If you don't go out to sea, you will only die, but if you just go out to do wholesale, you will only die faster.

In 2026, China's auto market, which has been disturbed by internalization and policy changes, will add another straw to all auto companies with an expected "opening the door". It is already a consensus that the domestic market is "rolling", and it is also a consensus that we must seek growth from overseas markets.

Looking back in 2025, the overseas performance of Chery and BYD has preserved the last "decency" of China car companies. In particular, BYD, since announcing passenger cars going overseas in 2021, its overseas sales have achieved explosive growth from annual sales of tens of thousands of vehicles to one million vehicles in just five years, matching Chery, which has been deeply engaged overseas for 20 years.

This kind of growth cannot be ignored or rejected by any China car company. Therefore, 2026 will inevitably become a critical year for China car companies to collectively make efforts overseas.

However, under the apparent prosperity, the sign of a division has emerged: should we continue to indulge in the "wholesale trade" of sales figures, or should we bow to the bureau to lay the foundation and build a system? This will determine the ultimate life of China cars on the global map.

1. Background and consensus: Intolerance in China's automobile market will intensify in 2026, and it has become an industry consensus to go abroad to seek growth. The explosive growth in overseas sales of BYD and other car companies has attracted all China car companies to collectively increase their overseas markets in 2026.

2. Current dilemma: "Five Big Mountains": The article pointed out that with the growth of sales, the weak after-sales service system has become the biggest constraint for China car companies to go abroad. The specific problems are summarized as "five mountains":

Lack of spare parts: Special new energy parts (such as battery packs) rely on domestic shipping, with long turnaround cycles, resulting in extremely long maintenance waiting times (there are cases in the Australia market that maintenance takes several months to wait).

Sparse outlets: Compared with Japanese and Korean giants such as Toyota, China brands have only 1/3 to 1/2 of the number of outlets in the core market, and a large number of light-asset models such as supermarket showrooms are adopted, lacking maintenance capabilities.

Amateur technician: Overseas local technicians have difficulty coping with the electronic and electrical architecture and software failures caused by the rapid iteration of smart electric vehicles in China, and a professional localized technical team has not yet been formed.

High insurance costs and the collapse of residual value of used cars: These two factors are also important negative factors affecting consumer purchasing confidence and market health.

3. Deep gap and reasons: Compared with Japanese and Korean car companies, the gap lies not only in quantity, but also in quality. Japanese and Korean brands have "positions"(mature 4S store systems) with full-cycle service capabilities, and have driven the entire supply chain (such as Toyota, Denso, and Aisin) to "group out to sea", establishing efficient localized logistics and spare parts networks (such as Toyota's "overnight delivery" network in Europe).

4. Solution: System going to sea: The article believes that the only way to solve the above problems is to "system going to sea", that is, the entire domestic mature industrial chain of R & D, production, sales, and after-sales services will be "reproduced" in overseas markets according to local conditions. This requires vehicle companies to act as leaders and make asset-heavy and long-term investments.

BYD: Build stores and spare parts warehouses in Europe, cancel the general delivery in the Netherlands, and let European companies directly manage business to strengthen service standards.

Geely: Using the existing networks and logistics systems of Volvo and Proton to collaborate, we have established a complete parts supply network overseas.

5. Trends and prospects: The article pointed out that there have been calm signals within the industry from pursuing "sales scale" to consolidating the "cornerstone of the system"(such as a car company adjusting its core KPI in 2026). After 2026, the overseas landscape of China car companies will face a reshuffle. The final outcome will no longer be the export volume, but the solid system construction and service capabilities in the local market.

Core conclusion:China's cars have entered a new stage in sailing, and the transition from "going global" to "taking root" is a key transition. What determines whether car companies can gain a long-term foothold in the global market will be the sound of after-sales services, not just the sound of horns in new car sales.

Source: Leading the way to the sea by Gaoshen's car

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