Chinese carmakers joining forces to develop car software

Chinese carmakers joining forces to develop car softwareA case of united we stand, with a hint of nationalism as well, by the looks of it. The Nikkei reports that in a bid to reduce its industry’s dependence on foreign manufacturers for key components and software, Chinese automakers are joining forces to develop the necessary digital technology for vehicles.

The report says that Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC), China FAW Group, Changan Automobile Group and Chery Automobile have banded together with a software maker affiliated with the state-run China Electronics Technology Group to form an organisation to build and commercialise automotive technology.

Elsewhere, Changan, FAW and Chery are also collaborating separately with local firms and universities in Chongqing, Jilin Province and Anhui Province respectively, in a bid to ramp up the development process.

In terms of engines and transmissions, Chinese carmakers are already shifting towards domestic suppliers to provide the necessary, but for items such as semiconductors and engine control software, they’re still reliant on foreign imports and technology, which is what they’re hoping to address. Along the way, all this also means growth for Chinese companies in the auto parts business.

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • what i can say is that the Chinese automobil getting stronger and stronger..
    this is an action that really make progress.. unlike others…

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  • LatukBandar on May 06, 2011 at 1:26 pm

    Slowly but surely…. slow and steady win the race.

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    • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 7:39 pm

      Chinese automotive industry is not “slow and steady”… in fact they take shortcuts by some unethical business practices like copying foreign car designs, making win-lose joint ventures (where the losers are always foreign carmakers), threatening foreign automakers to reveal industry secrets, etc. If and only if the entire Chinese auto industry players including their government abolish those unethical practices, then the negative perceptions of Chinese auto industry will be gone.

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      • LatukBandar on May 07, 2011 at 1:10 pm

        Every civilization goes thru the same process. They copy, steal and cheat. The Japs did that before and after world war one and two, the Americans did that before world war 1, the british learned from the spannish and the spannish learned from the portugals. The Italians borrowed knowledge from the arabs, the arabs from the indians and asians. It is a cycle.

        come on, give them time. You gave the Japs and Europeans lots of opportunity, why not the Chinese?

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  • bill pagar on May 06, 2011 at 2:07 pm

    Economically sound to do that.

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  • Stoner on May 06, 2011 at 2:21 pm

    It is proposed Proton to join in the alliance.

    We should utilise Lotus as the expert and profiteer from this initiative.

    Painfully looking at this development and our own car companies not undertaking the same concerted effort.

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    • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 7:34 pm

      The alliance only benefit Chinese automakers and will only kill foreign carmakers. Trust me.

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  • ericmaxman on May 06, 2011 at 2:56 pm

    if it runs on Windows, it will crash for no obvious reason. lol

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    • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 5:39 pm

      You mean, pirated Windows? :D

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      • ericmaxman on May 06, 2011 at 8:41 pm

        ori also crash la

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      • sukasuki on May 07, 2011 at 12:36 pm

        i cant imagine while driving suddenly blue screen appear and says : the system is crashed and need to be shutting down. oh my god, can u imagine that?

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        • Mienzz on May 08, 2011 at 12:17 am

          so always be prepare to install hotfix and service pack update to your car ^_^

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  • farghmee on May 06, 2011 at 3:09 pm

    malaysia must start this measure.
    self dependent.

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  • azrai on May 06, 2011 at 3:24 pm

    Proton can join teh band wagon too. DSZ, make an early entry.

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  • MalayanTapir on May 06, 2011 at 3:43 pm

    Shouldn’t they attempt to make their cars safer, more reliable and of better quality before even trying to make their own electronics and software?

    If you told me that the electronics and software of a Chery – a car where upholstery can randomly fall off, where the steering wheel feels totally numb, where various mechanical components can die within weeks of ownership, and where the clutch acts like an on off switch – are now developed IN HOUSE, I’d think twice before stepping into one.

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    • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 7:32 pm

      Agreed. They should work out in terms of quality first. If you still remember, brands like Comel and Nitro which were essentially Chinese scooters and motorcycle being assembled here were once dominated the scooter market around 2003. But after several years, what happened to them? All bungkus…!!! The reason? Those scooters and motorcycles were plagued with serious quality issues. After a few weeks of ownership, the CDI will be kong very fast, the clear lamp lenses will turn yellow, the body parts age very fast, and there will be parts falling here and there. The engines are also not reliable and breaks down easily. In the end, they have no trade-in value. Pity to the owners of those scooters and motorcycles.

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  • P1tak boleh pakai on May 06, 2011 at 3:44 pm

    Looks like the next big thing is manufacturing
    of component, ECU’s then engines !!
    At the pace the Chinese are going and with more
    corperate takeovers ,China would soon have
    their very own Nürburgring Nordschleife too!!

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  • I would say it was a strong indication that the Chinese automobil industry had taken necessary steps to master key techniques / expertise required in order to become fully independant automakers. A less dependence of foreign expertise will directly reduce production cost and subsequently improve market competitiveness.
    A good role model to our local automaker Proton to refer if they are sincere enough to turn around the situation right now whereby they are still rely on tax payer’s fund to survive. Shame on you Proton.

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    • Malaysia is too small to support independent car makers. Core technologies like engine, transmission and ECUs require intensive capital investment and massive R&D. Even Proton’s so called own IP is obtained by engaging external consultants like EDAGS and LG to do the design and engineering. Proton does not have sufficient organic capability to design and build a commerically viable car from a blank sheet. Actually very few countries have that kind of capability. The auto industry is constantly evolving, even Sweden is struggling after decades of experience. So the question is, should Malaysian continue to pay the price of having it’s own car maker?

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    • deGonggok on May 06, 2011 at 6:00 pm

      Well China have 1.3 (1.4 Billion people). The buyers will be there.

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    • BeemerFreak on May 06, 2011 at 6:10 pm

      Please do not compare them with Proton, the Chinese automakers are High Achiever’ but Proton is ‘High Protected’

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      • rashdan on May 06, 2011 at 7:22 pm

        Well, we have lifetime warranty on power-windows here in Msia !!
        :)
        Maybe we can sell this to China instead !!

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      • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 7:23 pm

        You’re totally wrong. It is true that Proton and Perodua are highly protected, but Chinese auto protection is even a lot more crazier – so crazy that their government even gives them green lights to copy other designs without a single cent of royalty, as well as legalizing biased and unfair joint-venture practices that give all benefits to Chinese automakers but at the same time kill foreign carmakers.

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        • MALAYSIA. I LOVE YOU on May 06, 2011 at 7:54 pm

          China kill foreign automaker? how?
          if true why foreign automaker like GM making huge profit in China. Also Volkswagen is no 1 brand choice in China. Why Audi, Hyundai, Rools Royce, Ferrari, BMW and so many car manufacture can making huge profit in China. And for your information, China will be GM, Volkswagen, Audi and BMW largest market in the world beyond their homgrown.

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          • because their market is huge, so huge that even though foreign car make being force to work with local partner, provide technology and expertise but have to share the profit, they still willing to go into china.

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          • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 10:01 pm

            Don’t you realize that foreign carmakers MUST make joint-ventures with Chinese carmakers BEFORE they can market their cars in China? And don’t you realize that in those joint-ventures, foreign carmakers can only have up to 49% stakes, while the remaining 51% will obviously be owned by Chinese carmaker? Even if companies like GM earn profit there, it is its Chinese “partner” which forks out even larger profit. The surface of the industry may look nice, but in reality there are so many dirty tricks up in their sleeves.

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          • squawk on May 09, 2011 at 10:05 am

            Isn’t that the same as one familiar country where foreign companies have to give out at least 30% to certain parties in non-priority sectors and as much as 51% in priority ones?

            Except that in this familiar country it is more difficult to achieve critical mass or economies of scale.

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        • BeemerFreak on May 06, 2011 at 7:55 pm

          How can their “protection is even a lot more crazier” when all their car prices is much much lower than Malaysia.

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          • squall_shinoda on May 06, 2011 at 10:10 pm

            It is not about the price. The auto policy is a lot sinister there through certain policies that favour more towards Chinese carmakers. For example, Chinese carmakers MUST have controlling stakes in joint ventures. And if you still remember, Paul Tan had once revealed a sinister plan by the Chinese government where foreign carmakers MUST reveal their hybrid / electric car technology secrets before they can sell their hybrid / electric cars in China. Intellectual property and copyright laws? There’s no such law like that in China.

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          • BeemerFreak on May 07, 2011 at 12:12 pm

            IT IS ALL ABOUT PRICE, don’t give so much of a bullshit and beat around the bush, just one sentence ;- I WANT MALAYSIA CAR PRICE TO DROP.

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          • squall_shinoda on May 07, 2011 at 12:27 pm

            If you really insist, then it is really worthy just asking for the car price to be cheaper but at the same time unsafe and unreliable at all? If you really want a very cheap car, then I challenge you to build your car ALL BY YOURSELF and at the same time scores 5-star in Euro NCAP. It is you who should not give such fucking bullshit here.

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          • BeemerFreak on May 07, 2011 at 12:59 pm

            So according to your logics, car in America is cheaper than us then car in America is unsafe. Car in China is cheaper than Malaysia, you can not twist the fact and keep bullshitting without facts.

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          • LatukBandar on May 07, 2011 at 1:14 pm

            Did the Chinese point a gun and say u must JV with us? NO, so, it is a willing based.

            If GM, Audi, BMW… don’t like, they can pull out. Nobody is forcing them to enter China.

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          • nitai2le on May 07, 2011 at 1:43 pm

            @LatukBandar

            That’s because squall_shinoda is clouding the point and confuse consensual sex with rape. lol

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          • not really….i have friends from china…they always said their cars esp imported cars are pricey just like malaysia…taxed like 300%… so there are no such thing as ‘unprotected chinese carmaker’…they just like us…

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          • squall_shinoda on May 07, 2011 at 1:21 am

            Now see? Your Chinese friends have already proven that the Chinese protectionism is even worse. Because of the tax structure, there’s no wonder why there are few imported CBUs in China.

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          • BeemerFreak on May 07, 2011 at 12:50 pm

            Why listen to friend, when they are telling something that is not true, go and google yourself, here are some of the facts:

            China Audi A4 1.8T (RMB 291K ~ RM 145K)
            Malaysia Audi A4 1.8T ( RM 235K)

            China E200CGI Elegance (RMB 465K ~ RM 232K)
            Malaysia E200CGI Elegance (RM 369K)

            China BMW 523i (RMB 449k ~ RM 224K)
            Malaysia BMW 523i (RM 383K)

            These are all facts and tangible, not beat around the bush.

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          • MALAYSIA. I LOVE YOU on May 06, 2011 at 10:51 pm

            yup you right. at below RMB 100, 000 yuan (RM 50, 000) you can get 2.0 cc car in China? Latest car launched by GM-SAIC partnership Baojun build on Buick Excelle (better than Chevrolet Cruze) with 1.5 engine, good spec and handsome looking sell start at only RMB 70, 000 (RM 35, 000). In our country bolehland under BN rule, just a dream

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          • squall_shinoda on May 07, 2011 at 1:18 am

            Yeah right, but it’s just a CKD unit under a Chinese brand, no wonder it’s cheap. In fact, it’s more like lembu punya susu, sapi punya nama – because GM’s stake in the so-called “partnership” shall never be higher than 49%. Another thing, can you really get that price for a real imported CBU Chevy Cruze which is non-made-in-China? What a sick joke.

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          • bobdbilder on May 07, 2011 at 8:53 am

            The Chinese government knows deeply how economy works. At the height of growth, they see inflation and then they raise the base lending rate. Inflation is a big issue in China but the growth remains. They also know that depreciating assets like cars are good only if it creates jobs and moves the economy. Protectionism is everywhere. Protection of your own key local industry against superior foreign corporations is key to the local industry survival.

            There is a difference in HOW they implement protection. In Malaysia all cars are taxed and dutied. Non-AFTA cars are taxed more than others. Too bad there is no big engined AFTA cars. Which is good. We have one and a half Malaysian own automaker.

            In China, they tax the foreign cars that does not local JV very heavily while have little tax on their Chinese products. This will stimulate more JVs. China has lots more of these automakers.

            See the similarity?

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          • nitai2le on May 07, 2011 at 12:42 pm

            talk big sense, hope squall_shinoda will come to his sense soon. LOL

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        • steventan on May 06, 2011 at 10:02 pm

          i-pad and i-phones are manufactured in China.
          Being competitive in terms of technology advancement &
          QC has always been Apple’s trademark.
          If Apple wz sceptical that their products would be cloned
          and manufactured outright , they would have shipped out
          many many ions ago !!

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      • autojohndoe on May 06, 2011 at 7:42 pm

        so with malaysian…

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