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Ms G
These years, Chinese customers are increasingly favouring bigger vehicles over sedans.
Almost everyone I know has or is thinking about getting a SUV as the family car.
Chinese automakers such as Haval and Geely are unveiling more SUV models — their enhanced performance and lower prices make them strong competitors to the Western brands.
Starting from 2009, SUVs have been quickly taking over the Chinese market: between 2009 and 2015 sales grew by over 20 percent every year.
In 2010, sales even doubled on a year-on-year basis. In 2016, they have taken up nearly 40 percent of total passenger car sales in China. During the same period, the shares of sedans have been falling from 56 percent to 50 percent.
A few societal changes may explain why the Chinese are warming up to SUVs.
A bigger wallet.
Before 2007, sedans were for a long time the top choice for Chinese car buyers.
Compact cars that are fuel efficient are more suitable to be the first car of the family. But as income levels rise, customers begin to set their eyes on something fancier. SUVs with their bigger size and tough looks represent something more powerful, even a more luxurious lifestyle.
Bigger families.
In 2015, China eased its one-child policy, which had been in place for decades to keep the population of the world’s most populous nation from growing faster than its resources allow.
Many urban couples decided to have a second child; and the grandparents are coming to help, as is the tradition in China.
So, for a family with two kids, an usual weekend outing would mean the transportation of six persons at least. Bigger space in cars becomes much more important.
Rural-urban migration
More and more rural youths are moving to the big cities to pursue higher education or find employment.
Most of them settle down in urban areas to get away from the harsh farming life and to give their kids a better starting point. But their roots remain in the countryside.
On big holidays, Chinese motorways are packed with cars heading for ancestral homes in villages. It is a time for these farmer-cum-urban dwellers to visit families and assure them of their good fortunes in the cities.
A big car loaded with gifts is surely a good way to do that. Also, where roads are not perfectly paved in the poorer areas, SUVs obviously are a better choice.
Road trip fever
China’s decades old blistering economic growth brought a road-building spree that has left it with more motorways than the United States.
Chinese tourists, therefore, increasingly shun the bus and train tours in favour of long distances behind their own steering wheels.
They no longer want to follow the lead of guide in a group, but prefer to explore the nature by themselves.
From 2012 to 2016, the percentage of domestic tourism trips organised by travel agencies fell by more than a quarter. SUVs apparently offers more comfort, trafficability, and storage space for a long drive.
This list is not exhaustive. But one thing is for sure, the growing number of SUVs running on Chinese roads is a reflection of a nation becoming more confident and adventurous.
Online Reporter