The wave of Chinese cars in Europe does not stop. There are more and more Chinese brands that are betting on the European market, and that break our schemes and prejudices, often with electric vehicles for all budgetsor even with premium, high-end focus products, which we are already testing.
But beyond the Chinese brands that try their luck in Europe, it is important to pay attention to the number of European manufacturers that bet on China to manufacture their cars. Which are not few.
The BMW iX3 that you will buy at a dealer in Spain is manufactured in China. If you book a luxury sedan like the DS 9 it will also be made in China. And today we already know that the most anticipated car in CUPRA will also be manufactured in China for the world. Why do European brands make their cars in China?
The CUPRA Tavascan, designed and developed in Martorell, will be manufactured in China
CUPRA’s most anticipated car
In 2024 the CUPRA Tavascan will be launched, one of CUPRA’s most anticipated products. Today we know it from some images that present us with a prototype that, a priori, should present a design very close to the final model.
The CUPRA Tavascan will be a fully electric crossover, of generous dimensions, technically based on the technology available in other electric crossovers of the group, such as the Volkswagen ID.5 and the Skoda Enyaq Coupé. Precisely its approach will be very similar to that of these, with a crossover body and, therefore, SUV features, but also a sportier line, coupe-inspired.
It is expected to deliver around 300 CV of power, to have more than 400 kilometers of autonomy and to establish itself as one of the most passionate and distinguished electrical products of the brand. Although it was designed and developed in Martorell, it was expected to be produced in Zwickau, Germany, in one of the most important factories of the Volkswagen Group where the models with which it will share technology are produced.
CUPRA has chosen the Hefei factory because it has the capacity and technology required for the production of Tavascan and is close to the suppliers of its electrical technology
The CUPRA Tavascan will be produced in China
But the news that emerged these days and that publishes The newspaper is that the new CUPRA Tavascan will be produced in Hefei, China, in one of the factories of the German group, which according to the Spanish brand would be “the only one with adequate capacity and technology to produce it”. Which necessarily leads us to a question, Why do brands like BMW, DS and now CUPRA produce their cars in China?
The economic factor is usually the first that comes to mind. It is true that China offers many possibilities when it comes to producing a car, at a lower cost than its production requires in Europe – not only due to labor costs, but also energy costs, or because production is located close to the main suppliers that it requires an electric vehicle. But other factors also play a role, such as the fact that European manufacturers are investing more and more in China to sell their cars in China. Local production allows these brands to be competitive in the largest automotive market in the world.
In any case, it does not seem that this is going to be the motivation of CUPRA, which neither sells, nor will it sell, its cars in China. CUPRA would indeed benefit from locating the production of the Tavascan in the province of Anhui, very close to suppliers such as CATL, which will supply the batteries used by the new CUPRA electric crossover.
