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EACH and
every new product that comes into the Philippines gets
the same old true Filipino welcome: “cynicism.”
When
Japan was beginning to rise from the ravages of the
Second World War, it imitated everything and, therefore,
the term “Made in
Japan”
was formerly one of derision. Taiwan and Malaysia and
Singapore and, the latest, Korea all carried this
reputation when they began industrialization.
And this
reputation is more than ever felt in the automobile
industry, where technology develops fast, competition is
fierce worldwide and safety and performance are the
prime movers.
About 10
years ago, a Chinese company dared to enter this arena
totally controlled by the Japanese and Americans and a
smattering of European brands. And as usual, they were
“awarded” the reputation “Made in China.”
But
today, Chery Automobile Inc. has begun to show itself as
a force to be reckoned with in the automobile
industry—something Philippine car companies that take
their market for granted should be very wary about. With
a present production capacity of 400,000 units a year
from its sprawling 250,000-square-meter plant in the
city of
Wuhu in the Chinese
province
of Anhui, no other up-start auto-manufacturing company
could boast of these numbers at start-up.
Chery,
which was derived from the English word cheery, or fun
and happy, began auto production in 1997, after being
part of an assembly line for American, Japanese and
European cars, making engines, transmissions and other
car parts for known brands.
From the
beginning, Chery was immediately a competition to the
global stalwarts, creating almost identical vehicles to
the more established brands, but carrying only a
fraction of their price tags.
Dr.
Zhang Lin, president of Chery Automobiles, said they
“feel that China has arrived in the car-manufacturing
industry and that they could now challenge the leaders
of the industry.”
In a
personal interview during a dinner with Filipino
journalists and dealers at Wuhu, Zhang commented, “The
Koreans were no better than where we are now 10 years
ago, when they intruded into the automobile industry.”
He also said, “Chery is better equipped at the job than
the Koreans, as it has been manufacturing major parts
for major industry players for a very long time and now
has the technology and manpower, plus the economic
backing of a nation like China.”
In the
Philippines Chery is distributed by Iseway Motors
Philippines, led by Tony Lacdao. It now has 29
dealerships around the country and sold an average of
120 cars a month since its introduction last year.
With
price tags that are about 60-percent cheaper than the
other brands in the market and a complete line of
variants from minicompacts to full-size SUVs, Chery is
becoming a major threat to the more established car
companies in the Philippines.
Virgilio
Yupangco, head of sales and dealerships, said they
project to be selling about 300 cars a month by year-end
and expand dealerships by another 15 percent by next
year. These figures should put quite a shiver in the
spines of some manufacturers, who can barely sell 50
units a month. Chery Automobiles in China actually has
projections of selling a million cars a year by the year
2010, a bulk of these in the Asia-Pacific Region.
Yupangco
says it would only take a prospective dealer an initial
capital of about P20 million to get a dealership
rolling, and with their dealer support system, they can
make sure an investor can get his money back and get a
return in no time at all.
For now,
Chery has nine variants competing in the Philippine
market. There is its version of the people’s car, the QQ,
fashionable and yet practical, with a big brother QQ6
sedan that can give the same performance as any other
sedan in the market. The QQ is les than P400,000 and the
QQ6 is valued at less than P650,000, far more
affordable than any of its competition and yet carrying
the same value for money.
Then
there are their regular sedans like the 1.6-liter Cowin
and the 2.0-liter Acteco engine-powered A5 and a more
luxurious version, the 2.0-liter Eastar.
Of
course, they do have a minicompact version in the A1,
powered by an incredible 1.1-liter engine that can give
fuel economy a new meaning and yet retain enough power
for ordinary city driving. Its size is truly just enough
for today’s Metro Manila parking.
The
Chery Tiggo is an answer to the SUV, which has become a
symbol of arrival to the Filipino middle class.
Luxurious and spacious inside, the outer design has
aesthetics that rivals those of the more popular ones in
its class.
And with
the V5 Crossover variant, the Filipino family has
finally found a choice in a car that is roomy and can be
used for home or office purposes. Top that with the
Riich-II, an MPV that promises to serve its true purpose
of a multipurpose vehicle and, well, here we have an
auto company that can call on the competition and say
“Who’s your Daddy?” or Chery for that matter. I mean,
this is one case where breaking a Chery is totally fun
and safe. |
