CRI听力:?Electric cars unveiled at Beijing Motor Show

Automakers are rolling out their new electric vehicles at the 2018 Beijing Motor Show, the motor industry's biggest sales event this year.

Carmakers expect new growth in China's market despite the looming threat of a trade war between China and the US.

Germany's BMW is unveiling its new all-electric concept vehicle, the iX3.

Company Chairman Harald Kruger says it will go into production in 2020 and will be made in China.

The car will be made at the automakers' joint venture plant in Shenyang.

BMW Board Member Nicolas Peter says he is optimistic the project will be shielded from any negative impact despite mounting trade tensions between China and the United States.

"We have a very strong presence in China. We are increasing now capacity beyond 500,000 cars per year. We are in discussion with our joint venture partner to localise even more products and on the other hand side we have a strong footprint in Europe and in the US, so we can be very flexible in this global production network. Of course, we appreciate free trade because we believe that this is beneficial at the end of the day for everyone in the world, but we can react fast to adapt to changes." 

Herbert Diess, CEO of Volkswagen, fourth from right, poses with officials and the newly unveiled Volkswagen CC car model during the media day of the China Auto Show in Beijing, Wednesday, April 25, 2018. Volkswagen and Nissan have unveiled electric cars designed for China at a Beijing auto show that highlights the growing importance of Chinese buyers for a technology seen as a key part of the global industry's future.[Photo:AP]

The Beijing Motor Show is the world's largest auto show, with car manufacturers unveiling a kaleidoscope of fuel efficient vehicles – in particular electric cars designed for the China market. 

Stats show China accounted for half of last year's global electric car sales.

Hans Greiml, Asia Editor for Automotive News, says the big theme of the event is the proliferation of SUVs, crossovers and electric vehicles.

"Everybody's coming out with some kind of electric vehicle or crossover because they are two main segments of the market here that are really booming. Everybody wants to buy a crossover because it's very popular, and in China everybody has to introduce an EV (electric vehicle) because of government mandates, so there are two forces driving these trends."

Stats from China Association of Automobile Manufacturers show first-quarter sales of electrics and gasoline-electric hybrids rose over 150 percent over a year earlier to over 140,000 units.

That compares with sales of just under 200,000 for all of last year in the United States, the No. 2 market.

China's total sales of SUVs, sedans and minivans reached nearly 25 million units last year.

Ford is showing its Mondeo Energi plug-in hybrid, its first electric model for China, which went on sale in March. 

Trevor Worthington, Vice President of Product Development at Ford Asia Pacific.

"I would say that Chinese customers are at the leading edge of expectations of connectivity with the greater eco-system than any other customers in the world. I think the work we're doing here in China, we know that it's going to serve the rest of the Ford global world well, but it really is all here. The expectation of connectivity, the expectation of navigation, native voice, the expectation of being able to pay bills, being able to organise parking, remotely unlocking or locking the car, remotely starting the car, this vehicle has many, many technology features that work in partnership with that level of connectivity."

Industry analysts say the top Chinese brands are catching up with their global rivals in electrics.

Chery Automobile showed a lineup that included two electric sedans, an SUV and a hatchback, all promising 250 to 400 kilometres on a charge. 

They include futuristic features such as internet-linked navigation and smartphone-style dashboard displays.

Chery was China's biggest auto exporter last year, selling over 100,000 gasoline-powered vehicles abroad.

James Chao, Asia-Pacific chief at consultancy IHS Markit, says competition in the sector will be even more intense in the future.

"I think in China the two biggest challenges are, number one: there is or will be hyper-competition here. There's so many new brands coming online, and the old brands here in China are getting better, so hyper-competition is the rule here. Number two is how do you, as an automaker, comply with regulations which are actually very hard to meet and potentially changing also."

Ford and other brands showed off some of the dozens of electric SUVs, sedans and other models they say are planned for China.

The motor show runs until May 4.