These are the Chinese car brands heading to the UK and the ones that are here already
In the last five years, we’ve seen a steady stream of new Chinese car brands touching down in the UK. Many have made an instant impact, too, with low-cost models taking the fight to more established competition.
However, with battery electric cars becoming more common and strict EU regulations making internal combustion cars harder to produce and sell, Chinese brands have doubled-down on electric and plug-in hybrid models.
We’ve compiled a list of Chinese car manufacturers that are selling models here in the UK currently and what to expect in the future
MG
Once upon a time a performance brand of Rover, MG reappeared after being bought by the Chinese in 2011 with the MG6 – which was available as a five-door hatchback or four-door saloon.
Now, 13 years on, the brand has grown to become very popular with models on sale such as the new MG3, MG4, MG5, ZS, HS crossovers and the flagship Cyberster electric sports car. Not only that, but a new HS will be revealed soon and the latest MG3 is now the most affordable hybrid on sale.
BYD
The acronym stands for ‘Build Your Dreams’ and although that might sound like a daft name, its cars are far from that. BYD introduced its first car to Britain in 2023 with the Atto 3 compact crossover EV but, since then the brand has grown and not only is it producing electric cars, it's also introducing models with plug-in hybrid technology with the recently released Seal U SUV rivalling cars like the Volkswagen Tiguan and Hyundai Tucson.
Other models in the range consist of the Seal saloon, the Dolphin hatchback and the recently announced Seagull urban EV which is said to be coming to the UK soon.
GWM ORA
It may be only a small brand, with only one model - the ORA 3 hatchback - on sale, but this company is set to introduce its second model to the market this year with the ORA 07 – a four-door saloon EV rivalling cars such as the Tesla Model 3 and BMW i4.
Omoda
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One of the newest editions to the UK car market is Omoda. It currently has two models poised to go on sale, with the 5 is being a petrol-powered SUV that will rival cars such as the Kia Sportage and MG HS while the electric E5 will be going up against the Hyundai Kona Electric and Peugeot e-2008.
The E5 has a range of 257 miles on a single charge and produces 206bhp from its electric motor as well as having a 61kWh blade battery pack.
NIO
NIO is a brand that currently isn’t in the UK, but will be soon at some point in 2025. Its models are solely electric but there’s plenty of variety on the cards with the ET7 saloon, ET9 executive saloon, the EC6 coupe SUV, the ET5t estate, the ES6 SUV, the EC7 flagship coupe SUV, the ES8 flagship SUV, the ET5 mid-sized saloon and the ES7 mid SUV all on the cards for this ever-expanding carmaker.
Whether we get any of these models is yet to be announced, but the choice is certainly extensive if we do.
Zeekr
Another brand yet to see British soil is Zeekr. It will be only producing EVs and currently, its line-up consists of two models. There’s the 001, which is a luxury estate - or ‘shooting brake’ - that can do 385 miles on a single charge and has a rapid charging time of 30 minutes.
Additionally, there is the X which is an urban SUV with a claimed electric range of 277 miles and a 0-60mph of 3.6 seconds.
XPeng
XPeng is the final manufacturer on this list and it’s another company yet to bring a vehicle to the UK but one that is also selling pure EVs in other parts of the world. Their current model line-up includes the P7 luxury saloon, the P5 compact saloon, the G3i small crossover and the G9 flagship SUV.
There is also a smaller SUV called the G6 to rival the Tesla Model Y which will be coming to the UK later this year.
