Real_I_Hate_China said:
Now how many Chinese brand cars display an odometer reading of 120,000 km? Let's take an example of 1999 Chery Qiyun; what percentage of 1999 models are still on the road with an odometer reading greater than 120,000 km?
1 Actually the Qiyun was not available in 1999, that was the Fengyun.
SOURCE: I was there.
2. Most of the early cars were sold as taxis in Wuhu city. Most are still running but will be scrapped soon because Chinese taxi regulations require that taxis be not more than 8 years old ( or younger in shanghai).
SOURCE: I was there, talking to taxi drivers.
Unfortunately I can't give you a percentage, why don't you make one up and say you found it on the internet.
3. Taxis in china cover about 120 - 150k km each year. Yes, maintenance is adhered to and the drivers try to look after them, but on the other hand it's a difficult environment - the roads are not in as good condition, there is more dust, and there are some extremes of temperature. The fuel is also not so good which gives rise to some additional problems. (SOURCE: Personal involvement in numerous engine dynamometer tests). I am always amazed at how well these chinese taxis stand up to such high mileages - it's quite common to find yourself in a taxi with 500k plus on the clock and I've been in a few million km cars.
SOURCE: Taxi drivers in Qingdao, Wuhu and elsewhere.
Taxi drivers in wuhu have told me that the engine in the fengyun has a slightly shorter time to overhaul than the VW. However, it is still the case that most taxis get to end of life with only one major overhaul somewhere between 300 and 450k km so it doesn't make a big difference to them.
SOURCE: Taxi drivers in Wuhu.
The biggest complaint is that when the cam belt breaks on a VW jetta or santana engine there is no internal damage (valve to piston clearance is sufficient) whereas in the Fengyun's Ford CVH origin engine you have contact. However, it is the VW that is unusual in this respect, rather than the other way around. I doubt the modern VW engines have enough clearance to survive this. I have spoken with one cambelt manufacturer who felt that the conditions (heat and dust) may contribute to cambelt failure, but the main issue was that because it was always all right on the vw, people had become accustomed to not paying attention to cambelt condition/ routine replacement.
SOURCE: Talking to a western general manager of a chinese operation of a foreign belt company.