Cheap Chinese Cars - what's the catch?

Since Rudd was outed for getting use of a ute provided by his then mate and neighbour, for free, which he denied was his at first until his mate told media that it was, and then denied that he'd given any favourable treatment in return for that ute or even that the treasurer had done anything either, the question has arisen about how that used car dealer has become the local dealership for the "Great Wall" line of motor vehicles in this country.

See, it's not as easy at hiring a bikini girl to wash them in the car yard and then flog them off to buyers off the street, not by a long shot.

New cars are shipped needing the final detailing, some small fitments done and all the local regulations and compliance done as well plus there is the after sales service, repairs, breakdowns, and warranty things too.

You expect someone to have to invest a considerable amount in a business that is going to be the local dealership for a new line of cars and that is why in most cases dealerships are offered to existing dealers who already have facilities in place, the office structure, financial capability and contacts along with a sound background and sustainable business plan for the new line.

So I ask the question, "In this day and age where we expect a dealer to be all of the above, how does a used car yard owner get the licence to sell a line of new card as the local dealer?"


There is an even greater issue here. one that has plagued Australian car manufacturers for several decades, how do we produce cars here with cheaper, subsidised imports taking from the small market we already have?

You may remember back in the late 70's when Holden was going broke (as usual)and had to be bailed out by the tax payer (yet again) and the plan was that to allow a reasonable market share for profitability on of the big car manufacturers had to go ; Chrysler had to go.

But it wasn't too long before a good mate of the then PM was importing Hyundai's and other cheap little cars from Asia flooding the local market, and all that really happened was that those cheap nasty cars eventually sold , and jobs at local car makers and the suppliers to the industry dried up while the Asian factories got bigger and bigger.

Now we're seeing it all happen again, Holden has just about gone to the wall(well it has in the US, with GM having to be bailed out big time by the Taxpayers) and suddenly a friend of the PM is going to import some cheap Overseas cars, and presumably more local jobs will go in the car industry and those supplying to it.

I ask the Question, apart from people who want a cheap car, and of course Rudd's mate, how does Australia benefit from dumping jobs here to bring in cheap rubbish from Overseas?