"There is no difference in quality between Chinese cars and foreign cars except differences in taste, marketing and brand reputation," Wang said. "In areas as simple as naming our cars in English, we still need to learn from our overseas competitors."

GW sold 225,000 cars in 2009, including over 50,000 to other countries.

Even with the shrunken overseas market because of the economic downturn, GW was still the top Chinese auto exporter in terms of total transaction value last year.

In January 2010, following the economic recovery, GW's exports rose 150 percent to about 3,000 cars in the single month.

Wang said this year the brand will try to maintain last year's numbers and sell 80,000 cars. To make the brand better known, GW sent its team to the Dakar Rally this year and plans to attend annually from now on.

Wang said that instead of mergers and acquisitions, Chinese carmakers should work on increasing the added value of their own products.