With an array of government policies so far failing to curb vehicle sales, the mainland love affair with the car is showing no signs of cooling off.
Sales are rocketing as a result of spreading wealth and falling prices, making the country the third-largest market in the world after the United States and Japan.
Analysts are saying there are plenty of pointers to further growth as car makers expand capacity and the buying spree spreads to smaller cities across the nation.
All of this is happening against a backdrop of growing concern over the effects on the environment, the dependence on imported oil and massive traffic congestion problems in key cities.
The government, worried about the growing demand for oil, introduced new consumption taxes this year to discourage the buying of luxury vehicles. Last year, it also introduced fuel efficiency standards to boost the sale of smaller vehicles.
An industry study by IBM and the University of Michigan said that 40 per cent of China's oil was imported in 2004, making the country the third-largest importer of oil.