In Xuzhou as well as in many other parts of the country, private car sales started in the late last century. In 1991, the first private motor vehicle license plate in Xuzhou was issued, numbered Su CA0001. But the later 10 thousand more licenses numbered in Su CA segment were not released until eight years later. That means it took eight years for Xuzhou to sell less than 10 thousand cars.
 Entering the 21st century, however, now it takes only three months for the car administration to issue 10 thousand license plates.
What a contrast! Talking about this dramatic change, Meng Bo, Director of License Office in Xuzhou Police Department, says from 2001, he has transferred his office constantly to bigger premises, and that's because of the increase of motor vehicle sales.
"I think the reason for increasing private cars in Xuzhou is because living standards have improved a lot. People care about their quality of life more and more. I can tell the change from my work experiences. We used to have 4 computers and 2 counters in our office, but now we are using 16 computers and 7 counters."
Lin Hai realized the increasing need in the private car market, too. He has been working as a car seller in Xuzhou since the year 2000.
"I'm selling economy cars, priced at less than 200 thousand yuan, or 26 thousand US dollars. In the past, you had to make as many friends as you could to promote your cars. Even by trying your best, you couldn't sell one car in over ten days. Most cars were bought by companies. Now, at least 10 cars are sold in our shop every day, 80 percent of which are bought by individual buyers. Many products are out of stock, so buyers have to wait for months."
To meet the increasing need for private cars, Xuzhou has been holding a grand car festival annually since 2002. In the previous 5 festivals, people went to the festival just to watch the exhibition. Few people really bought a car. In 2003, only 80 cars were sold in the three days' exhibition. But in this year's festival, car dealers in Xuzhou have gathered together with all their products, 80 percent of which are economy cars.
The exhibition attracts many citizens. It brings cars closer to people, and also brings many orders for car companies.
China's famous brand Chery sold 30 cars during the three days, with a total sale of 1.5 million yuan or 0.2 million US dollars. Gu Gang is the manager of Chery's Xuzhou agency. He says even the overstock cars are sold out, and there are still orders coming.
"It's a surprise to us. We planned to sell no more than 15 cars. QQ3 and QQ6 are the main products we exhibit in this year's festival, and these two products accounted for most of the sales."
Shuanghuan Auto's salesmen had too many orders to deal with. Three display cars had sold out right after the exhibition opened. Chen Lei is the manager of Shuanghuan Auto.
 "It's a good sale. We brought only 3 cars for display, and they have been sold. Up to now, we've received over 30 order forms. These products will be delivered to customers before the end of this month. We are increasing the output to meet the market."
At one time, owning a private car represented one's joining an upper social class. But now, a private car is just a tool of transportation. Sun Jian bought a Santana in 2000. Although it's not the top grade car, he and his family all felt excited about it. Sun Jian was the first car owner in his extended family. To Sun Jian's surprise, with only several years having passed, most of his friends have got their own cars, and his car is already unfashionable.
"When I bought my car, many years ago, there were few people in Xuzhou owning a private car. My friends were all envious of me. Now, their cars are much more advanced than mine. Today, I'm going to buy a new one."
Zhang Qiang works in the government. He's dreamed of having a car for many years. On May 3rd, the last day of this year's car festival, he spent 140 thousand yuan or 18 thousand US dollars for a Toyota Corolla. Zhang Qiang says he planned to buy a car in 2002, but didn't have enough money. There's still no car park in that residential area. So last year, Zhang Qiang bought a new apartment with property management service and a large car parking area. He can't wait to buy his car today.
"I bought an economy car. I feel convenient and comfortable to own a car. And more importantly, the car will enrich my life: I can drive my family around for the sake of traveling; I can meet car-owning friends; and because the car can save me lot of time, I can work more efficiently."
Sales in this car festival are only a drop in the bucket for the market as a whole. According to a survey conducted in 2006 by the Xuzhou Vehicle Management Department, Xuzhou has a population of 9 million; there are 240 thousand cars in the city, among which, over 140 thousand are private cars. The number is growing by 40 percent a year.
There is an international standard - that when there are more than 10 cars in every one hundred families, it shows the area has entered ‘the era of private cars'.
Owning a private car is no longer a dream. Life is rich and stable. More and more people in Xuzhou are making the plan to buy a car. The era of private cars is approaching Xuzhou. |
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