Dive Brief:
- More than three-quarters (76%) of Americans younger than 40 would consider buying a vehicle from a China-based brand, according to a recent survey by marketing research and product consulting firm AutoPacific.
- Survey respondents said they would be more open to a car from China’s automakers if it was built in the U.S., and more than a third of Americans (37%) said they would consider a purchase if it was made in Mexico.
- Though the U.S. recently increased tariffs on China-made electric vehicles from 25% to 100%, cars assembled in North America would likely avoid the tariff.
Dive Insight:
Many Americans are hesitant about EVs because of the initial cost of purchase, but EVs manufactured in China are sold at much lower prices than the EVs currently sold in the U.S. And according to the AutoPacific survey, part of the firm’s bi-monthly Fuel Price Impact Study, many Americans would buy cars from China, particularly respondents under age 40.
“A surprising number of American consumers are familiar with Chinese car brands even though none are sold here currently,” AutoPacific president and chief analyst Ed Kim said in a statement. The survey, which included nearly 800 car owners in the U.S., found that Americans would be more open to purchasing China-based vehicle brands if the cars were built domestically.
However, the survey also reported a majority of Americans regardless of age would be concerned about privacy if they purchased a car from China. Yet according to Kim, “Privacy concerns about Chinese-brand vehicles are likely to eventually subside given that most of the connected smartphones, smart watches, laptops, connected home devices we are comfortable using every day are in fact manufactured in China.”
While the recent announcement of increased tariffs on China-made EVs was made to protect U.S. carmakers from a recent increase in Chinese EV exports, China’s EV brands could potentially avoid the tariff if their vehicles were built in North America.
Some China-based automakers are already operating in Mexico, including BYD, which launched its first pickup truck, the BYD Shark, in Mexico last month. In the last quarter of 2023, BYD surpassed Tesla to become the biggest seller of EVs in the world.
According to AutoPacific, China-made EVs will inevitably come to the U.S. “Younger generations of shoppers are clearly aware of the enticing products Chinese automakers are cooking up overseas,” manager of product and consumer insights at AutoPacific Robby DeGraff said in a statement. “It’s only a matter of ‘when’ they’ll be able to get their hands on them.”
