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Two of the five Chinese automakers at this year's North American International Auto Show say they plan to have vehicles on sale in Canada and the United States by 2010.
Representatives of China America Cooperative Automotive Inc. (Chamco), which has a North American headquarters in New Jersey and an engineering centre in California, say they expect to begin shipping SUVs and pickup trucks into the U.S. market by the end of this year with a price expected to be around US$13,500.
They expect to roll out similar vehicles in Canada early next year.
"Detroit may not believe this but we are well on track to meet our goal of starting to export vehicles by mid-2010," said Chamco chairman Bill Pollack.
Within a year of selling its first vehicles in North America, the company expects to follow with a line of sedans and crossovers. It also plans to open assembly plants in Mexico, Puerto Rico and Canada, although exact locations have not been announced.
Officials with Geely Holdings, which is making its third appearance the Detroit auto show, have been saying since last year that they aim to have a car in the U.S. market by 2010.
Also making a repeat appearance at the Detroit auto show this year is ChangFeng Motor Group. Joining Chamco as first-time exhibitors are BYD Auto Company and Li Shi Guang Ming Auto Design Co.
Tony Faria, an auto analyst at the University of Windsor, said China's increased presence is "all part of their plan to test the waters, even though their products are nowhere near ready in terms of design, technology, workmanship and fit and finish for a North American consumer."
Their first goal is to get reaction from the public and the media, he said.
"They've learned from the Yugo experience whose vehicles were really so bad that it destroyed the Yugo name when they started selling before they were ready for this market. The Chinese are smarter than that and won't make that mistake."
Faria said it is possible some vehicles would be ready for the North American market later this year, but "I expect it will be 2009 or later before we see any in large numbers."
Unlike the Japanese automakers, China's are further along at the same point in their history because of the number of joint ventures they've forged with global companies such as Volkswagen, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes, General Motors and Chrysler, Faria said.
More than 8.5 million vehicles were sold in China last year, making it the second largest market in the world after the United States.
There are as many as 100 auto companies in China all vying for a piece of the huge pie.
Chery Motors, which is the largest in the country, now has a working relationship with Chrysler.
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. and Nanjing Auto, a pair of state-run companies, announced a merger late last month. The merger came at a time when the Chinese government was calling for consolidation across the industry aimed at eliminating rivalries which escalated when the two companies both purchased a piece of MG Rover of Great Britian.
Geely, meanwhile, has bought a piece of Manganese Bronze Holdings which manufactures London, England's iconic, boxy black taxicabs and plans to start producing them in Shanghai.
In efforts to position themselves close to worldwide markets, other Chinese automakers have built assembly plants in Russia, North Korea, Egypt, Vietnam, Iran, Uruguay and Indonesia. Faria said: "There's little doubt in my mind that they'll build assembly plants in North America because the Chinese government, which still exerts major contriol over this industry, has said it does not want to export cars to North America in mass numbers but rather it wants to have a global presence by building assembly plants where it sells cars." | 
