I fully agree China-made cars are currently perceived as inferior in quality and performance to Japanese and even Korean cars and rightfully so. But if we take as case studies other products manufactured by China, there is a very strong argument it is just matter of time before they become acceptable, even to Filipino consumers.

Historically, the Chinese will first try to learn the manufacturing process, either legally as a licensed subcontractor, or illegally via producing exact imitations. Once they perfect the process, they will try localize the product for the domestic market, exhibiting some sort of original but minimal design efforts. But once they perfect that phase, they will develop completely new designs and try to establish their own brand image in the global market.

Several factors come into consideration insofar as global (or specific) market acceptance is concerned. Where there is a well-entrenched quality standard, especially for high-ticket items such as automobiles, a China-made version with a perceived lower quality will have a more difficult time unless it successfully minimizes entry barrier to render the initial investment relative insignificant. Of course, if it proves its quality over time, then it will definitely be able to compete - but the emphasis here is over time.

Others simply purchase an established brand (Lenovo's purchase of the IBM Thinkpad line) to expedite market acceptance. While others invest in substantial multi-media marketing, such as Acer, to make its brand well-known.

Others persist in illegal ways - like the plug and play Honda-compatible motorcycles, simply because they can get away with it. Despite various negative feedback, the sheer disparity in prices, as well as the availability of affordable financing have enabled China-made motorcycles to penetrate the local market. Of course, the compatibility with a well-known model does not hurt.

This is the same marketing model Chery used in making its Chevy Spark-plug compatible QQ a best seller in China. Other China car companies have followed since, with some achieving the same kind of success.

However, with the EVs, it is entirely a different matter. Firstly, there is no one dominant model that is well-known globally. The Chinese don't know who to imitate. Secondly, the limitations of EVS insofar as speed and distance is concerned have, by and large, deterred the Chinese consumers from buying in.

Parallel to this is that fact that the local market has matured and is now showing a preference for traditional mid-sized sedans. This is also the reason why China companies are now dumping their low-end models in third world countries like ours.

But as you have noted, the local acceptance has not been that lukewarm. This can be attributed to the fact that a baseline has been well-defined (and for years) by Japanese (and American) models and by which the Chinese cars fail miserably in comparison, negating whatever price advantages they offer.

However with EVs, there is no such established baseline to date. China-made EVs will fail to attract the mainstream market, not so much because of comparison (with what?) but because of their current limitations. And given the current situation, I doubt very much if any hybrid or EV, for that matter, will in the near future become a dominant brand that can serve as a baseline.

Thus, if within the planned three year time frame, entry barriers are minimized for both acquisition and usage and performance is improved, then China-made EVs might just become viable options.