Qoros: A new Chinese car brand to hit Europe in 2013

Qoros – a joint venture between Chery and Israel Corporation – will launch an offensive on the European car market at Geneva 2013.

The Chinese car market is huge, but most Chinese car makers are all but unknown outside China. But that could change with the launch of a range of Qoros cars in Europe, with the first reveal scheduled for the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

Qoros – a made-up name – is a joint venture between Chery – one of China’s biggest car makers and partner to Jaguar Land Rover in China – and Israel Corporation, Israel’s largest holding and investment company.

Qoros are aiming their cars at young buyers in China and Europe and their first car – a compact four door saloon (which may not be the obvious choice to aim at young drivers in Europe) – will arrive at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, followed by a public debut in Shanghai, after which the new car will go on sale in both Europe and China later in 2013.

Qoros say they will be launching new models every six months including hybrids and EVs and have support for their cars from major international suppliers like  Magna Steyr, TRW, Continental, Bosch, Valeo and Microsoft, which adds credibility to the offering.

Qoros has big plans, with initial production of 150k cars a year and the capacity to produce 450k. Qoros Vice Chairman, Volker Steinwascher, said:

We have 100 percent control and ownership of our brand, our design and the use of technologies, without having to make compromises.

We are a new company without any legacy or previous history, which gives us a great advantage because we are starting from scratch with a clean sheet of paper. By recruiting experts in all the essential fields of our operation, we can create a globally competitive product and service network that is designed to fit the lifestyles of modern metropolitan customers.

As they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and we don’t have a clue how good – or how good looking – the Qoros offerings will be. But don’t bet against them having a real impact with Chery and Israel Corporation in the driving seat.