And, a recent tour of one of the Asian powerhouse’s vehicle plants has proved this beyond a shadow of a doubt, at least to Honda President and CEO Toshihiro Mibe.
“We have no chance against this,” Mibe said upon a visit to a Shanghai parts factory, commenting on its seamless automation across all levels of production. Logistics, procurement and all aspects of the process were so automated, in fact, that he did not spot a single human worker on the supplier’s floor.
Ford executives saying even three years ago that China was way ahead of the game
Toyota’s CEO has likewise said regarding not just his company, but the industry in general, “unless things change, we will not survive”
Genuine question is this the free market?
Is the CCP subsidizing these super cheap cars?
Which isn’t to say the US isn’t doing the same. 2008 should’ve meant the death of much of the American auto industry
Oh they likely are, just like the us does for their own auto industry. The free market part is simply a cheaper car that appeals to more people, it coming from China is the only thing really holding it back. Well and maybe the spying, but I don’t know how bad these are on that front.
Don’t forget the headline that came out the other day about how new US cars post-2027 model year are required to have federal surveillance installed.
We’re already being spied on, and I’d much rather China be doing it than fucking Palantir.
We are not being spyed on as long as we are not american or don’t buy new cars.
Every state does internal espionage on its citizens, and external espionage on other states.
Just because you don’t live in USA or China doesn’t excuse this.
Yes, but that is no reason to invite more of it. And this is not even government spying (they get the data I am sure) but corpo. A bad thing happening does not make it OK or normal.
You’re not inviting more of it. You’re trading spying done by one nation/corp with spying done by another.
Unless you think European espionage is somehow better than Chinese espionage.
No I am not, I will not be buying any new car with spying tools in it. Its not an ether or, its a choice. If China puts out a car without touchscreens and spying they will become world sales leaders almost over night. That is how the free market is ment to work, but america has ruined the very concept (as is tradition) and not buying shit is not even seen as an option anymore.
Why do you have confidence that complex products like cars made, bought, and sold in the EU DON’T have any level of surveillance equipment installed to benefit the intelligence arms of the EU and its member states?
Hard to believe in 2026.
The CCP didn’t just subsidize cheap cars. They built out the manufacturing capacity to produce them at scale.
As China’s demographics shifted and long-term labor supply came into question, they leaned heavily into automation and industrial efficiency.
That’s the real reason these cars are so inexpensive. It’s not just lower prices, it’s a fundamentally different cost structure driven by scale, integration, and advanced manufacturing.
What’s unsettling competitors isn’t cheap cars themselves.
It’s the ability to consistently produce cars more cheaply than anyone else.