Chinese car brands step up UK focus
Five Chinese car brands accounted for more than 10% of all new car leads to dealerships in August.
According to the latest data released by Auto Trader, the largest five brands from China accounted for 11.2% of all new leads, which it believes is a good guide for future sales.
The monthly figures continue a growth trend seen throughout the year; Chinese new entrants to market made up just 4.1% of all new car leads to retailers at the start of the year, but that figure has more than trebled in the first three quarters of 2025.
Setting the pace last month was JAECOO with 6.2% of all dealership leads. It was followed by Omoda (2.2%), BYD (1.9%), Leapmotor (0.7%) and GWM (0.2%).
Major moment
Ian Plummer, commercial director at Auto Trader, said: “Changan’s launch marks a major moment for the UK EV market.
“As a state-owned manufacturer with deep pockets and the capacity to plan for the long term, Changan is not testing the waters: it is moving in with deep ambitions for a large dealership network at a price point ready to take on more established rivals like Tesla.
“Given the UK’s lower tariffs on imports compared to the European Union and particularly the US, we are now a key strategic market for Chinese manufacturers, and we expect their recent growth to continue.”
