The emerge of SUV in the dragon country

When I first heard about the China auto market about 10 years ago, I have been told that sedans were the dominator in Chinaand the Chinese drivers do not appreciate hatchbacks.

The 3-box body shape of sedan displayed a physical separation between the passenger room and the luggage compartment. It was an important element of design that actually allowed valuable passengers to be separated from all sorts of goods and items that a trunk can carry, while on the opposite side of the value chain, the primarily aim of lights trucks and mini vans was to carry goods.

Therefore it was nature for me to jump into a conclusion that Chinese people wouldn't appreciate Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) neither, considering SUV also combines passenger-carrying with cargo-hauling capability in a two-box design.

Since I moved to Shanghai 3 years ago, I have been in a better position to observe the Chinese automotive market, and hence have few thoughts cross my mind with regard to the SUVs.

In January 2008, 40,000 SUVs were sold, counting for 7% of the total new car sales. At that time only 44 models available in the market, supported by 22 brands. And 5 years later, we are seeing amazingly a sustainable growth of the SUV segment in China: there are 167 SUVs available in the market place!

Between January 2008 and January 2013, in every single month the market share of the SUV segment gaining ground. From a mere 8.3% of the total new cars sales in January 2008, it went up to 18% in January 2013. And just to give a comparison, SUV represents just 10% of the total new car sales in the Europe market. One can say it's quite a great success for a combined cargo/passenger body type in China, which was supposed to be neglected by local drivers. And it worth a throughout analysis of the fabulous success driven.

The market offering

On a pure functional point of view, every single new car buyer can find a model fits their needs in the SUV segment. It could be four seats or eight seats, it could be 1.3 liters or 5.3 liters, it could be 3 doors or 5 doors, it could be 2 wheel drive or 4 wheel drive, it could be traditional engine or a hybrid one, from 3.65 meters long to 5.3, from 1 tons to 3.3, from 56k RMB to more than 2,200K…the availability is just incredible, giving each intender the opportunity to lingering, to compare between various models, and eventually find the one that fit their needs.

One can argue that the mid car segment that usually attract a household composed of 3 to 5 people should also be addressing the pure functional needs, but in reality this segment is less attractive to Chinese drivers, and a lot of the attention shifted to SUV segment.

Self-achievement& safety

SUVs are particularly popular among second car drivers (i.e. the drivers who already had a first car and are looking for replacement or to add a second car in their family). Those second car drivers became more knowledgeable about driving, they are more self-confident about their ability to manage various types of driving conditions, and they want to demonstrate that they are in control.

They are looking for a more statutory car, which can help to demonstrate their personal achievement, in other words their elevation in the rank of the society. SUV driving position is high, providing a better sense of control on the road, a better sense of domination of what is going on around the car. To this perspective, SUV driver get an answer to their needs of elevation.

The high driving position conveys also an inner feeling of safety. Being up there, drivers feel securely escaping from the danger of the road. This perception is reinforced by the external design of the SUV's that often display visible protection devices along the sides and on the front of the car.

Empowered driver

On the chapter of the projected image, a last aspect is key SUV usually display a large width, muscled wheel arches and aggressive front grill. It is all about strength, robustness and above all power.

Domination.Protection.Power. These are all the attributes of the King of the savannah that reigns on a vast wild space. We therefore expect the SUVs to be the ideal vehicle to drive off road, exploring the unpaved paths, and discover unknown territories.

While some SUVS are designed for on road ability, some of them are for off road. The well-known city-SUV is actually more designed in the daily traffic of the urban areas. They embark on board features that enhance the city driving experience: reverse radars, automatic parking assistance, lower trunk threshold, refined interior, start and stop engine devices… These are few examples of equipment that would not be relevant in the wild spaces, of course.The city-SUVs are growing really fast, answering the needs of those who consider the cities as a dangerous and inhospitable environment, which is what they are sometimes.

That evolution of the car market through the SUV demonstrates that when manufacturers talk to the heart, address the inner inspiration of human being, they can hustle the status quo, and create value.