28% of all car brands in South Africa are now Chinese

Chinese brands now represent more than a quarter of all the cars on the market in South Africa.

The past few years have seen a constant stream of announcements from Chinese carmakers declaring their intention to launch in our market, resulting in a flood of new models from unfamiliar badges.

As a result, there are now 15 car brands from the People’s Republic operating in South Africa.

There are approximately 53 different automakers on the market as of the time of writing, which means Chinese names now make up 28.3% of all the companies competing for your attention.

A rapidly changing landscape

It’s well-documented at this point that South Africa’s car prices have exploded in recent years, as nearly 75% of all the models currently on sale now cost more than R500,000.

These prices far exceed what most households can afford, which has led to a consistent trend where consumers are moving away from established legacy brands towards more affordable alternatives from Asia.

Nowhere is this more prevalent than the surge in popularity for Chinese vehicles, many of which are now consistent entries in each month’s best-seller lists.

The two pack leaders of this trend are Chery and GWM, who are now among the top 10 best-performing brands alongside industry leaders like Toyota, VW, Hyundai, and Ford.

This success is remarkable given that these nameplates haven’t been here that long either, especially in comparison to a company like Ford that has been here for over a century.

Chery, in particular, only relaunched in South Africa in late 2021, meaning that it has achieved this success in under five years.

Naturally, the incredible performance of these two brands has inspired a new wave of Chinese competitors, who are all looking to capitalize on South Africa’s demand for budget-conscious transport.

The result is that there are now 15 different Chinese manufacturers on the tip of Africa, which are as follows:

1. BAIC
2. BYD
3. Chery
4. Dayun
5. Foton
6. GAC
7. GWM
8. Haval
9. JAC
10. Jaecoo
11. Jetour
12. LDV
13. Maxus
14. MG
15. Omoda

Nearly all of these names appeared in the last three years, too, as Omoda, Maxus, and BYD launched in 2023, while 2024 saw the introduction of Dayun, Jaecoo, Jetour, GAC, Foton, and LDV.

These brands are also quite diverse, as Chery, Haval, MG, and Jetour produce mass-market crossovers and SUVs, while GWM, Foton, JAC, and LDV are all taking on the highly-competitive bakkie segment.

Omoda and Jaecoo, meanwhile, have ambitions to be among the country’s favourite luxury badges, with models like the Omoda C9 SUV that rival heavy-hitters such as the BMW X3 and Audi Q5.

The last point is particularly interesting, as it means that Chinese companies do not want to be exclusively type-cast as “budget” brands, showcasing that they have what it takes to take on prestigious automakers with loyal fanbases.

The rapid growth of Chinese marques doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon, either, as even more brands are scheduled to appear in the near future.

Jetour’s sub-brand Shanhai will arrive in 2026, and it’s quite possible that the carmaker’s other division – Zongheng – will appear as well at some point.

Denza has strongly hinted that it plans to launch in South Africa, and Dongfeng is already prepping to launch its first car – the “Box” electric vehicle – in the next few months.