan actually changed its face and changed it to the Tharu Tuyue, which is exclusive to the Chinese market.In the US market, Volkswagen also only sells the long-axis version of Tiguan. Therefore, the Tiguan L is an authentic global car that is absolutely authentic. Did you not expect this?
As the most controversial luxury sedan in the domestic market, Lexus ES 200 has always been a model that many keyboard car gods have sneered. However, today we are not discussing whether its 0-100km/h acceleration outside of 10 seconds and whether the 173-horsepower 2.0L engine is sufficient, but we need to unravel a misunderstanding, that is, many people believe that only mainland China's ES in the global market provides the choice of 2.0L self-priming, and other markets start with 2.5L, but is this really the case?
Lexus Russian official website
Although there is indeed no ES 200 model in the local markets of North America and Japan. However, in Eastern European markets such as Russia, the Lexus also sells the ES 200 car. Let’s take Russia as an example. The ES 200 it sells is equipped with the same 2.0L+CVT combination as the Chinese version, with a starting price of 3,514,000 ruble , which is approximately RMB 318,400, which is more than 20,000 more than the domestic starting price of 290,000.
Lexus Taiwan Province official website
In addition to Eastern European countries, in Taiwan Province, China, there is also the Lexus ES 200 model on sale. The power specifications are the same as those sold in mainland China. The starting price is 1.71 million New Taiwan dollars , which is approximately RMB 393,500. In fact, for global cars like ES, it is normal to launch appropriate powertrains for different markets, and this kind of operation exists in almost all international car companies. For example, the current Volkswagen Polo uses a 1.5L four-cylinder power supply, while the German market uses a 1.0T three-cylinder engine that Chinese people don’t watch. Similarly, the Toyota C-HR uses an old 2.0L 6AR engine and a 1.8L hybrid system in the overseas market. However, due to stricter emission and fuel consumption restrictions in the domestic market, the more advanced 2.0L M20A engine and 2.0L hybrid system are used. It can be seen that if the power differentiation of a car in different markets is regarded as a "special supply", then there may be no so-called "global car" in the world!
When FAW Toyota launched the Asian Lion car, many people stood up and said that it was a special car launched for the Chinese market. This statement is actually not completely correct, because although from the current point of view, only Asian lions are sold in the Chinese market, there is one thing that cannot be ignored, that is, the English name of Asian lions - Allion. You should know that Allion is a model sold in Japan, Europe and other markets. More importantly, Allion's positioning has always been the extended version of Corolla , which is actually the same positioning as the domestic Asian lion.
2001 The first generation of Allion
Allion was born in Japan in 2001. It is essentially an A+ class sedan with a larger size and higher configuration based on Corolla, which is used to fill the gap between the Corolla and the Camry. Allion was replaced with the Corolla in 2007, and this generation of models was not discontinued in Japan until March 2021. Just one month after the Japanese local Allion stopped production, the Allion Asian lion in the Chinese market was officially launched.
2016 mid-term facelifted second-generation Allion
1 In fact, students who are familiar with the JDM model should know that the front face design of the domestic Asian lion is very similar to the front face design of the second Japanese Allion facelifted in 2016. The two have huge U-shaped center grille outlines, and they are both directly connected to the headlights, and the lower surround is also a "grinning" shape. At this time, with the same origin and the same English name of the two cars, we can actually understand that the Asian Lion is the new generation of Allion, which is just a first launch in the Chinese market. Of course, as for when the Allion will be launched in Japan, it depends on the planning of Toyota .
In October 2014, SAIC General Motors launched a new mid-sized SUV-- Encore . With its atmospheric appearance design, excellent power of the 2.0T engine, and NVH performance far exceeding its competitors in the same class, Envision became a hit after its launch. Its annual sales exceeded 160,000 units in 2015 and 270,000 units in 2016, which was a very impressive moment. However, since the first generation Envision is a special model developed, produced and sold in China, it has also attracted many ridicule from netizens with "blood theory".
. After seeing Envision's money-making potential, General Motors decided to bring this Chinese special-purpose car back to the US market for sale. So at the of the North American Auto Show in January 2016, the American version of Envision produced in China was officially unveiled and logged into the US market. It is worth mentioning that Envision is also the first model in General Motors' history to be produced in China and sold back to the United States.
Although in terms of sales, Envision's subsequent sales of 30,000 units per year in the US market cannot be compared with sales of more than 200,000 units per year in RAV4 and CR-V. But considering that the brands under General Group compete with Toyota and Honda are mainly Chevrolet, and Buick is positioned slightly higher in the US market and the price will be relatively more expensive, so Envision can still get 30,000 units of sales.
When Buick saw that Envision had good sales in the US market, it decided that the US side would launch the Envision's replacement model, trying to further sales by design that catered to the aesthetic aesthetic of American consumers. So in May 2020, the new generation of Envision released its official pictures in the United States, and the domestic version of the official pictures were released in June of the same year. This special car, born in China, also had a real American household registration after the replacement. In the Chinese market, since the old Envision is still on sale, the new generation Envision was named "Envision S" by SAIC-GM.
At the Guangzhou Auto Show in 2016, BMW Brilliance launched the sedan 1 Series model. Unlike the imported hatchback 1 Series that was on sale at that time, the domestic sedan 1 Series was not built with a rear-drive platform, but used a UKL front-drive platform, and was equipped with a 1.5T three-cylinder and 2.0T four-cylinder engine , which is only produced and sold in the Chinese market.
When everyone believed that this car was a purely special car for China, BMW sold the Chinese-made sedan 1 series to the Mexican market in 2018. The power specifications are the same as the domestic version, with a starting price of 489,900 Mexican peso , which is approximately RMB 154,000, which is much cheaper than the 204,800 ft.
In fact, BMW launched the three-box front-wheel drive 1 Series, which is more to meet the demand of Chinese consumers for entry-level three-box luxury cars. After all, Audi A3 sold very well at that time. BMW imported two-box rear-wheel drive 1 Series, both in terms of price and body specifications, could not compete with the three-box A3. So when the 1 Series of the Semiconductor was launched, BMW could also earn about 4,000 units per month in the compact sedan market in China, which has seen a significant increase compared with the nearly negligible sales of the imported 1 Series.
More importantly, BMW later gave up the rear-wheel drive 1 series product line and switched the entry-level model to a horizontal front-wheel drive platform that is more in line with the mainstream market demand. In 2019, BMW launched a new generation of 1 Series hatchback models, using the UKL2 front-wheel drive platform that is the same as the domestic sedan 1 Series. If nothing unexpected happens, the domestic sedan 1 series will be replaced next year, and the vehicle's design, size and other aspects will be upgraded. By then, we may see the 1-Series of the Semi-Car Series in more countries and regions.
At the 2014 Beijing Auto Show , Ford's new compact sedan Forres was officially released and was officially launched on December 30 of the same year. The entire series is equipped with a 1.5L four-cylinder engine, matched with a 6MT/6AT gearbox, and is priced at 96,800-119,800 yuan.
Highly with good space performance, excellent driving experience, and excellent cost-effectiveness, Forres' sales after its launch are excellent. Just one month after it was launched in 2015, Forres's monthly sales reached 18,000 units, and then rose all the way, reaching its peak in September 2017, with monthly sales exceeding 35,000 units.
However, for car fans, many people sneered at Forres at that time. It is mainly because when Forres was launched in 2014, only the Chinese market was on sale worldwide, so although it had a very European driving texture, it still failed to prevent everyone from labeling it as a "special car" that was slightly derogatory at the time.
You can learn that Ford's history is Escort, and Escort was born in the UK as early as 1955 and was not discontinued until 2003. During this period, 6 generations of models were launched, with a cumulative sales of more than 4 million vehicles. is a specializing in sports and young markets, and its positioning is somewhat similar to the entry-level sedan of the sedan version of Carnival . Therefore, Forres is not a model created out of thin air, but has a real foundation.
Middle East version Forres
Maybe you think this historical connection is a bit far-fetched, so Forres entered the Taiwan market in 2017 and entered the Middle East market in 2019 to sell, which is very telling. Because although Ford was the first model to be launched in China, this car was actually developed by Ford's Australian department and was positioned as a global car at the beginning of its research and development. It was only because Ford gave up his sedan business in the US market and had Carnival and Focus in Europe that he chose to use China as Ford's main sales market.
In September 2016, Volkswagen's new medium and large SUV appeared in the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and on October 28 of the same year, the official photo was officially released by SAIC Volkswagen, which was named Teramont in China, and the Chinese name was not yet confirmed at that time. Since around 2016, the most serious period of online satirical special car Lavida , Volkswagen's new SUV was recognized by many people as another special car in China as soon as it was released. Especially its car length of more than 5 meters actually uses a relatively low-end MQB horizontal platform, which seems to have also implemented its "China special supply" identity to a certain extent.
But in fact, Tuang is not a special car at all. Everyone only knows that SAIC Volkswagen released the official picture of the Touron on October 28, but they don’t know that Volkswagen also released the official picture of the new model Atlas in North America on October 28, and Atlas is the North American version of the Touron.
is actually not only the Touron, but also the sloping back style Touron X model launched by SAIC Volkswagen, which also has a corresponding Atlas Cross Sport version in the United States.
In fact, since the beginning of the product project, Touan has developed a relatively friendly medium- and large SUV with the goal of both Chinese and American markets, and even the early tests of camouflage vehicle were carried out in the United States. Therefore, when you mention Volkswagen Touron in the future, don’t be misled by its lack of high-end driving texture and low-cost horizontal platform, thinking that it is just a special car for China!
After introducing so many foreign brand models, let’s talk about a few Chinese brands’ “fake special-purpose cars”. Generally speaking, when it comes to domestic cars, especially domestic cars with low positioning, people usually think that their sales areas are limited to the Chinese market. Even if they are sold abroad, it is no different from some of the resale overseas models mentioned above.However, the three Chinese cars we are going to talk about next are not just sold overseas!
Before introducing Baojun 530, we must first understand the relationship between Wuling, Baojun , and SAIC-GM. Wuling is a wholly state-owned enterprise established in 1996, which is the familiar Liuzhou Wuling Automobile . In 2002, Liuzhou Wuling through asset restructuring, and jointly established SAIC Group and GM in the United States, SAIC General Wuling Automobile Co., Ltd. , focusing on commercial vehicle markets such as vans. In 2010, in order to enhance the brand's competitiveness in the passenger car market, SAIC-GM-Wuling launched a sub-brand Baojun, which focuses on the passenger car market. In other words, it has been less than 12 years since its birth. In the past few years, it can even be called a "new car-making force"!
When it comes to the Baojun 530 car, I believe everyone is familiar with it. It is an entry-level high-cost-performance SUV in China. With its ultra-low starting price of 70,000 yuan and good space and configuration, Baojun 530 has been stable at about 6,000 units every month since its launch in 2018, making it the highest-selling SUV of Baojun brand this year.
But if you think it is just a domestic SUV that meets the entry-level consumption of China, it would be too young! In November 2018, Chevrolet released the new generation of Copache in Colombia, and this car is actually the replacement model of Baojun 530! Except for the differences in the details such as the car logo, the appearance is basically no different from the domestic Baojun 530, and the power system is also the same 1.5T engine with a 6MT or CVT gearbox.
Of course, it is Baojun's shell replacement model. The new generation of Kopache is still relatively low-end, so its main target market is also South America, Thailand and other places, and the models sold are all produced and exported by China. In addition to the version that hangs the Chevrolet logo, Baojun 530 also has version that hangs the Wuling and MG logos in the Indian market. Among them, the Wuling version is called Wuling Almaz, while the MG version is called MG Hector. As for the previously orthodox Copache, the former Chevrolet has been replaced by the domestically sold Explorer.
National God Car Wuling Hongguang I believe everyone is familiar with it. As a magic car that dominated the domestic MPV market for many years, no one would not think of Wuling’s car. But if all students think that Wuling Hongguang is just a "entrepreneurship car" that is only sold in the domestic market and helps the people start from scratch, they will underestimate it! After all, its sub-brand Baojun has been sold to the overseas market with the background of SAIC-GM. How could Wuling be willing to sell it only in China?
As early as 2013, General Motors brought Wuling Hongguang to the Indian market and also put the Chevrolet logo on it, renamed Chevrolet Enjoy, which was produced and sold locally in India. The power system is equipped with a 1.4L gasoline and 1.3L diesel engine and a 5-speed manual transmission. The starting price is 5.49,000-6.99,000 Indian rupees, which is about 63,000-80,000 yuan, and it is even more than 10,000 yuan more expensive than the starting price of the 1.5L model in China at that time!
Wuling and Baojun relied on the joint venture background of SAIC-GM to sell domestic models overseas, and the same operation was also GAC Trumpchi . As we all know, GAC is currently a joint venture with three foreign car companies, Fiat Chrysler ( Fiat ), Honda and Toyota, so it also has the ability to resell the global market. The model that was sold abroad this time is GAC Trumpchi GS5.
Like Wuling and Baojun, GAC Trumpchi GS5 is sold abroad instead of directly using the original car logo, but also replaced with the car logo recognized by locals. As we all know, since the South American market is more popular with American brands such as Chevrolet and Dodge , GAC Trumpchi GS5 was replaced with the Dodge logo and exported it to the Mexican market under the name Journey.
Students who know about Dodge models should know that Journey is the English name of Dodge SUV model-Kuwei . Coolwei was also imported to domestically sell it, but due to poor product strength and poor quality, the sales in China are very average. Now that the feng shui changes, our Chinese SUVs have been sold abroad with Cool Viagra. I dare not say anything else, the product quality of Trumpchi GS5 is definitely much better than the Dodge Coolwei of that year!
As for the model specifications, the exported "Dokey Coolwei" is equipped with a 1.5T+6AT power combination, which is consistent with the domestic Trumpchi GS5. In the Mexican market, the price of the car is 555,900-645,900 pesos , which is approximately RMB 175,400-203,900. In contrast, the price of Trumpchi GS5 in China is only 126,800-169,800 yuan, which is 40,000-50,000 yuan cheaper than the export version. From this we can see that Dodge's logo is quite valuable.
It is not difficult to find that some things are easy to be led by rhythm or deviate by inertial reasoning. Moreover, "specially supplied cars" is not a unique phenomenon in my country. For example, in the European, American, and even Southeast Asian markets, it is not a rare thing for various car companies to develop "specially supplied cars" based on the needs of local users. For example, the Toyota Sina , which was just launched in China this year, was previously a typical American special supply car; and Volkswagen has launched many low-end and cheap special supply models in Mexico and other regions. After all, "tailoring" is the most suitable approach to consumer needs. For example, Volkswagen Lavida in the Chinese market finally achieved god-level sales because it can directly hit the needs of Chinese consumers. Therefore, from the perspective of meeting needs, "special supply" is not only not a complaint, but it seems to be a big advantage~
