MOSCOW, 3 April 2024. Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) presents the findings of a survey on the attitudes of Russians towards the Chinese cars.

Buying a new car

Overall, 25% of Russians show potential interest in new cars (25%); they are those who plan to buy a car for personal or family use. Seven percent of Russians are going to buy a car within a year; 11%, within 2-3 years; 7% in 4-5 years. At the same time seven out of ten respondents say they do not plan to buy any car within 1-5 year (71%). A car purchase is less affordable to older generations (89%) and groups of low-income consumers – those who assess their financial situation as bad or very bad (80%).

Car preferences

Based on the findings, Chinese cars lose out not only to German and Japanese cars but also to the Russian carmakers. The latter three are equally appealing to Russians: 36% would opt for a Japanese car; 33%, a Russian car; 32%, a German car. Every fifth respondent would choose a Korean car (22%); every seventh respondent would go for a Chinese car (14%). Least attractive ones are cars produced in the U.S.A. (6%) and Europe (excepting Germany – 4%).

Half of those who plan to buy a car in the near future would choose a Japanese car (47%); German cars are ranked second (42%); Russian (30%) and Korean cars (29%) share the third ranking. One-fifth of Russians would like to possess a Chinese car in this group (19%).

Emotional brand attachment as the basis for customer loyalty

The study shows that few Russians are able to express their emotions regarding the Chinese carmakers. In general, more than half of Russians could provide an informative answer when asked about the feelings the Chinese cars evoke in them: however, they often point out characteristics of the Chinese cars rather than emotions they evoke (58%). The shares of positive and negative associations are almost equal (27% vs. 26%). Positive characteristics include good (11%), beautiful (6%), high quality/reliable, affordable, high-tech/advanced (4%, each), comfortable (2%); negative associations are as follows: poor quality /unreliable / they often break down (16%), not appealing (8%), expensive (5%). A further 6% remain indifferent to the Chinese cars.

The way respondents perceive the Chinese cars is shaped by their car preferences. Those who choose Chinese cars even if other cars are available in the market (14%) tend to praise the Chinese cars (positive / appealing / satisfied / good / good ones — 24%, cheap / affordable / price matches quality — 19%, trust / quality / reliable — 14%, beautiful / well designed / nice — 13%).

Advantages and disadvantages of the Chinese cars

The key advantages of the Chinese cars are identified: affordability (“cheaper”— 15%) and presence in the Russian market (“easier to buy” — 7%, serviceability / available parts— 5%, variety of models — 4%), appearance (10%), technology (13%, including: multiple functions, options / crammed with electronics — 9%, being perfected constantly — 4%), high quality and comfort (10%, including: comfortable — 4%, reliable/durable — 3%, quality of car trim, materials — 3%, good engines, suspension, equipment — 2%).

A key disadvantage of the cars produced in China is low quality (37%): more than a quarter of respondents point out short life span (28%), fewer respondents mention poor quality metal, poor paint coating (7%), weak technical side and electronics (7%).

Slightly less than half of respondents failed to specify strong and weak points (44% and 45% respectively); 12% and 4% (respectively) do not find any advantages and disadvantages at all.

Apparently, Russians planning to buy a Chinese car in the coming years (25%) are rather undetermined regarding the Chinese car manufacturers. On the one hand, they are the ones who find advantages highlighting affordable price (25% vs. 15% of total respondents), beautiful design (17% vs. 10%) and the variety of options (16% vs. 9%). On the other hand, they also blame these cars for their short life span and multiple breakdowns (35% vs. 28% of Russians in general).

VCIOM-Sputnik Russian nationwide telephone survey was conducted 24 March, 2024. A total of 1,600 Russians aged 18 and over took part in the survey. Survey method: telephone interviews, stratified random sample based on a complete list of mobile phone numbers in use in Russia. Data were weighted for social and demographic characteristics. The margin of error at a 95% confidence level does not exceed 2.5%. In addition to sampling error, minor changes to the wording of questions and different circumstances arising during the fieldwork can introduce bias into the survey.

Key effectiveness indicators, survey of March 24, 2024:  cooperation rate (CR)* = 0.7874; minimum response rate (MRR)** = 0.0147; response rate (RR)*** = 0.0745. Calculations are based on the corporate standard: https://profi.wciom.ru/principy_standarty/korporativnyj-standart-po-izmereniyu-rezultativnosti-oprosov-sputnik-vciom/

* CR: the number of complete interviews divided by the sum of: а) complete interviews and b) non-interviews with eligible respondents.

** MRR: the number of complete interviews divided by the sum of: а) complete interviews, b) interrupted interviews after successful screening and c) all the respondents where it is unknown whether they meet the selected criteria or not.

** RR is calculated in the same way as MRR, with the only difference that the number of respondents with unknown eligibility decreases proportional to the percentage of eligible cases in the total number of respondents with identified eligibility or non-eligibility.