Last week, Chinese manufacturers showcased a wide range of electric, hybrid, and pickup models at South Africa's largest automotive exhibition. These companies aim to capitalize on the growing demand for electrified vehicles and seek to challenge established competitors in the country's highly competitive pickup market.
Models and Brands Presented
Changan, in partnership with Jameel Motors South Africa, demonstrated the long-range electric vehicle Deepal S05, which uses a small gasoline engine to recharge the battery while driving, as well as the Changan Uni-S hybrid SUV. Distributor Dongfeng, E Auto Motor, presented the long-range crossover Forthing Friday and the fully electric Friday, and also launched the Chinese brand Kaiyi.
Beijing Automotive Industry Holding (BAIC) unveiled its new premium new energy brand, Arcfox, starting with the compact electric SUV T1, expected in October. The companies utilized the annual WesBank Festival of Motoring to display electrified vehicles targeting both price-sensitive buyers and affluent customers.
LDV and Jiangling Motors expanded their traditional fuel pickup lineups, while Geely, with its all-electric Riddara, and Chery entered a segment long dominated by brands such as Toyota, Ford, and Isuzu.
Growing Influence of Chinese Brands
These presentations highlight the increasing influence of Chinese automakers in South Africa. They are rapidly gaining market share through competitively priced vehicles and an expanding model range. In 2025, Chinese brands accounted for 16.8% of the passenger car market, up from 11.2% in 2024 and significantly higher than less than 9% at the beginning of 2023.
Although the share of electric vehicles in sales is still small, their adoption rate has accelerated as Chinese brands have saturated the market with more affordable electrified models. Robert Gwerengwe, CEO of WesBank, told journalists on Thursday that about 40% of the new cars financed by them last month were Chinese, a massive increase from 0.01% in 2016.
JP Geldenhuys, National Sales Manager for Dongfeng South Africa, stated that E Auto Motor plans to expand Dongfeng's local portfolio by including the brands Voyah, MHero, and Wuling. He noted that the company's goal is to increase the South African portfolio to approximately 14 different models by the first quarter of 2027, compared to three models currently.
Lepas, owned by Chery, which debuted this year with internal combustion engine models, announced plans to enter the battery electric vehicle and plug-in hybrid markets. JJ Bothes, General Manager of Lepas and Chery South Africa, stated that the future belongs to new energy vehicles, and they aim to capture a 'larger share of this market' through the growth of plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles.
Chery-owned Omoda & Jaecoo aims to achieve a 60:40 ratio between internal combustion engine vehicles and new energy vehicles by the end of 2027, up from the current 81:19. BAIC also plans to expand its local new energy offering beyond the Arcfox T1 and enter the pickup market with future models. Notably, Tesla was absent from the exhibition, as it has not yet entered the South African market.