China's Chery Automobile to set up UK research centre

Chery Automobile will establish a research and development centre in Britain this year, the company said ​on Wednesday, as demand for Chinese cars grows ‌in the country.

The facility, which will be at the vehicle development and testing centre UTAC Millbrook in Bedfordshire, is set to ​open in late autumn 2026, the firm said.

“UTAC ​Millbrook allows us to turn UK customer insight ⁠into product development, from ride and steering to ​active safety systems,” Gary Lan, CEO of Chery International UK, ​said.

The move follows a pact with Japanese car manufacturer Nissan  to explore manufacturing Chery’s UK passenger vehicles at Nissan’s Sunderland facility in Britain.

Chinese ​car brands now account for about 15% of new ​UK car registrations in the first half of this year, up ‌from ⁠about 10% for the whole of last year, according to SMMT data, boosted by competitive pricing.

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SAIC Motor’s MG, BYD, and Chery’s JAECOO and OMODA are the leading ​Chinese brands among UK ​customers, according ⁠to the SMMT data.

Chery said that the Bedfordshire centre’s initial focus will be on building ​vehicle chassis and driver-assistance systems tailored to ​British ⁠drivers, eventually expanding into autonomous driving and AI.

“This is about much more than testing individual vehicles. We see this ⁠as ​the sustained momentum of a long-term ​engineering relationship with Chery Automobile,” Kirsty Andrew, vice president, UTAC UK, ​said.