For more than thirty years, German brands dominated the car fleets of Chinese officials: the black Audi 100, produced locally with the Chinese manufacturer FAW from 1988, was the emblem of the Chinese bureaucratic elite. More rustic, the Volkswagen Santana, manufactured with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), another Chinese manufacturer, was the standard choice for lower-ranking administrations. Their joint venture strategy guaranteed “national product” status, necessary at the time to win a public order.
Since 2024, 100% of new official Chinese cars deployed in urban areas must be hybrid or electric. A condition largely favorable to Chinese manufacturers, who dominate the sector… and to Tesla. The American company is not associated with any local group, but it complies in every way with the new Chinese criteria for public procurement. Its Tesla Y is assembled entirely on site – in Shanghai – using 95% locally manufactured components. Elon Musk’s company also ensured that all driving data collected in China remained stored there, in accordance with a 2017 cybersecurity law.
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