For the rest of this month there is a display in Carrefour Chiang Mai where prospective buyers, of just the plain curious types, can take a look at the QQ.

The QQ is a small car with a 1.1 16 valve engine with fuel injection and impressive fuel consumption.

Chery is China’s biggest car manufacturer. They have come under criticism over the QQ after GM accused them of copying the Daewoo Matiz, whist that may well be true I do feel that most car manufacturers do draw inspiration from other manufacturers to some extent.  Having driven  Matiz many years ago I must say that any similarity is superficial.

It’s easy to be biased against Chinese manufactured goods, especially if you have ever owned a Chinese built motorcycle!  However I must say that I was impressed with the overall build quality of the little QQ and at the price It looks unbeatable.

The base model (which impressively includes airbags) is just 366,000 baht and for another 20,000 baht you can buy the luxury model which includes such refinements as Leather Seats, 14″ Alloy Wheels, and Sony Stereo System with iPod adaptor.

The Chery QQ is available in Thailand a nice range of colours, and overall it has the looks and feel of a much more expensive car.

It’s only a matter of time until Chinese built cars become mainstream throughout the world, lets hope that early adopters in Thailand get a car the lives up to the hype in the brochure.