Shanghai Auto Show: Chinese and foreign carmakers to showcase latest models that could become the next bestseller

Major Chinese and international carmakers will display prototypes and new EV models at the Shanghai Auto Show, which runs from April 19 to 28

Geely, Volkswagen and Dongfeng are among conventional carmakers who plan to launch EV models to challenge market leader Tesla

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Shoppers walk past an XPeng showroom at the Chamtime Plaza in Shanghai. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 7:45pm, 16 Mar 2021Updated: 7:45pm, 16 Mar 2021

The upcoming Shanghai Auto Show next month will see major Chinese and international carmakers battle for supremacy in the electric vehicle (EV) segment, as they display the latest models to interpret their conception of the future of mobility.

The exhibition, which runs from April 19 to April 28, is likely to see major carmakers display either prototypes and new EV models to woo customers in the fast-growing market currently dominated by US carmaker Tesla.

Several powerful carmakers are now under the media glare amid expectations that their vehicles have the potential to redraw the mainland’s EV landscape.

“The automotive industry is undergoing a drastic transformation and all eyes will be on the electric battery-powered vehicles that can cater to people’s demand for digital connectivity and [in-car] entertainment at the Shanghai Auto Show,” said Peter Chen, an engineer with car component company ZF TRW. “All OEM [original equipment manufacturer] carmakers have allocated their best design and engineering resources to develop a hit product amid the transition.”

Workers at a factory for Xinwangda Electric Vehicle Battery seen making lithium battery packs for electric cars and other uses, in Nanjing, in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. Photo: AFP

Dongfeng Motor, the Chinese partner of Japan’s Nissan Motor and PSA Peugeot Citroen of France, said on Thursday it planned to launch its first premium intelligent electric car priced at less than 400,000 yuan (US$61,458) in July, entering the fray against Tesla’s Shanghai-made Model Y sport-utility vehicle.

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