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A review of the 2005 Shanghai Motor Show

The Shanghai Auto Show celebrated its 11th anniversary in April, under the banner: "a better auto, a better life". All the usual suspects were present including all the big global OEMs as well as the indigenous giants First Automotive Works, Shanghai Automotive, Brilliance China, Beijing Auto, Dongfeng, Chery and Southeast; and smaller local manufactures Changan, Geely, Jianghuai, Southern Auto, Huatai, Great Wall and Hafei.

It was altogether a dazzling affair which lived up to Shanghai's image. Whereas Beijing is the Washington DC of China, Shanghai is closer to New York City in its free-thinking and cosmopolitan ways. It is a city made for retail where designer stores are plenty and only the top brands get respect. The Show didn't let the city down with minimum clad ladies draped over garish coloured cars, as others danced or performed complex acrobatics to the ultra-loud sound of local pop and rock talent.

There was definitely not the level of sophistication we have become accustomed to at major shows like Frankfurt, Detroit, Paris and Geneva. Cars were placed sporadically around stands, with little or no thought to layout. Press conferences were badly organised some overlapping one another and tracking down top executives was not an easy task. Even press hospitality which is often part and parcel of European and American shows was virtually non-existent.

What it did best was to hint at the speed at which the Chinese car industry is growing. Though relatively new, you get the feeling that in no time all our cars will be 'made in China'. The indigenous companies boasted of their desire to become autonomous by learning our technological know-how.

In terms of design, the majority of cars look disconcertingly similar to those from major carmakers. There was, however, a hint at a new generation of models that may have a more local identity in mind. Globalisation, it seems, has forced the Chinese out of the art of copying.