Chinese car warranty showdown in South Africa

To boost customer confidence, Chinese brands offer among the lengthiest after-sales agreements of all brands in South Africa.

This strategy seemed to have paid dividends, as nameplates from the People’s Republic are becoming mainstays on the country’s roads.

For instance, both Chery and GWM are regularly outselling market stalwarts like Renault, Kia, and Nissan, which have all been around for a far longer time.

Likewise, Jetour only entered South Africa in September 2024 and surpassed an aggregate total of 1,000 sales by January, an impressive feat for a company few local consumers knew about a year ago.

It doesn’t seem like things are slowing down any time soon, either, as no fewer than five Chinese brands have confirmed that they’ll be arriving in South Africa in the not-so-distant future.

These include Changan, Deepal, Denza, Dongfeng, and Geely.

All that being said, let’s turn our focus back to what’s on offer right now, and what you’ll be getting for your money.

The maximum standard warranties for Chinese brands in South Africa are compared below:

Buyers of Chery and GWM/Haval are the clear winners in this category, as both provide the longest vehicle warranties of all Chinese automakers at seven years or 200,000km.

Chery pulls slightly ahead with its 10-year/1-million km engine protection across all its vehicles, rivaling only GAC’s lifetime contract.

These come with a caveat, though.

Both Chery and GAC’s lengthy engine warranties are only valid for the first owner of the vehicle, so don’t expect to benefit from it if you buy used.

They aren’t the only ones doing this, as it also applies to the powertrain warranties of Jaecoo, Jetour, and Omoda.

Interestingly, the standard warranties of Jaecoo, Jetour, and Omoda are two years and 50,000km shorter than parent company Chery, even though they have the same 10-year engine plan.

This suggests their limits were carefully chosen so that they don’t outshine their owner, neither on the new nor the used markets.

At the other end of the spectrum, Dayun has the shortest warranty of all these nameplates at three years or 60,000km, whichever occurs first.

When it comes to service plans, the playing field is a little more even.

The maximum standard service plans for Chinese brands in South Africa are compared below:

Again, Chery and GWM/Haval are on top in terms of contract length, which is capped at seven years for both.

However, when it comes to distance, BYD, GAC, JAC, LDV, and MG lead the pack with 100,000km of coverage.

The two outliers this time are BAIC and Maxus, who only provide optional service plans at an additional cost.

It’s important to mention that not all models in the respective automakers’ catalogues are covered by the same warranties and service plans.

Generally speaking, the cheaper options have less coverage, so it’s something to keep an eye out for should you be shopping at the lower end of the Chinese car spectrum.

Warranties vs Service Plans

There are key differences between warranties and service plans that’s vital to know should you be buying a car that’s still protected by these agreements.

A warranty guarantees the buyer that should the vehicle not function properly, it will be replaced or the buyer refunded.

Not all warranties are created equal, however, as they differ between manufacturers in terms of the validity period and what is covered.

In most cases, warranties protect you from factory defects and problems with things such as the engine, gearbox, cooling system, electronics, and the like.

What’s not covered under these contracts are accident damage, wear and tear items like brakes and tyres, routine service and maintenance, and interior damage like holes in the seats.

Meanwhile, a service plan covers the cost of scheduled services and the replacement of essential parts for a certain period of time.

Usually, you’ll have to take your car to the dealer once a year for a checkup, upon which the mechanic will survey and replace components like air and oil filters, spark plugs, gaskets, and brakes.

A service plan does not cover mechanical issues nor damage caused by negligence or an accident, and it can’t be used to fix existing damage or fill in for services that were previously missed.