Polestar, an electric car made in China, will be entering the US market. This is a nod towards China’s global ambitions

A car that was built in Sweden isn’t often advertised as being made in China. Its arrival on the US market is a sign that China wants to be a major exporter of an industry it has not yet conquered – automobiles.

Despite its dominance of other companies, China has fallen behind foreign carmakers in the age gas. Although they bought many domestically-made cars, Chinese consumers preferred foreign brands like Toyota and General Motors over those made in China. China has been a major exporter for auto parts but it has not been capable of doing the same with off-the shelf cars.

China has another chance with the arrival of the electric age, as electric vehicles are simpler to make and require fewer parts. Component shortageThey limit the supply electric vehicles and allow companies to quickly deliver their products. It is a Chinese manufacturing practice. Billions pouredThe state provided significant financial support to the development of the electric car industry. Domestic brands of electric vehicles have taken the majority of electric vehicle sales in China. Some of them, including BYD Motor, Nio Motor and Great Wall Motor have started to appear in overseas markets and are now a threat to traditional automakers.

Schmidt Automotive Research, founded in Berlin by Matthias Schmidt, stated that Chinese manufacturers have started producing electric cars earlier than Western counterparts, giving them a “significant edge” in terms of manufacturing efficiency. This push was vigorously supported by China’s central and province governments. to supportDomestic electric vehicle factories, charging infrastructure, and consumer electric vehicle sales protect Chinese battery manufacturers from foreign competition.

Schmidt stated that the Chinese are now looking to export to Western countries after they have reached a large scale. “They have a lot more skills and competencies in their local markets than they did while they were Westernized.” [manufacturers]They were slow.”

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However, Beijing’s export ambitions are being hampered by increasing trade tensions with China and Western nations. Trump administration imposed a 25% import tax on Chinese cars and US tax credits were created to encourage the purchase of North American-made electric vehicles. . Analysts suggest that negative consumer sentiment toward China could also affect sales, even though not all buyers will know or care about where their cars are made.

Harrison stated that she didn’t know the Polestar was made in China. “As long as the car is well-made and takes me where I need it to go, I don’t think its origin matters much.”

Polestar is controlledChinese billionaire Li Shufu FounderZhejiang Geely Holding Group was founded by the major shareholder. It is a large automaker in China, which expanded overseas in 2010. Buy Swedish Volvo Cars. Volvo and Geely incorporated Polestar in 2017 as a separate business, establishing its headquarters in Gothenburg in Sweden.

Polestar’s top vehicle designers and managers work in Sweden. Polestar 2, the company’s flagship vehicle, is being produced in Luqiao in China. Produces Volvo electric model. The company claims it’s on track for delivering 50,000 Polestars this year to customers in 27 different countries, double the number it delivered in 2021, its first year of production.

“Unlike many of our peers,” Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath told investors on the November 11th call. He is the automotive designer and long-serving CEO at Volvo and Volkswagen.

The automaker is positioned as a Swedish brand that can compete for wealthy customers. This year, the United States has been flooded with this year’s models. Super Bowl ad overshadows competitors, promising viewers it has no plans to “conquer Mars” à la Tesla founder Elon MuskOr get bogged down in VW style”Diesel Jet. “

Polestar, which sold 6,900 vehicles in the first nine month of the year, is still a relatively small American player. Wards Intelligence data suggests that Ford sold 28,000 Mustang Mach-Es in the same time frame, while Tesla sold nearly 140,000 of its Models 3 & Y.

Harrison saw the car during a summer visit to a dealership that sold Infiniti and Volvo cars. She loved it after a test drive—”It had a lot of pickups,” she said—and bought it right away. Shortly after, the suspension strut broke. She felt that “the steering wheel started going weird” and called the dealer. Harrison stated that the dealer fixed it after six weeks of waiting for parts and that the car was otherwise great.

According to Arya Varahmand (chief financial officer at the dealership), the price ranges between $50,000 and $75,000 depending on the options. He stated that most clients pay between $60,000 to $70,000.

Many American buyers stated that the Polestar was more affordable than the other cars. lack of carsBecause of the global shortage of semiconductors.

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Sunil Paul is a San Francisco tech entrepreneur who sells subscriptions to electric vehicles. He bought a Polestar around a year ago after taking it for a test drive. “It has great handling and great style. It checks a lot of boxes like decent range and great performance.” When you take a turn, it stays exactly where you want it to be.

The fact that the car was manufactured in China wasn’t a major factor when he bought the car. He felt it was important to support a diverse range of EV manufacturers, “to promote diversity in the supply and use of EVs.” However, he stated that the rising tensions with China over the past year “have made me really consider it.”

“The US also needs its own supply chain that it can rely on,” said Paul. He stated that growing concerns about China’s authoritarianism made him wonder “what level of support should be given to Chinese cars”.

The most recent federal subsidies are not available to Polestar 2 or other electric vehicles manufactured in China. Inflation Reduction ActThe program offers tax credits of up $7,500 for combined EV purchase in North America. The rule is intended to lower China’s dependence on electric vehicles. controlGlobal Batteries.

Polestar’s chief operating officers Dennis Nobelius said that he doesn’t believe the company has suffered too much from its exclusion from the US credit. “We are a premium vehicle…and we can provide the attributes that the customer wants. He said that there is still good demand.

It may surprise consumers to learn that electric vehicles manufactured by Western brands are also made in China. BMW is building the iX3, an electrical SUV, in China to export to Europe and other nations. plansYou can do the same for some electric Mini models. Tesla exports thousands to Europe from its Shanghai factory, even though they’re brand new. Berlin factoryIt is expected to account in the largest part of European production.

Currently, many Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers are focusing more on Europe and other countries than the United States, possibly due to the US market’s barriers. Nio, a Shanghai-based manufacturer of electric vehicles, sells its ET7 sedans to customers in the Netherlands and other countries. It also has sales in Sweden, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands. The company stated that it hopes to enter the US market in 2025.

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China’s largest automaker is the state-owned SAIC. It bought the British MG name in the early 2000s. SellThere are many electric MG models available in Europe, including the hatchback-style budget model Started About 26,000 Egyptian pounds (about $31,500). BYD, a Shenzhen-based company that stands for Build Your Dreams launched last month three electric cars in Europe at Paris Motor Show.

Wei Jianjun, chairman of Great Wall Motor Company, is launching an electric car called Ora Funky Cat in Europe. This new vehicle is affordable and will be available in Europe. In a recent interview with Chinese Business JournalWei cited brand perception as a major obstacle, especially in Europe.

Wei stated that GWM may not be the only one facing this problem. It is a common problem for many Chinese auto brands. “Cars are different from other products because their promotion takes longer and is more challenging. We cannot make a judgment on the basis of one or two years; we have to make a development strategy for at least the next 10 years.”

BYD sent an email statement stating that it sells electric buses and cars in dozens of other countries and relies upon local employees to have a “strong understanding” of local markets.

BYD will be the future [electric]The company said that the cars would be sold in more countries and will be manufactured worldwide.

European politicians are feeling tension due to the arrival of Chinese brands in Europe, as well as US moves to protect North American electric vehicle producers. Emmanuel Macron, the French President, urged European consumers to purchase cars made in the European Union in a newspaper interview.

During the auto show, Macron passed by the BYD screen without “gazing briefly at the Chinese stand,” according to Schmidt, who attended the show and interpreted Macron’s visit as a snub — and a sign that protectionist measures could increase in the European Union, where import duties on cars are high. Chinese is currently 10%.

Carlos Tavares, CEO at Stellantis, Jeep, Peugeot, has repeatedly asked Europe to do more to help local automakers. “The conditions here are easier for Chinese automakers to compete than for Western automakers in China,” he said in October. “The European Union is wide-open and unacceptable.”

To get around some American protectionism, Polestar said it will begin manufacturing the new Polestar 3 — a luxury SUV with a starting price of $80,000 — starting in 2024, at a Volvo-owned plant in South Carolina.

Mitchell Forrest, Charlottesville, said that the company’s promise of making the Polestar 3 available in the US made it feel “a little better.” He bought the Polestar 2 last ye because it was more accessible than Tesla’s. in time.

“Obviously, I would love a car manufactured in the United States,” he stated, “but that wasn’t one of my options.”

This report was contributed by Andrew Van Damme and Christian Shepherd. Lyric Lee also contributed.