A surge in private-car ownership in Shenzhen puts it on course to become the mainland's biggest vehicle market in the next two years, surpassing even Shanghai and Beijing.
And, as elsewhere in a country where vehicle ownership is growing faster than anywhere else in the world, soaring sales have prompted fears of worsening air pollution.
Shenzhen authorities are issuing more than 300 new car licences a day, market-watchers say. In the first half of the year 60,000 were issued.
At the end of last year there were 480,000 licensed vehicles in Shenzhen, of which more than 260,000 were private cars. Across the mainland as a whole, about 60 per cent of cars are bought by individuals.
The expectation that Shenzhen will outstrip Beijing and Shanghai as the mainland's biggest vehicle market is staggering considering that Shenzhen has only about 7 million people compared with Shanghai's 17 million and Beijing's 13.8 million.
A spokesman for Buick, agent in Shenzhen for Shanghai General Motors and for imported makes, said the company was selling an average of 400 cars a month.