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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Truth Hurts" data-source="post: 29304854" data-attributes="member: 477372"><a href="https://www.thestandard.com.hk/images/instant_news/20231018/20231018150614contentPhoto1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.thestandard.com.hk/images/instant_news/20231018/20231018150614contentPhoto1.jpg" alt="Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></a>Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reservedWhen Laima Springe-Janssen was looking to replace her French-made gasoline-powered SUV with an electric car, she considered models from Volvo and Nissan.The Volvo extras she wanted would have busted her budget, while the Nissan lacked the “wow factor.” The Copenhagen, Denmark, resident ended up buying a compact SUV from China’s BYD.“I really, really love the car,” Springe-Janssen said. For the equivalent of about $50,000, the Atto 3 SUV came with “all these goodies” like a 360-degree dash cam, two years of free charging and an extra set of winter tires.Her husband likes it so much he’s considering buying another BYD to replace their other car, from Volkswagen’s Skoda brand.“I’m sorry, Europe. Go home,” she said. “China has a better offer.”<img src="https://media.electrive.com/2022/09/BYD_Han_Tang_Atto3.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />Her enthusiasm underscores how Chinese automakers are winning over drivers as they make major inroads into Europe’s electric vehicle market, challenging long-established homegrown brands in an industry that’s key to the continent’s green energy transition.The competitive threat has spurred the European Union to launch an investigation into Beijing’s support for its EV industry. That adds to tech-related tensions between the West and China, which is one of Europe’s biggest trading partners and the world’s biggest auto market.China’s EV onslaught, along with massive U.S. clean energy funding that has drawn investment away from Europe, shows how the 27-nation bloc is caught in the middle of the global race for green technology.Chinese EV makers are drawn to Europe because auto import tariffs are just 10% versus 27.5% in the U.S., independent auto analyst Matthias Schmidt said. Europe also has the world’s second-biggest EV battery market after China.Nevermind the geopolitics. Climate-conscious car buyers in Europe who are grappling with an increased cost of living rave about how Chinese EVs are affordable yet packed with features and stylish design. Concerns about the threat to local carmakers and jobs just aren’t a factor for them.we obviously have some subsidies for putting a plant somewhere, which is, I think, what everybody has in Europe.”<img src="https://www.headlightmag.com/hlmwp/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/byd-yuan-plus.jpeg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />Aiways is focusing on Europe and Israel instead of China, where the auto market is so crowded that “we don’t think it makes sense to compete right now,” Klose said.The EU should be working on getting to a green future “rather than keeping competition out,” he said.One reason Chinese companies can offer high-quality cars at affordable prices stems from the rules to enter the Chinese market. Global automakers had to team up with local companies, providing them crucial automaking knowhow.<img src="https://www.headlightmag.com/hlmwp/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/byd-yuan-plus-4.jpeg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />“They were kind of like the sous chefs to the Western companies,” said Schmidt, the auto analyst. “The situation now is those sous chefs are opening up their own restaurants and, in some cases, better than their masters’ restaurants.”Also helping level the playing field is battery-powered motors being less complex to build than internal combustion engines and requiring fewer workers. That’s a problem for European brands with big workforces that will need years to revamp operations, Schmidt said.<img src="https://www.headlightmag.com/hlmwp/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/byd-yuan-plus-1.jpeg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />Chinese EV makers, meanwhile, are trying to stand out in a crowded field.SUV maker Great Wall Motors’ EV sub-brand Ora is targeting women, with cars it says are designed for their body sizes and daily needs.The Ora Funky Cat, with throwback round headlights, an exclamation mark on its hood badge, and a 32,000-pound ($38,600) price tag, appealed to British scriptwriter Justin Nicholls, who bought one for his wife.<img src="https://www.headlightmag.com/hlmwp/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/byd-yuan-plus-3.jpeg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />“The looks are awesome, and the tech great. It’s so easy to drive, yet feels like a lot larger car and feels premium,” he said.It also appealed to Nicholls because it’s different from the Volkswagens, Peugeots and BMWs common on British roads: “I think it is a lot more quirky than European cars.”[MEDIA=youtube]b4S4ZMYuGCU[/MEDIA]AP</blockquote>

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