I have dealt with cars quite a lot in both the US, where I lived four years in Urbana, and China, my hometown. The two countries deal with cars very differently, even between states (provinces). I will briefly walk you through the lifespan of a car in China and provide my understanding and comparison of the difference between China and the US. This essay is based solely on my personal experiences and public sources. Do not quote for scientific purposes.
I briefly owned this 1979 Lincoln Continental when I lived in Urbana. I’m glad I did because that is once in a lifetime experience, and I would have zero chance of doing in China. The Chinese government published the first national emission standards for light duty vehicles in 1997. The official abbreviation of the standard is CHINA X (number), but I will abbreviate CHINA as G here (short of National in Chinese). The latest standard in 2021 is G6B, the sixth and a half version. You will see that it soon became the single largest factor limiting the value, roadworthiness, and lifespan of a car. I will only give a few examples as there are too many policies and special cases. Let’s begin with a normal passenger vehicle but keep in mind that I live in Beijing, which has the strictest policies in the country.
My dad bought a mid-size SUV, the Mitsubishi Montero, in 2003, and it met the G2 standard, which was the latest standard back then. These are the policies that affect the car.
- It must go through an inspection every 2 years for 6 years off the lot.
- It must go through an annual inspection after 6 years.
- Roadworthy as long as it passes the emission test in the inspection, but otherwise, it must be scrapped.
- G2 vehicles are not allowed to enter Beijing since 2019.
The Mitsubishi is worthless in Beijing anymore as it is illegal to drive, so I am glad that he sold it way before 2019.
How about the 2021 Toyota RAV4 that my mom just bought? It meets the latest G6B standard.
- It is exempted from inspection for 6 years.
- It must go through an inspection every 2 years after 6 years.
- Roadworthy as long as it passes the emission test in the inspection, but otherwise, it must be scrapped.
Here comes the first bizarre example, the 2019 Audi RS6 Avant that I wanted to buy. Since it is a performance vehicle, it had a hard time qualifying the strict emission standard, so it only received a G5 rating.
- One can only register a car in Beijing, whether used or new, that has the latest emission rating.
- Exempted from above if the vehicle is previously registered in Beijing and is roadworthy.
That means I simply cannot buy a new 2019 Audi RS6 Avant anymore. I will have to buy a used one from a Beijing resident if I really want it. This also hugely impacts the used car market since cars from outside Beijing cannot be sold into Beijing.
Here comes the fun part. What if I wanted a pickup truck, a Ford F-150? It is never sold in China because pickup trucks were never popular in crowded cities, and they are considered too pollutive due to massive engines. There is a loophole that a car broker can use to import something like an F-150 that was never sold in China and register it as a “small special duty vehicle”. A vehicle registered as such must be scrapped after 15 years of registration (cargo) or 30 years (passenger). Some more scraping policies:
- Taxi cabs must be scrapped in 8 years.
- Rental cars must be scrapped in 15 years.
- Passenger buses must be scrapped in 10 to 15 years, depending on size.
- Commercial trucks, including tractor trailers, must be scrapped in 9 to 15 years, depending on size.
- Motorcycles of any size must be scrapped in 13 years.
What I just described using most of the paragraphs is just a fraction of the numerous and constantly changing policies on cars in China. It is hard to think that soon the electric car market will also be flooded with policies like these. There could be a million reasons behind it, reducing excess emission due to engine wear, replacing gasoline cars with more electric vehicles, getting rid of excess vehicles, promoting public transportation, promoting the car business... The intentions are good but also create lots of waste by forcing to scrap some good running cars. I’m sure the 2003 Mitsubishi would run fine today if it wasn’t doomed by the policies, and I would still be happy to drive it. There are still so much more to it—grey areas, loop holes, and even illegal business that go around the policies, unparallel policies across provinces and cities, enforcement negligence, inequality...
Ask me anything about cars. I am no expert but I would be happy to talk about it. I did have fun with all kinds of cars when I was in Illinois thank to the much more generous regulations. But sometimes, fun and sustainability, it’s just difficult to have both.