Your next car may have that Chinese touch

US and other auto manufacturers banking on increased car sales in China for 2012 have three reasons to be concerned. Blistering growth in Chinese auto sales is expected to plunge China is taking efforts to dampen foreign investment in autos Trade wars The Wall Street Journal reports

Startup electric automaker Coda, which filed for bankruptcy today, managed to sell only about 100 units of its only model. That's not surprising: On top of insufficient funding and production delays, Coda made a really ugly car.

China’s economy continues to grow quickly. It looks as though that, along with the slump in US car sales, likely will lead to China taking the world sales lead for cars (I would imagine for the first time ever the USA has not held this title). China 2009 Vehicle Sales May Rise 28% on Stimulus:

The Beijing auto show opened to the public this weekend in what is now the world's largest car market. But it's the huge potential growth in car ownership in China that has the car manufacturers salivating. Ford plans to expand its manufacturing base there and General Motors recently announced it was adding another 600 dealerships. NPR's Frank Langfitt joins guest host David Greene from Shanghai.

Automakers in China are bracing for another year of tepid single-digit growth in 2013, weighed down by sluggish demand for Japanese cars amid a diplomatic row between the two regional neighbors and government measures intended to restrict traffic in bigger cities.

By Qineqt:The recent surge in anti-Japan protests in China means that American and European car manufacturers hold a genuine chance to witness an increase in their Chinese sales, in what will be a zero sum game given that Japanese manufacturers are expected to see deep cuts in their sales figures.

Chinese carmaker Geely's move to buy Volvo shows that manufacturers in the world's biggest auto market are revving up their global ambitions with high-end Western technology, analysts say.US auto giant Ford and Geely, one of China's largest private carmakers, announced Wednesday they had agreed on the main terms of the sale of the Swedish brand, with a final agreement expected to be signed in early 2010.