Attitudes to digital devices on wheels are changing

For decades, German and Japanese brands have been top choices of buyers of gasoline cars in China. Volkswagen represented quality and Toyota spelt fuel economy.

But the times they are a-changin', thanks to China's booming electric vehicle market. In July, in his last interview as head of Volkswagen Group China, Stephan Woellenstein described China's EV market as the domain of local car brands plus Tesla.

In the first half of this year, only three international brands, including Tesla, made it to the top 15 new energy vehicle or NEV makers in the country.