Lame Cars?

[Peata Whyted]

I was browsing the pages of Auto Trader .au last night and noticed there are a number of cars in WA from Chinese manufacturers such as Geely & Great Wall. These cars seem very 'good value' but you don't see them in the UK in any great number.

 

My question is, are these cars really good value, or are they seen as the butt of jokes (as with the Lada & Skoda reputations of 80's Britain)?

 

I am looking for the best I can get for my money when I get there, and wondering of these cheap motors are even worth considering? I would probably look at a Great Wall SUV over a Geely to be honest.

 

Opinions welcomed!

 

Pete.

[OnOurWay]

Hi Pete,

I too have looked at the Great Wall SUVs. Difficult for me to have an opinion because I don't have one. All I would say is read the reviews. Not just the top gear type reviews, but the reviews from people that have owned them. I think we will be looking else where!

I suspect that in 10 years time the Chinese cars will be superb, but right now they seem be on the beginning of their journey.

[Bibbs]

Try CarSales, it's better than AutoTrader.

 

And Great Walls etc. are currently a joke. I'm sure it'll change, but they are the Japan of the 50's and the Korean of the 90's.

 

Now people rave about the new lineup of Kia & Hyundai, and Toyota and Honda are major players (biggest car manufacturer and biggest engine manufacturer).

 

I'd avoid anything Chinese, the Koreans don't sell anything exciting, Ford and Holden are going. It looks like we'll have to go American or German to get anything exciting. I think I'll be driving my HSV for a while at this rate.

[Rivera]

I believe the drivetrain on Great Walls is from Mitsubishi. It's all the other stuff that goes pear shaped and the failure rate for switches and knobs is not good.

 

I would not consider a Geely with the current safety rating (or lack of). Imagine trying to go past a roadtrain at night, deep bush in a Geely. No thanks.

 

I am a big fan of the Isuzu D-Max. It's a durable car with serious offroad ability.

[Redsquare]

Rivera raised a good point about safety.

 

Some of the Chinese cars available have safety ratings that were unacceptable in Europe 15 years ago. Also, the RAC won't insure any cars made after 2012 that don't achieve a star rating of 4 or higher.

[Peata Whyted]

Fantastic responses from all, thanks very much! I thought about as much to be honest. I suppose I would rather spend out on a 5 - 6 year old car with a good reputation than a year old shiny tin box. I will look on Car Sales and stick to known brands!

 

I really fancy a convertible, but there seems to be more for sale in rainy UK than in sunny WA, but I suspect that this is due to people in WA preferring roof up and AC on, than roof down, sunburnt head

[portlaunay]

http://www.ancap.com.au/home

 

Might be useful.

[Bibbs]

Chinese tend to buy (or not) the rights to older models of common cars, they then change the bumpers and lights and make it look more modern.

 

So the car underneath is usually a fair bit older in design.

 

Here is an old example, just watch where the front wheel goes, and look at how good the airbags work. :-