On March 15, World Consumer Rights Day, China’s state broadcaster held its annual TV show, the 3.15 Gala, and it mentioned the names and shame companies that have violated consumers’ rights. Chinese car makers surprisingly weren’t mentioned in the list.
It must have been a huge release for PR managers of certain car brands. since in previous years, car brands mentioned at this event would get huge sales drop because of it.
In recent years, competition in the Chinese auto market has intensified. Price wars have become the norm. According to CPCA (China Passenger Car Association), 28 models saw price cuts from January to February 2025. The overall average price drop for new passenger cars was 30,000 yuan (4,160 USD). This represents a 12.6% decrease. BEVs had the biggest price cuts. Newly launched BEVs in early 2025 saw an average drop of 39,000 yuan（5,410 USD). This represents a 17% decrease.
In this price war, consumers seem to be the biggest winners. However, hidden risks exist behind the discounts. One major issue is cost-cutting, which has led to complaints about discrepancies between products and descriptions. Some buyers noticed that certain discounted models had missing standard features or cheaper substitutes.
For instance, a Dongfeng eπ007 buyer paid an extra 5,000 yuan (700 USD) for a “high-performance red brake” upgrade. However, when replacing the tire, he discovered it was just a red plastic cover on a regular brake. Additionally, the electronic purchase sheet had been secretly modified, changing “high-performance red brake” to “red brake cover”.
In addition, on the national 12315 consumer complaint platform, 24,727 complaints were found about cars and auto parts in the past month. This was 28.97% compared to the previous month. However, the resolution rate was only 48.8%.
The reason why many car brands were not mentioned at the 315 Gala, is that the auto industry (especially the EV industry) is very important for the Chinese economy. According to the official statistics, China’s auto manufacturing industry generated 10.1 trillion yuan ( 1.4 trillion USD) in revenue in 2023. It counted an 8.7% share of the country’s GDP.
Source: IThome
