After years of fierce competition in China, where car manufacturers often launched multiple sub-brands to capture market share, the automotive industry is now undergoing a phase of rationalization. Factors such as brutal price wars, overproduction, and rising export tariffs have forced companies to reassess their strategies. Changan, one of the four major Chinese state-owned automakers, is now actively seeking ways to cut costs. According to a report by CarNewsChina on September 29, 2026, Changan is revising its strategy, adopting a model of "front-end independent, back-end shared." This means that while the brand image, design, and marketing for Deepal (targeting the general public with prices between 15,000 and 35,000 euros in China) and Avatr (a premium brand developed with Huawei and CATL) remain distinct, the rest of their operations—such as research and development (R&D), supply chains, embedded computing, and industrial tools—are now managed by a common entity: the "AD Collaborative Development Department" (A for Avatr and D for Deepal). This consolidation aims to reduce operational costs by 20 to 30 percent, with the goal of achieving 1.5 million combined annual sales by 2030 (1 million for Deepal, 500,000 for Avatr). If Deepal is performing well in China with 164,200 deliveries in the first half of 2026 (+14.6 percent), Avatr is stagnating in the premium segment. Continuing two completely separate developments no longer made economic sense, especially as Avatr aims for a Hong Kong stock market listing. This situation raises questions about the development in Europe. The Deepal brand has already begun delivering its first vehicles in Europe (several thousand units), supported by production from its Thai plant and a range of very aggressive electric SUVs. The brand could arrive in France in 2027, although no official launch announcement has been made. On the other hand, European plans for Avatr, initially mentioned in 2025 for the premium segment, are becoming increasingly unclear. It could launch in 2027 in Greece (a market that is not particularly conducive to electric vehicles), but for the rest, it is still difficult to determine the brand's intentions. Creating an import, distribution, and after-sales infrastructure in Europe is a heavy investment that must be multiplied by the number of brands if no synergies have been planned. Separating two networks in dealerships for labels completely unknown to the European general public could be financial suicide in the current context. This reorganization mainly illustrates the change in climate in the Chinese automotive industry. For European consumers, this consolidation is rather good news. Rather than being flooded by a dozen or so more or less ephemeral brands with uncertain after-sales service, we should see better-equipped groups with stronger networks and capable of ensuring the follow-up of their vehicles over the long term. However, it is necessary to keep an eye on what is happening in China.