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Home » rental cars » My Chinese Car Rental From Avis
rental cars

My Chinese Car Rental From Avis

Matthew Klint Posted onOctober 18, 2022November 13, 2023 9 Comments

a white car parked in a parking lot

For the first time in my life, I got to test drive a Chinese car, a Haval Jolion, while in South Africa. The verdict? It felt no different than many others SUV crossovers I have driven over the years.

Driving A Chinese Car (Haval Jolion) In South Africa

At the Avis car rental agency in Durban, South Africa, we were assigned a brand new Jolion. These cars are made by the Haval division of Great Wall Motor and began production in 2022 (they are produced in China, Russia, and Thailand).

a white car parked in a parking lot

the inside of a car

Over the next couple of days it took us around the KwaZulu-Natal province and operated flawlessly. It’s not that I expected anything different, but I’ve never seen one in the USA before and even on my several past trips to Mainland China prior to the pandemic I recall only driving in Toyotas and the occasional Mercedes.

With prohibitive duties in the USA that eliminate the comparative advantage in Chinese labor costs, I do not expect Haval to be a challenge to U.S. automakers in my lifetime (same story with Chinese-made aircraft like the Comac C919…), but I suspect many South Africans appreciate that a new automobile can be purchased so reasonably (starting at under $20,000).

We drove it over some dirt roads as well as some poorly-paved roads and I felt that it performed perfectly fine, just like driving in any SUV crossover. It reminded me of the Skoda Kamiq I drive in Germany last summer.

In the backseat, where I spent most of the time, the legroom was a bit tight and the USB-A chargers in the center console did not have enough juice to charge my mobile phone.

a person's legs in a car

a finger pressing a button on a car vent

But our luggage fit in the trunk, Apple AirPlay worked fine, the a/c quickly cooled the cabin down, and the gas mileage was decent (around 7L/100km).

CONCLUSION

While there was some novelty in stepping into a Chinese-made car for the first time, it performed just like any of the other entry- to mid-grade SUVs I have rented in the past. 

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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9 Comments

  1. Sean M. Reply
    October 18, 2022 at 9:46 am

    Just one thing to note about these “lesser known” brands is that US based credit card insurance may not always cover the rental under the exclusion that these are “exotic”. When in doubt, always request for a more familiar brand just in case.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      October 18, 2022 at 9:48 am

      Excellent advice.

  2. mike murphy Reply
    October 18, 2022 at 10:24 am

    I wonder if the price in Thailand is closer to $40k after taxes?

  3. Mitch Cumstein Reply
    October 18, 2022 at 10:33 am

    Nice review of the hard product, can you share a bit more about the soft product?

  4. derek Reply
    October 18, 2022 at 12:22 pm

    Vehicles made in the People’s Republic of China have already entered the US. The Buick Envision is only made there. Lotus is coming out with a SUV soon, too.

    The Ford Ecosport’s last model year in the US is 2022. It is made in India. I have rented one at JFK.

    At one time or another, cars in the US market have been made in Austria, Finland, Hungary, Brazil, South Africa, Turkey, etc. Even Australia but the last car plant there closed in 2017 or so. GM’s Holden division closed. GM has left the Australian market but does intend to re=enter with one or two specialty models, but not mainstream cars like it used to sell. Holdens used to be very common.

  5. tj Reply
    October 18, 2022 at 4:42 pm

    The stitching on the backseat cover is already coming apart. seems like great quality from china.

  6. Cam Ray Reply
    October 18, 2022 at 9:12 pm

    Chinese cars are common here in Australia and sell quite well because they are cheap. From all reports, they are great for the first 10000km, but after that, they are nothing but trouble.

    • Max Reply
      October 27, 2022 at 6:45 pm

      mate just get a Hilux, she’ll be right

  7. Hunterlas Reply
    October 19, 2022 at 1:48 pm

    My Volvo was made in China. Most of the ones sold here are made here, the large suv is still made in Sweden, and a few models are still imported here from Belgium though most of the Belgian ones go to the European market.

    Idk why people assume quality is bad just because something is made in China. Almost everything electronic is made in China. We don’t even have a choice. Some of the worst quality products are made in China and so are some of the best. If something made in China is poor quality it’s not because it’s made in China. I detail cars for a living and I can tell you Teslas are some of the poorest build quality I’ve seen in any brand but they are made here.

    Some of the best airline catering comes from LSG and so does some of the worst. When it’s bad it’s not because it’s made by LSG it’s because the cheap ass airline that ordered it was trying to save money

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