Buying a foreign car manufactured in China

Although the traffic might be a bit scary in China and public transport is readily available, many foreigners that are living in China consider buying a car, sometimes for the freedom you can have through it, sometimes to avoid overcrowded public transport.

Buying a foreign car manufactured in China

A lot of the famous international brands also produce cars for the local market in China. Here you will get good quality for a price considerably lower as in the country of origin. Be aware that the models are usually a bit adapted to the local market and are not always the newest.

Examples:
· Beijing Jeep
· Shanghai Volkswagen

Buying a Chinese car

Chinese cars are very cheap compared to international models but are definitively not state of the art in security, quality and other aspects. But Chinese manufacturers are improving fast. You can already find acceptable quality for a very low price.

Examples:
· QQ
· BYD

Used car market

In almost every Chinese city there is at least one used car market. It is usually located in the suburbs. This is the place to shop for used cars. Individual car sales as popular in western countries are less common.

Bring a car to China

Bringing your own car to China is not impossible but can be a big hassle. To import a car you need to have an import license. An import license however can only be obtained through a car purchase office which is usually more interested in selling you a car rather than helping you to import your own car.

Financing

If you buy a new car in China you usually pay in cash. Financing was never heard of a few years ago, nowadays you can get financing in a few places. As a foreigner you have to show your residence permit and work visa for that. The down payment is usually at least 40%.