Chinese cars have already been on sale in the UK for a few years, but we're starting to see a lot more on the roads.
More Chinese brands are launching vehicles in Europe and the UK – often undercutting more familiar brands on price while overdelivering on features. Check out our guide to 12 Chinese car brands coming for the UK market for more.
Are Chinese cars any good?
The very short answer is yes. Chinese cars are just as good and sometimes better than the brands we're more used to seeing on the UK's roads.
Like the first Japanese cars in the '50s and Korean models in the '80s, the first Chinese cars sold in the UK – mainly through the revived MG brand – majored on value for money. Buyers usually got more performance and features for the price, but would have to live with lots of hard interior plastics and often generic styling.
UK buyers eventually got used to the idea of Japanese and Korean cars, and those brands have since introduced cars in pricier, more desirable segments. Like those companies, Chinese brands have improved at a dramatic rate and will almost certainly cement their positions in the UK. This brings more choice for buyers – especially in more affordable segments, which traditional brands have somewhat abandoned.
The latest MG3 hybrid hatch and MG4 EV deeply impressed us when we drove them, and both are arguably already class-leading. With BYD, GWM and Chery's Omoda and Jaecoo brands now on sale, it might not be long until traditional brands find themselves with a fight on their hands, as more buyers sample and switch to often better-value Chinese cars.
Are Chinese cars good quality?
Some of the earliest Chinese-made cars sold in the UK, like the MG6, weren't quite up to snuff. Materials felt cheap, even ones that were meant to look nice, and they didn't quite handle or ride as well as pretty much all main rivals. These early experiences, plus some traditional consumer apprehension, led to a perception that Chinese cars weren't great quality.
It's not an exaggeration, however, to say the China's auto industry has accelerated – both in size and quality – faster than any other nation in history. The country is both the single largest manufacturer and largest market for cars, building and selling more than 31 million cars in 2024 – more or less a third of the world's total.
China is arguably the world leader in electric cars, too. This is the result of strategic investment into the nation's lithium-ion battery production – the type used by all modern EVs. China is both the biggest Li-ion battery manufacturer, and almost certainly carries out the most R&D with more patent applications in the field than any other nation.
While Chinese brands may feel relatively new, Chinese-made cars have been here for a while. Plenty of Tesla and Polestar models, plus all modern MGs are made in China, and have thousands of happy owners in the UK. Even if your car was assembled in another country, there's a very good chance some of its components or their individual parts were made in China, to exactly the same quality standards you'd find in any other country.
Are Chinese cars reliable?
This is a tricky question as a blanket 'yes' or 'no' answer would be a sweeping generalisation. It would ignore the fact that today's cars may be assembled in one country, but are made of hundreds of components and thousands of individual parts that could come from all over the world. Many modern cars will feature Chinese-made parts that will work faultlessly for the vehicle's entire service life.
As for hard evidence whether Chinese-assembled cars are reliable, most UK data focuses on MG cars. A survey of 30,000 owners by What Car? ranked the brand poorly for reliability, with a few more niggling issues for owners than the average car. However, the same survey highlighted that the MG5 model specifically was among the most reliable electric cars in the survey, so clearly improvements are being made quickly. MG now offers a seven-year warranty to underscore its confidence in its cars.
Are Chinese cars safe?
Almost all Chinese cars sold in the UK have been tested by Euro NCAP – an independent body that assesses the safety of vehicles in a crash. Broadly speaking, Chinese cars perform just as well as cars from other nations, with recent five-star ratings being awarded to cars like the MG HS, MG4, BYD Atto 3, Omoda 5, and Leapmotor C10.
Euro NCAP's modern tests cover how well the vehicle's body protects the occupants in a crash, but they also test a car's active safety systems including automatic emergency braking and lane-keep assist. All new cars sold in the UK are required to have these systems and Chinese-made models are no exception, so you'll find these features as standard across the board.
Are Chinese cars cheap?
Being pedantic, we'd say Chinese cars are often 'cheaper' than their rivals, rather than simply 'cheap'. We anticipate brands like MG, BYD, Omoda and Jaecoo will eventually offer more high-end premium models, although they're mainly focusing on mass-market segments for now. Regardless, whatever class they happen to compete in, Chinese cars usually undercut cars from other countries by a few thousand pounds.
This is possible because of the massive economies of scale the country can achieve – particularly for battery-powered vehicles like hybrids and EVs – and because of cheaper labour costs. However, we might soon find a spanner in the works as the EU has applied import tariffs on Chinese EVs to push their prices up relative to European models. The UK currently has decided against these tariffs, but that could change further down the line.
Are Chinese cars worth buying?
If you've read this far, hopefully you've realised that Chinese cars sold in the UK are just as safe and reliable as those sold by other brands. As for whether they're worth buying, the answer depends more on your tastes, your needs and your budget.
Chinese cars are often among the most affordable and fully featured models in the segments they compete in That means you might be able to get a newer or higher-spec car for a given budget if you pick a Chinese brand over a more familiar one.
Drivers in China are said to value premium features and comfort-focused cars, rather than European cars. As a result, many Chinese cars we've tried have softer suspension setups, making them well suited to Britain's somewhat scruffy roads.
What are the best Chinese cars?
We've tried some excellent cars that've been built in China. As already mentioned, MG's latest cars are easily some of the most impressive the brand's ever created, with cars like the MG3 hybrid, MG4 EV and MG ZS SUV all offering superb performance, economy and equipment.
Elsewhere, both the Tesla Model 3 and Polestar 2 electric cars are Chinese-made and come with a laundry list of talents. We've also been impressed by the small handful of BYD models we've tried, such as the Atto 3 SUV, which comes loaded with features like adjustable ambient lighting and a rotating infotainment screen.
How many Chinese car manufacturers are there?
There are quite literally hundreds of car manufacturers in China. This is something the nation's government has taken an active role in controlling, and it has already merged lots of smaller players into bigger entities.
Historically, China has four large fully state-owned car companies – FAW, Dongfeng, Changan and SAIC. Then there are companies the state has a stake in including Chery, GAC, BAIC, JAC, Seres and Hozon. There are also privately owned automakers in China, with the two largest being BYD and Geely, plus companies like Great Wall Motor, Nio, Xpeng, Li Auto, Leapmotor, Xiaomi Auto and Skywell.
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