Experts advise avoiding rare and old Chinese cars on the secondary market, for which it is extremely difficult to find spare parts. The mass-produced crossovers Chery, Geely and Haval also had characteristic problems.
Among the problematic Chinese cars that should be avoided on the secondary market are Geely Emgrand EC7 sedans, Great Wall Hover H3 and H5 SUVs, as well as Changan CS75 Plus crossovers, Evgeniy Zhitnukhin, operating director of the Fresh automotive marketplace, told Motor.
“The first model is known for its attractive appearance and rich equipment, but its engines are prone to overheating and rapid wear of the piston group. The transmission also raises questions,” Zhitnukhin noted.
According to him, the Great Wall Hover H3 and H5 are characterized by rapid wear of the suspension, poor sound insulation and problems with climate control. Changan CS75 Plus is characterized by difficulties with cooling the engine after 100 thousand km, increased oil consumption and possible misfires.
Great Wall Hover H5
Great Wall
The classic automatic transmission on the Changan CS75 Plus rarely lasts more than 120 thousand kilometers without a significant decrease in performance, he warned.
“Most cars from China have low corrosion resistance, especially in Russian roads and climate. Perforation corrosion occurs after several years of operation. Problems also arise with engines: naturally aspirated engines are often not powerful enough for the stated characteristics, which leads to increased wear and tear,” concluded Zhitnukhin.
Avoid old and rare
Vice President of the National Automobile Union (NAU) Yang Haizeer, in a conversation with Motor, advised not to buy older Chinese cars on the secondary market, as well as rare models that were not sold in large numbers in Russia.
“On the secondary market, you should avoid Chinese cars that were sold in the last decade, these are junk cars. Ancient Great Wall, I even saw Chery Amulet on sale – they have very poor corrosion resistance. In any case, I would also not purchase cars that have not received mass registration in our country. Servicing a rare car will be very problematic,” Heitzer listed in an interview with Motor.
Chery Amulet
Chery
According to him, the story of buying used cars of Chinese premium brands is very dangerous, the maintenance of which, despite the affordable price of the car itself, will cost no less than for European premium cars.
“Let’s consider Lixiang L9 as a Chinese premium. The weak point of such hybrids is the traction battery, which loses capacity every year,” Heitzer gave an example.
Among the new ones there are also problematic ones
The international franchise network of car service centers, Fit Service, warned of an increased number of suspension problems in a number of popular crossovers of Chinese brands, which began to be sold en masse in Russia after 2022. The presence of such faults should also be taken into account when choosing a used Chinese car.
Haval F7
Haval
“So, last year, Haval F7 owners most often complained about knocking on the front axle. At a mileage of up to 100 thousand km, replacement of stabilizer struts, steering tips, silent blocks and individual elements of the front suspension was required. For Russian roads, this is not a critically low resource if cars are brought in for routine maintenance and diagnostics of the chassis,” said Nikita Rodionov, technical director of Fit Service, in an interview with Motor.
According to him, over the past year the number of requests for repair of the suspension of Chery Tiggo 7 crossovers due to play and creaks has also increased. Among the vulnerable parts are strut supports and stabilizer bushings. In the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max, after complaints about knocking in the suspension, the tie rod ends often had to be replaced, Rodionov clarified.
Fit Service noted the rapid wear of constant velocity joints (CV joints) in drives, as well as stabilizer struts and bushings in Geely Atlas crossovers. Problems with them appear on cars that do not have high average annual mileage and are operated under normal conditions, the company clarified.
The popular Geely Monjaro crossovers are characterized by a low service life of the automatic transmission, and its overhaul is very expensive, warned Evgeny Zhitnukhin from Fresh. Among the signs of a box malfunction, he named shocks during switching and delays in operation.
Geely Monjaro
Geely
“Usually classic Geely Monjaro automatic transmissions require serious intervention after a run of about 100 thousand km, which is significantly lower than competitors,” the specialist pointed out.
Flocked to the market
The supply of Chinese used cars in Russia has now increased significantly: the first owners began selling en masse cars purchased after the forced restructuring of the Russian car market that occurred after 2022.
According to estimates by the analytical agency Autostat, in 2025, more than 64% of used Chinese cars sold in Russia were cars produced in 2021-2025. The top ten popular Chinese cars on the secondary market include Chery, Geely, Haval, Lifan, Changan, Great Wall, Exeed, Omoda, Tank and Lixiang.
“In 2025, 283.1 thousand cars of Chinese brands were re-registered on the secondary market. This is 44% more than in 2024. The market share of Chinese second-hand stores has increased to 4.5%,” Avtostat CEO Sergei Tselikov said in his Telegram channel.
