Chinese-made cars are heading to the UK for the first time this year. Enda Mullen looks at two Midland companies at the heart of a game-changing move for the automotive industry

Once upon a time European and US car makers scoffed at the inaugural efforts of Japanese manufacturers to infiltrate an industry they assumed was all their own.

The Japanese might have got things wrong at first but they learned quickly and in the years that followed not only closed the gap but overtook many of their established rivals.

In recent years the Koreans have followed suit and the next wave of Far Eastern influence will see the Chinese do likewise.

There’s no doubting that at some point the Chinese will be a major force in the global automotive industry – it’s just a question of how quickly they get there.

With at least 150 vehicle manufacturers and a domestic market that at 20 million sales annually has now leapfrogged the US as the world’s largest car market, becoming a global player is a given and Paul Hegarty, managing director of Great Wall Motor Distributors (UK) believes it will be sooner rather than later.

He heads Coleshill-based IM Group’s partnership with Chinese manufacturer Great Wall and feels buyers are in for a pleasant surprise.

The firm, which grew through importing Subaru, Daihatsu and Isuzu vehicles to Europe, will be the trailblazer of Chinese car imports with the Great Wall Steed pick-up becoming the first vehicle to go on sale in the UK in February.

“Customer reaction is going to be very positive because it is going to exceed expectation,” he said.

“They will be surprised by the fit, finish and quality of the product from day one and going forward it will change the landscape of the market.

“It is a value proposition but we wouldn’t underestimate the value of the car. It has been quite illuminating to us.

“We said people would make assumptions about Chinese cars that would probably be misguided.

“This pick-up is very high quality. It is so different to what people expect.

“We’ve shown it to trade media and people have said ‘I don’t know what I expected but I didn’t expect this’. Our marketing company people who have tried it say it feels Germanic.”

IM Group’s Chinese partnership has been a long time in the making, the company set up an office in Beijing 15 years ago with just such a venture in mind and felt it made the right choice four years ago to get the ball rolling with Great Wall, though it has not ruled out additional partnerships further down the line.

“The reason we chose it is that it is a fairly specialist manufacturer – not a huge volume player,” said Hegarty. A niche prestige manufacturer and complementary to our business, making SUVs and pick-ups. In terms of what we do it is probably the most comfortable fit.”

Prices are yet to be announced for the Steed double cab pick-up, which will be available in two versions, but Mr Hegarty promises it will be a highly competitive offering.

“It will have great value in terms of retail price and will probably have the highest specification available in any pick-up. As an entry level car it will certainly astound people.

“One is high spec and the other is very high spec. It will be several thousand behind its nearest competitor and thousands and thousands away from everyone when you put in value of extras.”

The Steed will also be aiming to compete in other value areas such as insurance and fuel economy.

Mr Hegarty is confident it will be good for Midlands business too – and not just for IM Group – with around five of the company’s 32 dealers being based in the region and plans to expand that network to 40 by the end of the first quarter.

“We have asked dealers to raise their game to make product accessible to the customer and demonstrate they are a service-oriented business, down to bringing a vehicle to a customer’s home or place of work for a test drive.

“They really want to be part of the launch of the first Chinese car franchise into the market and will go the extra step to give the customer what they want.

“The dealers have said it is a breath of fresh air and are so enthusiastic.

“The priority is to get the franchise into the market with a solid foundation, the right culture and the right network, building a strong reputation from early days for customer service.”

There are also plans to expand the range with a second vehicle coming to the UK in early 2013, likely to be a B segment crossover or a small SUV.

Options are being kept open, in part because the Chinese industry is developing at such a fast pace – Great Wall exhibited nine new cars at the recent Beijing motor show.

Added to this, Great Wall’s new factory had been purposely positioned close to a port to take full advantage of the export market and aims to increase annual production from 300,000 to 800,000 by 2015.

Mr Hegarty believes quality can be assured as the company uses the latest manufacturing technology to build its vehicles.