By Mark Godfrey

Chinese car makers join the motor racing fray By Mark Godfrey

The race car produced by Chinese car marker Geely didn't get an enthusiastic reception from some in the motor racing community. "The front has the aerodynamic coefficient of a cement mixer," wrote one European motor racing blog. Still, the racing car has built up an enthusiastic following in Asia, thanks to an annual race series called Formula Geely.

Using a British-made Van Diemen chassis, the single-seat racing car has been tweaked each year since 2006 when the Asia Geely Formula was launched with the blessing of the International Automobile Association (FIA) and Federation of China Autosports (FASC). As China's first domestic formula racing event, Geely has toured Asia with seven races a year – including  one in Malaysia, traditionally a stronghold for motor sports in Asia.

Geely may be following international peers in entering the motor racing scene. The other major racing series in the country is the China Formula Renault Challenge (FRA). Local teams that compete in FRA races use cars that are similar in appearance to those in Formula One racing, though smaller and not as fast. Promising drivers see the series – and other similar races – as a stepping stone to Formula One glamour.

Driving forward

Geely said its races provide a valuable platform for Chinese motor racing talents. The 20 drivers taking part in its races, held in six cities across the country in 2011, are learning fast and "have the chance to go on and eventually drive for China in Formula One," said Joe Cheng, a spokesperson for Formula Geely.

The auto maker has a key cost advantage over other brands like Renault. Geely supplies engines for free to race teams, while Renault requires Chinese drivers or teams to purchase them. As a result, Geely's race fees are US$20,000 per season, or half the price of racing in Formula Renault, according to Pete Olson, a Canadian trainer at Zhuhai-based Champ Motorsports, which trains drivers to compete in both Formula Geely and FRA.

Yet, while Formula Geely has become popular because of lower costs, Olson said it still faces the same challenge as Formula Renault: a shortage of drivers, largely because many are venturing into touring car racing. Such auto competitions involve heavily-modified street cars, and have been growing in popularity in China recently.

Year-round tournaments such as the Hong Kong Touring Car Championship and China Touring Car Championship (CTCC) feature cars from brands like Porsche and Volkswagen. While the races lack Chinese auto brands, one Ford model that is produced by its Chinese joint venture, Chang'an Ford, is raced in the CTCC.

On your marks

As formula racing may be a marketing tool for Geely, Chinese car companies Chery and Great Wall also made headlines when they entered normal manufactured vehicles in Dakar Rally, the world's leading race for trucks and SUVs. Two Chery Rely X5 vehicles endured the 9,030-kilometer race, which was held in Argentina and Chile this year. Chery drivers Lu Ningjun and Jiang Yaohuan took 28th and 29th place respectively, ahead of 33rd placed Zhou Yong, who drove a Great Wall Haval Dragon jeep.

Li Chen, a spokesman for Chery, said the X5's "quality and stability" could be seen throughout the race and that it offered the car maker an opportunity to show the "technological force … of cars made totally in China."

Local marquees' exposure on the international racing stage may help groom a new generation of Chinese motor racers. But big challenges remain: Having had little tradition of motor racing, Chinese parents are usually reluctant about allowing their children to try the sport, said Benson Tan, who runs Beijing-based Imperial Motorsports, which trains drivers with Formula Ford cars. "Poor" driving skills in China, he said, are largely a result of the short history of motor car manufacturing and driving in the country.