Adel Murad

By : Adel Murad

Chinese car companies presented an impressive show this year at the Dubai International Motor Show. Their numbers are impressive and their products, mostly unknown to outsiders, matched the best on display in Dubai.

Of those companies some came very prepared for media requirements with materials already available on USB sticks for journalists. Most prominent of these companies was GAC motors, which is part of GAC Group.

A video included in the company’s media materials shows a state of the art automated factory in China using up-to-date techniques and environmentally-friendly paints. The company also does testing and inspections of its vehicles along the same standards applied in the best auto companies. It has the longest test track in southern China and uses an international network of well-known suppliers.

GAC cars have five-star safety rating and range between saloons and SUVs.

Other Chinese companies taking part in Dubai this year included Geely, Kenbo and DFM.

Some of the companies came with less media materials than expected, an indication that they are new to the international scene. They wanted the products to speak on their behalf. But with no product awareness in the market and no driving experience with Chinese cars, it was hard to convince the media in Dubai to give space to Chinese companies.

It was also unfortunate that Chinese companies’ turn came at the end of the exhausting “media tour” that takes all day to cover all stands and press conferences of European, American, Japanese and Korean companies. By the time the Chinese companies’ turn arrived in the afternoon, a substantial number of journalists have already left the show to catch up with their deadlines. Next time, Chinese companies need to negotiate earlier slots and come better prepared for the media.

However, Chinese companies put up an impressive performance in Dubai this year. Hopefully, they would learn from the experience and come back stronger and better prepared in two years’ time for the next Dubai Motor Show.

Adel Murad is a senior motoring and business journalist, based in London. Email: [email protected]

Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in the Column section are their own and do not reflect RiyadhVision’s point-of-view.

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