Every single day, the car industry in China is getting bigger; the country’s leading manufacturers are working hard to spread their influence across the world and permeate untapped markets. Such is the goal of any healthy and competitive capitalistic enterprise. Thus far, all is cohesive. However, if one were to wander around the showroom floor in one of the many, contemporary automotive exhibitions held in certain regions of the Far East, they would start to notice certain peculiarities with the debuting, new models.

Initially, you almost want to write it off as coincidence; but as you traverse the exhibition floor, you’ll notice (with mirror-like similarities) that many of the cars hitting the market are near exact-replicas of genuine articles – just…they aren’t genuine. In fact, they are about as fake as it gets. The design-infringements range from near-perfect replicas to subtle denotations of inspiration here and there; but it’s undeniable that the influence driving these “similarly-styled” automobiles was, in point of fact, native to a completely different design room altogether.

There is no design, no demographic, no manufacturer and no price point that is safe. From the ultra-economical SmartCar to the super luxurious Rolls-Royce Phantom; anybody and everybody is getting ripped off by somebody, and even companies notorious for ripping off other designs on a regular basis are now being targeted. It’s a double rip-off world we’re living in. If you’ve ever dreamt of having a $40,000 Phantom – this day is yours, my friend; but you get what you pay for. Every time.

21 Dongfeng Motors EQ2050HMV

The plasti-chrome decals on the flimsy grill accent the lush green rattle-canning that somehow seems to have made it onto the truck as an afterthought. (The bolts on the driver-side bumper are black, whereas the right-hand side appears to have been painted over AFTER the fact.) Usually, this type of oversight would be no big deal; but when this type of detail is left front-and-center on a showcase truck that’s trying to live up to the legendary Hummer – you kind of have to be more on-point. This truck looks more like a cheap movie replica for a low-budget production that couldn’t even afford to “look” the part. (Let’s be fair though – there’s no way this dumpy-little thing ever stood a chance against the HMMWV.)

20 CH Auto Lithia

This appropriately named EV is powered by an array of lithium-ion batteries and has a spec sheet that claims a 93-mile range. Whether or not that is possible is anybody’s guess, but we are talking about a rip-off of something that couldn’t even pull off the panels correctly. This laughable Audi rendition is almost as embarrassing to look at as to be seen in. Don’t expect all the bells and whistles of an Audi, but you can probably expect the same amount of problems with the electrical system; the Lithia’s components are far-from-adequate in the application which they are used. (Are you surprised?)

19 Shuanghuan Auto Noble

It is a three-door hatchback, roughly the size of your living room coffee table; the four-seater China-made hatchback, produced by Shaunghuan Auto, is a rip off of one of the most unflattering starting platforms they could have possibly chosen. Knowing full well that this jalopy would never stand a chance in domestic markets, the toy-like interior features were only calibrated in metric measurements (on the instrument cluster, for example). If you were to combine the torque and horsepower ratings together, you’d roughly be left with the horsepower rating of a Prius. Despite the fact that this car alone has ignited a fierce controversy over infringement rights, Shuanghuan has no intent on backing down from their flagrant intellectual piracy – nor do they feel paying any recompense for damages would be appropriate. (Typical – they rip you off and act like it’s theirs.)

18 BAIC BJ70

What do you see here? Most of you will see Jeep if located within the contiguous United States. If located in the Far East, however, this may look like a completely different vehicle to you – one having nothing to do with the Mopar legacy. It is, in fact, a rip-off – a prideful one, no less – that makes no apologies for its complete lack of originality. In fact, the “BJ” designation in the name stands for Beijing. What could be more shameless than prefixing the initials of your capital city right into the name of your rip-off Wrangler? Am I the only one that would love to see a showdown between this crap and a REAL Wrangler at a Jeep park?

17 BAIC BJ40

Is it odd that “BJ” sounds a lot like “CJ?” Maybe not; but does it become odd when the BJ40 is a Jeep rip-off; the “CJ7” was an open-top jeep and the FJ40 was a Landcruiser version of it (a Toyota rip-off)? Maybe not; maybe I’m grasping for connections that just aren’t there – but there is no denying the flagrance and unapologetic nature of this copyright infringement. (It’s also noteworthy to consider where the original FJ40’s inspiration actually came from.) All of this combines into a Watergate-scale scandal of lies and larceny that have been thriving for years. At least when Toyota “borrowed” ideas from Jeep, they made a “real” truck.

16 Geely Englon SC7

Here we go again – Geely just can’t get enough of the faux luxury; here is ANOTHER Bentley rendition that’s not as directly-aggressive with the stealing of the styling cues. But despite the playful curves and innocent-looking hatchback, it’s plain to see everything about each curve molded into the plastic and sheet metal were directly influenced by a car many tiers above this shoddy engineering. In fact, a walk through the Geely dealership might look something like a Rolls-Royce wastebasket – where all the inferior designs were discarded before making it out of the design room. Those discards are “prime pickings” for the parasitic, counterpart-designs.

15 Geely Gleagle GS-CC

Even when ideas are only “half-way” apparent – the inspiration is there. It almost seems like imitation companies have been observing the rest of the cutting-edge automotive industry from afar - as if across the street, through a set of binoculars. Although many rip-off designs look silly, some cars are actually built with the high-level of quality materials, and look “almost” stylish (until you see the front). Had anybody from Geely bothered to take a good look at the cars they were actually copying, somebody could have probably figured out that a 127hp, 1.3L, turbocharged four-cylinder wasn’t even something to brag about 10 years ago.

14 Zhejiang Jonway UFO

Zhejiang tried to name their car something more “distant” and obscure – but no amount of clever naming can remove the UFO far enough from the striking similarities it shares with its cookie-cutter counterpart across the Korean Straight. Japan produces the Rav4; and comically enough, China rips it off literally right next door – in their very-own backyard essentially. What can you do though? Rather than be timid about it – Jonway actually self-adulates their accomplishments proudly with a list of ISO9001 certifications, triple-A credit class ratings, and other noteworthy investments. The only acknowledgment any of these companies seem to have in reference to all the design piracy is in their product descriptions; dialect such as “similar to” and “resembling” is used to draw potential consumers to the highlight-features these rip-off rides share with the “genuine” versions.

13 Huanghai Landscape V3

The imitation here is almost flattering, but at the same time – you almost don’t even want to be associated with it. These things are absolutely abominable-looking, to be completely honest. And I’m not just talking about this RX rip-off whose name pays tribute to a layout of the vegetation in your garden. The subtle design cues – unsubtle as they may be – are not enough “suave” to conceal the crappy craftsmanship and poor design-work. As obvious as it is where the rip-off styling cues are noted – it’s just as obvious to see where there was no inspiration for a particular feature at all; the true nature of these shabby rip-offs seem to overshadow any positive elements as the counterfeit nature seems to just “seep” through the body panels.

12 BYD S8

The rip-off retailers are at it again, and the cheeky business is up to an all-time high. It looks astoundingly like a Mercedes CLK, but what you don’t know (despite the stunning similarities) is that this thing is just about as far away from a CLK as you can get while still maintaining a vague aesthetic similarity. It was first revealed in 2006 at the Beijing Auto Show and has since entered production for anyone to rip off a sense of stateliness as they drive their $22,000 wonder to the Bargain Basket for some discount groceries. The cost-benefit of owning the BYD S8 is quickly offset by the price your pride pays as soon as somebody notices that the production model convertible tops don’t even retract all the way.

11 Landwind X7

The stunning similarities seem to know no end in respect to the Landwind X7. I don’t even have to cite where the styling was sourced from for you to accurately connect this rip-off to its genuine-genome counterpart. The body styling’s contours nearly match the same exact templates with only minor contortions being modified in the “design” process (if you could even call it that). Despite how strikingly-similar everything looks as it slides by you on the boulevard, the Land Rover denotations abruptly end as you start to take the car apart. There’s nothing “Rover” about the Landwind X7 past some cheap sheet metal and injection-molded plastics.

10 Brilliance V5

Some of these things are such a blistering rip-off – it’s almost offensive, but these cars are built not to “fool,” but to so closely resemble their counterparts, they would be sellable to a market that doesn’t mind being seen driving around in one. (That is a narrow line to walk, by the way.) To some people, authentic luxury is the only way to go; but if you don’t mind an overly-tacky name attached to a sorry-looking clone of precision Germany-engineering, the brilliance V5 could be yours for a mere six-figure price tag – in Yuan. As it would turn out, the conversion rate of the dollar effectively puts this jalopy at a cool $15,000. (How much “X5” do you REALLY think they packed into a $15,000 Enclave?)

9 Lifan 330

The true idiocy of the Lifan 330 isn’t readily apparent from just a brief exterior overview; in fact, you probably wouldn’t be able to stand to look at this car long enough to figure out what the biggest problem with the 330 was. Obviously, it is a Mini Cooper; there’s no debate there. The problem is these idiots decided to build a car that unanimously appeals to women (and girly-men) by choosing a Mini Cooper template. After they decide to “make” this car that only a bunch of girls – and guys who sit down to use the restroom – would want to drive, they only offer it with a standard transmission and expect these creatures to want to shift through a five-speed gearbox in Beijing rush hour traffic. (They should have ripped off BMW’s design-marketing guide while they were stealing things.)

8 Rayttle E28

There is no car to luxurious; no car to rough and thirsty; and no car to environmentally friendly - there is no methodology behind the rampant, rip-off madness that’s seems to be the word of the day. They will carbon copy luxury SUVs, clone performance-coupes and roadsters and they’ll even make this - something that barely even belongs on the road in the first place. The original version is called a Twizy; it’s a Renault design. (Renault = good. Twizy = bad.) If Renault stooped this low – how cheap do you think it is now that it’s at the end of China's production line?

7 BYD S7

Marking their third year in a new region, BYD released their RX-based, Lexus crossover in a brand-new, 2017 model-year trim package that failed to nail their target with the accuracy of a blind Michael J Fox. They somehow managed to go through all the effort of setting up tooling – and a production line – for a completely new-model car; one that they expect to impress people with – and then proceed to outfit it with some of the most generic interior complements you could possibly imagine. Seriously, the styling is barely rivaling a Honda Accord, and the cheapness of the materials can be seen before you even opened the door.

6 Hawtai B35

Considering the current naming system that many of these rip off retailers run their automobiles through, it’s readily apparent that they just don’t get it. This premium China-made Cayenne clone tries to rage with the best of them; the only problem is – they have no idea what they’re doing. Imitating the cayenne requires something impressive between the two front wheels. This jalopy here features a turbocharged 1.8L that can’t muster a horse past 160 – and the diesel version has even less horsepower. Maybe though, we are all the idiots (over here making fun of them and their garbage) while they are pumping out “free” designs to the tune of millions.

5  Geely GE

By now you have probably noticed that no design is safe – SmartCars, supercars, stately cars and even weapons platforms are rampantly snatched up from the furthest corners of the globe. They are measured out and funneled through a mediocre production process with substandard materials, bad craftsmanship and poor quality control. By the time they get to the end of the assembly line, a $400,000 Phantom turns into a $40,000 Ford 500 with boxy body panels. China recognizes a patent design enforcement problem exists and has been provisioning legislature aimed at protecting rights holders and their property. Although it is a warm, fuzzy first step in the right direction, only time will tell how much of a difference (if any) it will actually make. (With as much ripping off as has been going on in the last decade – it’s going to take more than a few “laws” to adequately restitute commercial losses.)

4  Zonda A9

The “Counterfeit-Capital of the World” does not stop at light-duty vehicles for privatized consumption. Backing out to a broader economic sense, even heavy-duty, commercial vehicles (such as this German Starliner rip-off) are susceptible to the inherently-flawed design model (which is to design nothing at all). In fact, cases of copyright infringement are so prevalent that certain China-based companies won’t even wait to get out from underneath one lawsuit before initiating yet another stolen design through the production process. They make as much money as they can and “hope” they don’t get sued – turning a healthy profit even if it does happen. It’s a win-win when a low moral fiber meets an empty vessel of creativity with no sense of intrinsic style. The A9 is approximately 60% less expensive than its $400,000 Starliner counterpart.

3 BAIC BJ80

Although the acronym “BJ” is typically attributed to far-more exciting things (like “Big Journal” cranks – you sicko), BAIC is up to their usual tomfoolery with a Mercedes rip-off that ran out of steam before it even hit the assembly line. Sure, BAIC may feel that the design is cutting-edge and groundbreaking, but to the rest of the world – the G-Class copycat was outdated for it even hit the market. It had already been hampered with less-than-lackluster reviews by unsatisfied consumers who expected more from the $150,000 truck. Being the case, to what end was this thing even “China-fied” for? If the "OG" G-Class – jam-packed with over-engineering – was struggling to retain a formidable market share, what’s this mediocre clone going to do for anybody? (It’s less than $45,000, by the way.)

2 Donfeng Fengshen A9

The persistent-plagiarism is far-more distinctive in some cases, while others tend to err on the side of subtlety. The A9 clearly makes its position towards the far end the highly-distinctive side of the scale. The similarities are so striking that you can scarcely tell you’re not looking at a Volkswagen when you squint. Dongfeng knows well-and-good that European carmakers are very protective of their property. (Ferrari has been known to send cease-and-desist orders to owners whom they felt were giving the car a bad image with custom-garnished paint.) How do you think Volkswagen is preparing to respond to THIS thing?