Everybody Changfeng tonight

Late Monday afternoon, executives from China's Changfeng Motor Company took the stage at Cobo Hall to introduce the company's line of small SUVs at the Detroit auto show. More importantly, Changfeng was there to announce the seriousness of its intention to come into the U.S. market.

As Detroit struggles with its current domestic challenges and Japanese competitors, the Motor City giants best keep their eyes on the horizon. A new competitive threat is looming. That said, it is too bad Changfeng didn't have a qualified English translator for that historic announcement. The speech was difficult to understand and the word choices sometimes elicited grimaces from the attending media.

Fortunately, the company also had glossy, single-page, color brochures for each of its models with translations just as inept to make the point. Did anyone who speaks English actually ever read these? Or were these press materials just run through an online translator?

Watch out for the Liebao CS7, for example. The CS7 looks like a small car-based SUV, but it is actually based on a truck. According to its brochure, under the heading of "Perfect & Peerless Equipments," it says: "In addition to the outward appearance of conquering the innermost being of the vehicle s [sic] owner, it is armed by high-tech equipment in the inside..."

Worse may be the Liebao Black Giant CFA2030, a dead-ringer for a four-door Mitsubishi Montero. The Black Giant apparently has "Top Quality Power." If that's the case, why does the brochure say: "This vehicle is equipped with Mitsubishi [sic] engine which has been successfully used in World Rally Championship. [sic] It can ignite under low temperature and anoxia." I don't even know what that is, but I know I don't want to be there when it happens.

The Liebao Feiteng CFA6400 (another Montero knockoff) may have more potential, as its brochure makes no mention of anything blowing up. According to its description the Feiteng buyer can "Adopt an off-road attitude towards the city and life. Liebao Feiteng brings a new off-road idea and a true free city life. It carries forward the pure notable blood relationship." It does not go on to describe that relationship, however.

One thing's for sure. I'm not nearly funny enough to make this stuff up. And we won't even address the "Image Propaganda Film" they handed out on DVD. Based on these press materials, the memorable presentation, and our first impressions of the Changfeng vehicles at the show, Detroit need not worry much about the Chinese--yet. The time may come, as it did for Hyundai and Kia, that the Chinese become viable competitors. Though, for now, they seem to be firing blanks.

--Eric Evarts