These four European car giants are going BIG in China as they look to grow a bigger foothold in world's biggest market Chinese cars flooding Europe is a common theme, as car giants from the Far East take on legacy brands with cheap, tech-laden alternatives But some of Europe's biggest automotive power players have invested, and are continuing to invest, millions if not billions into China's car market. In 2025, Chinese automobiles accounted for 35.6 per cent of the world market share. The total global car sales were 96.47 million units, and China sold 34.35 million units, a 9 per cent increase year-on-year, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes and Volvo are four of the household marques that are expanding at huge rates in China - the world's largest car market. So, what are European car giants doing to take on Chinese automotive players on their own turf? Strategy, investment and product alignment – we take a look. Volkswagen has one of the most targeted Chinese expansion plans of them all: It's 'In China, for China' strategy Volkswagen Volkswagen Group is the second largest car manufacturer in the world by sales, ranking behind Toyota. The Group turned over €321.9billion (£280bn) sales revenue in 2025 and processed nine million vehicle sales. But to take on the world's largest car maker, even Volkswagen has had to come up with something big: It's 'In China, for China' strategy. Through the plan, the Group has been steadily building momentum in China through a new energy vehicle (NEV) product portfolio and locally developed Intelligent Connected Vehicles (ICV) technologies. VW has also been reinforcing its local R&D capabilities and integrating into the local ecosystem with strategic partnership, not least through its long-term partnership with Chinese AI Smart Tech company and EV