How Great Wall Motor Is Remaking Itself for Brazil

When Great Wall Motor Co. Ltd. set its sights on Brazil, the Chinese carmaker quickly learned that success would depend on more than exports. To better crack Latin America’s largest auto market, the company has had to rethink everything from engine technology to after-sales services — and even how Brazilians drive.

“Brazilians love to drive fast, and they prefer small cars,” Zhang Gengshen, president of Great Wall Motor’s Brazilian and Mexican operations, said in an interview with Caixin in early December. “The massive sugarcane industry has led to the wide use of biofuels in Brazil, where many cars run on ethanol. These usage habits are completely different from those in China.”

Zhang’s observations come at a pivotal moment for China’s auto industry. As trade tensions with the U.S. and Europe intensify, Chinese carmakers are pivoting aggressively to countries in the Global South. Brazil, the world’s sixth-largest auto market with annual new car sales of more than 2 million units, has become a primary battleground. According to the Brazilian Electric Vehicle Association, sales of light new-energy vehicles in the country grew 9.5% year-on-year in the first half of 2025 to 86,800 units, accounting for 8% of its total light car sales.