Posted on 05/13/2005 2:40:53 AM PDT by Lake
Another automotive entrepreneur plans to import Chinese cars to the United States.
The Geeley Solo is a small, well-equipped sedan that is expected to sell for $6,995.
David Shelburg, whose background includes work for Toledo, Ohio-based Jeep, expects to begin selling cars and trucks made by Chinese automakers Geeley, Baoding Great Wall Automobile Holding Company Ltd. and Zhongxing Automobile Company Ltd., as early as December.
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The Geeley Solo is a small, well-equipped sedan that is expected to sell for $6,995. |
(Excerpt) Read more at post-gazette.com ...
I'd rather take the bus.
Maybe so, but truth is, these cars will sell like hotcakes.
I wonder if the same safety tests are required on these cars as on other cars?
HUGO!
Take the bus if you can. But buses don't take you anywhere you want to go. If it is safety you're concerned about, remember that there are stringent ways of determining wether or not a vehicle is considered fit for the American market. Yes, this is a cheap car. But the Chinese designers are smart enough to know about quality improvement.
In this case, the Chinese come up with something that other manufacturers can build, too. It would have been more useful if they design a small car with a more impressive fuel efficiency. After all, as the Chinese (AND the Indians) are making more money on average, the number of cars on their roads will increase accordingly. Bearing in mind that they import most of their energy and the climate in the Middle East is not yet as stable as would be desirable, they will be subject to the ever-present oil price fluctuations, and , eventually, scarcity of oil.
Did I ride in a Chevy the other day with an engine made in China???
Remember the YUGO !!
Hmm! disposable autos. @ 7 grand each, they're toaster cars - you wear one out, toss it like a toaster, and buy another. One could wear out three without touching the price of a Detroit model.
Toasters last me a long time.
I've seen these in the Autoshopper used, imagine, in 3 years depreciation they sell @aprox 2-3,000 used and in decent condition. I have a feeling they are gonna send our auto manufacturers scrambling for a while.
When i see China, i see RED, as in REd Alert!!
Fords and Chevys, made in China, sold in Walmart, how far away?
The Geely sports sedan, called Solo, will cost $10,888 fully equipped with leather seats, power windows, a remote control entry system, CD player and wood trim. A fully-equipped Solo sedan is $8,888.
Hollywood would be a readymade market for them.....After all who would worry about their quality if you wanna blow th'm up anyway???
HUGO!
LARRY EDSALL
Published Date: 10/11/04
GEELY MERRIE 7130X1 SOLO
ON SALE: tba (awaits U.S. safety and emissions requirements)
BASE PRICE: $10,000
POWERTRAIN: 1.4-liter, 84-hp, 81-lb-ft I4; fwd, five-speed manual
CURB WEIGHT: 1940 pounds
0 to 60 MPH: n/a
Remember the first time you drove a Japanese car back in the early 1970s? Or a Korean car in the’80s? Or, for that matter, that Saturn you drove last week? They were rudimentary transportation devices proving that while their makers had the basics down, they still had a lot of catching up to do.
Fortunately they did catch up—or in the Saturn’s case, are still trying.
Former Subaru distributor David Shelburg of Scottsdale, Arizona, hopes to import the Geely Merrie 7130X1 Solo from independent Chinese automakers (AW, Aug. 9). Our drive of the Solo reminded us of those earlier experiences.
The car is built by Zhejiang Geely Automobile Co. Ltd. According to its official website, the Geely Group was founded in 1986 to produce decoration material, which made it ideally prepared to create motor scooters in 1994 and cars in 1998. The company’s English-language manual promises it will provide "powerful force, low fuel consumption, easy starting, little noise and less toxic gas emissions."Less than what, we do not know.
Driving a Solo for a few days leaves you feeling much like those first imports did: There is room for improvement.
This Chinese-spec sedan looks a little like a Volkswagen Jetta with a Mercedes grille grafted to it, though its overall dimensions are closer to those of a Kia Rio than a Jetta.
Standard equipment includes a driver’s side airbag, power steering, central locks, power windows and mirrors, and 14-inch Wingro radial tires. There is no cupholder. Shelburg says the Solo will be priced between $10,000 and $11,000 in the United States.
Before it gets here, it needs sound and vibration insulation and damping, and improved evaporative emission equipment (it leaves garages smelling like an open gas can); more power wouldn’t hurt either. Geely’s four-cylinder engine squeezes out 84 hp at 6000 rpm and 81 lb-ft of torque at 5200 rpm, though its maker notes it returns 49 mpg.
What’s to like best about the car? Its transmission shifter: The "knob"atop the five-speed manual lever has an unusual but effective shape. It is as if a cylinder of wood was sliced diagonally, then positioned for your palm to fall against the diagonal plane, and your fingers grip the outer curved surface. It is, simply, a joy to hold, and holding it also quiets its tendency to vibrate noisily.
As China becomes more of an economic powerhouse, it’s not surprising we should see its automotive imports arriving on our shores. But based on how this first example tests out, and knowing how important it is to get products right sooner for a fickle market, it won’t be long before the next-generation Geely is more representative of current automotive offerings.
Whoever said that we live in interesting times sure wasn’t kidding.
I doubt whether all these are chinese vehicles!!! anyway its not their look that bothers me but their quality...How reliable will they be??? I can say from personal experience that chinese products are rather unreliable!!
I'm hardly impressed. No China. We don't want in car what you did for kids' toys that fall apart after five years. Stick to what you know which is third rate quality crap for Walmart.
What comes to mind are vehicles like hte old King Midget which was produced in PA and OH when I was young...
or the Mini Moke made in Britain...
or any number of neighborhood elecrical vehichles...
I also really enjoyed the old Honda 50's and 90's with the step through frames as well as Vespa's and other scooters.
These would great for getting around a small town or even inner city neighborhood. They are NOT for extended highway driving.
Not only would they save on gas but with more people having increased mobility at reasonable cost, intercourse (you know what I mean) would rise dramatically to the benefit of all businesses.
We could build them here at regional plants designed to manufacture vehicles tailored to indiviual areas.
Because the vehicles are of simple design allowing low skilled assembly labor costs could be kept down. Semi - assembled vehicles could also be offered passing along the savings to the customer who has the ability to put one together or hire someone locally to do it. That would help discourage similar vehicles from being imported. It just wouldn't be cost effective to haul them from overseas and ship them inland.
And YES...I DO like the Segway...
would really like to have one....sigh
prisoner6
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