There are 22 Chinese car brands in South Africa – with 4 more on the way

There are a total of 22 different Chinese car brands on the market in South Africa, and at least four more are set to make their debut in the near future.

Chinese cars have exploded in popularity since the start of the decade, as they tend to be much more affordable and feature-packed than equivalent models from legacy brands.

Chery, GWM, and Jetour, in particular, have rapidly grown to become three of the top-selling brands in the country, selling thousands of units per month.

In May 2026, GWM was the sixth-best-selling brand overall with 2,605 units, putting it in spitting distance of Ford, which sold 2,932 units.

Chery and Jetour, meanwhile, came seventh and eighth, respectively, putting them ahead of established names like Isuzu, BMW, Honda, and Mazda.

The success of these brands has evidently inspired other Chinese carmakers to try their luck, as well over a dozen companies have opened their doors in South Africa in the last five years.

As of June 2026, there are now 22 Chinese car brands on our shores, including:

1. BAIC
2. BYD
3. Changan
4. Deepal
5. Chery
6. DFSK
7. Dongfeng
8. Foton
9. GAC
10. Geely
11. GWM
12. Haval
13. iCAUR
14. JAC
15. Jaecoo
16. Jetour
17. JMC
18. LDV
19. Lepas
20. Maxus
21. MG
22. Omoda

Bear in mind that some of these nameplates are technically sub-brands of other companies.

Chery alone accounts for six of the names on the list, including Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo, Jetour, Lepas, and its newest addition, iCAUR.

Haval is the largest brand under the GWM Group, and Deepal is a luxury brand under Changan that launched at the same time as its parent company.

Foton is BAIC’s light commercial brand, specialising in bakkies like the Tunland G7, and Maxus, LDV, and MG are all part of the SAIC Group.

More to come

Even with 22 different nameplates in South Africa, the People’s Republic has plenty of carmakers that could make an appearance on our shores one day.

In fact, at least four new brands have indicated that they will set up shop here in the near future.

First up is Denza, which is BYD’s luxury division, similar to the relationship between Lexus and Toyota.

BYD previously stated that Denza would launch in the first quarter of 2026, though this has yet to happen.

The company hasn’t provided a reason for the delay, but one possible explanation is that Denza’s launch has been pushed back due to market pressures like the war in the Middle East.

It’s also possible that BYD has decided to focus on its more affordable options for the time being, as the Dolphin Surf hatchback has proven to be a smash hit for electric vehicle adoption in South Africa.

When Denza finally goes on sale, one of the products it will offer will most likely be the B5, an Adventure SUV that will compete with the Toyota Prado, Ford Everest, and Land Rover Defender.

The other three companies that have been approved for South Africa are all Geely brands.

When it arrived in South Africa in November 2025, Geely stated that it would introduce three sub-brands – Zeekr, Farizon, and Riddara.

Riddara produces new-energy bakkies like the RD6, and will be locally distributed by Enviro Automotive when it debuts in South Africa.

Zeekr is Geely’s luxury division and will presumably use the same dealer network, while Farizon is a commercial brand that will sell panel vans and trucks to business fleets.