The Volkswagen Beijing 2016 SUV Concept.
BEIJING: China is now officially the world's biggest single new car market. And with 25% of all vehicles built in 2015 being snapped up by Chinese owners, it should come as little surprise that the country's automotive tastes are beginning to shape styles and trends well beyond its borders.
And that's why, when the doors to Auto China 2016 opens its doors to the press in Beijing on April 25, they're set to be confronted with crossover after crossover.
Chief among them will be the Volkswagen Beijing 2016 SUV Concept. The show car will give everyone a very clear idea of what to expect from the company's next Touareg flagship due in 2017. And, according to VW sources the emphasis will be on premium levels of luxury and technology — in terms of connectivity, safety and hybrid powertrain — and all packaged in a shell that's the most sporting to date.
Keeping at the highest end of the SUV market, Nissan's luxury marque Infiniti will be debuting the QX Sport Inspiration. Like VW, the car is still in its conceptual stage and will put a design emphasis on performance. However, it is expected to morph into a production model aimed at competing with the BMW X5, in terms of build quality and potentially handling too.
Staying with Japanese marques but moving into the mass market, Mazda will be taking the wraps off the CX-4 a new model that will sit between the brand's compact CX-3 crossover and full-size CX-5. However, there's no word as to whether the car will be sold beyond Asia.
These crossovers will line up alongside the latest rugged vehicles from the country's domestic builders very few of which will be seen on roads other than those within China's borders.
Volvo's parent company Geely will be bringing the Emgrand GS compact crossover to the event and Zotye takes the wraps off the SR8, a controversial car that is so much of an homage to the Porsche Macan that it's essentially a facsimile, externally at least.
Away from crossovers but sticking with cars destined solely for the Chinese market, Mercedes will be showing a long-wheel-base-version of its latest generation mid-sized executive sedan, the E-Class. And Jaguar is expected to bring an equally stretched version of its XF sedan.
And that's because as well as a huge demand for SUV styling, Chinese consumers focus on rear passenger space when choosing a new car, even when the vehicle in question is compact or mid-sized by North American or even European standards.
