Chow of IHS. “We´re seeing a greater proportion of local brand vehicles being favoured by government and government-affiliated institutions.”
The anti-graft drive has also snared auto industry officials including the former top executive of China´s third-biggest car company, FAW Group, which has a joint venture with Germany´s Volkswagen.
But foreign companies cannot afford to ignore China´s market, particularly as Europe is still struggling to recover from a six-year slump brought on by the global financial crisis.
Rising incomes and a low percentage of car ownership also point to the potential for further sales growth in the world´s most populous country.
Chinese consumers are evolving, embracing auto financing instead of cash deals and fostering a growing market for second-hand vehicles instead of buying the newest models.
The auto show is evolving too. This year, for the first time, it will not include scantily-clad models, which organisers have reportedly banned in favour of more wholesome promotion.
On show instead will be a range of SUVs (sport utility vehicles), whose image in China as a roomy family car rather than a fuel-guzzling giant helped drive a 48.8 percent surge year-on-year in the first quarter, according to industry group CAAM.
Just ahead of the show, US auto giant General Motors launched a new SUV in the China market, the Buick Envision 20T.
Rival Ford Motor Co. will give two luxury SUVs their China market debuts at the show — the mid-size Lincoln MKX and the full-size Lincoln Navigator — and launch a flagship sedan for China, the Taurus.
The US carmaker boosted its Chinese footprint last month by opening a $760 million assembly plant in the eastern city of Hangzhou, adding annual production capacity of 250,000 vehicles.
Japan´s Nissan Motor Co. will also introduce a mid-size sedan at the show, the Lannia, which it is marketing to appeal to young buyers.
Meanwhile, a government push for “new energy” vehicles is encouraging sales of both fully electric and hybrid cars, which have an electric motor along with a conventional combustion engine.
Jochem Heizmann, Volkswagen Group China´s president and CEO, said of electric vehicles: “I´m convinced things will develop faster in China than in Europe.”