Research Publications

Automotive manufacturers and suppliers view China as the largest combination of automotive market and low-cost manufacturing and supply base to appear in decades. Companies are deluged with information about the potential opportunities in China, but typically know very little about what the Chinese think about their automotive future. The steady influx of automotive manufacturers and suppliers over the past ten years has provided the Chinese with first hand experience of what the impact of a world-class, high-volume automotive industry can mean to a country. The Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation (OSAT) at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) and the IBM Institute for Business Value consider this as an opportune time to explore what the Chinese themselves think about their recent automotive experience, and what they think the future will hold for this industry and their country. Our study focuses on the opinions of 20 leaders in Chinese industry and government, as well as academic