China is building the world's best car testing system to sell its cars worldwide
In modern car manufacturing, victory does not go to the one who produces faster, but to the one who confirms compliance with global standards earlier and more accurately. Testing is becoming not a final stage but a strategic tool that opens doors to global markets. China is betting on exactly this.
As Chinese domestic automakers expand their presence abroad, rigorous testing capabilities are becoming a key technical element for ensuring compliance with international standards. Emissions testing laboratories at the China Automotive Technology and Research Center (CATARC) now have full capacity for testing in accordance with Euro-7 standards and have created advanced specialised world-class facilities, including climatic chambers and laboratories for testing brake system particulate emissions. CATARC has also created an overseas technical service platform covering regulatory standards in Europe, the US, Japan and other major markets.
"We have conducted in-depth studies of automotive regulations, certification systems and regulatory requirements in key markets such as Europe, North America, South America, Japan, South Korea and the Middle East. We help export car models comply with strict foreign environmental standards and support high-quality Chinese automotive products on the world market with authoritative testing technologies," said Li Haibin, general manager of the CATARC Tianjin Automotive Test Center.
In addition to complying with emissions regulations, China is expanding testing capabilities for intelligent automotive systems, recognising "smart cockpits" as a command centre directly connecting the car to the consumer. In Chongqing, laboratories of the China Commercial Vehicle Test Technology Research Institute operate a robotic complex for testing intelligent cockpits using AI in various scenarios. The robot, powered by large intelligent agent models with functions including speech summarisation, tactile interaction and facial expression modelling, can issue voice commands in multiple languages and with various emotional intonations, enabling round-the-clock full-scale testing of automotive intelligent systems.
"Intelligent cars need more than just large models and computing power. We must also strengthen the foundations of testing and verification, supply standardisation and safety. We are now combining all these segments so that automotive AI capabilities are verifiable, implementable and safer," said Wang Zhijie, director of the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology.
In the field of safety verification, China is accelerating the localisation of core testing equipment, in particular crash test dummies. For many years, the global crash test dummy market has been dominated by foreign companies, and existing international dummies were developed based on European and American body types. Recently, CATARC made a breakthrough in three key technologies — bionic design, component casting and system testing — and successfully developed a crash test dummy adapted to the anthropometric data of the Chinese market, with fully independent intellectual property rights.
"Crash test dummies are a kind of 'ruler' for assessing vehicle safety. Previously we used others' standards to evaluate our own cars. Now, thanks to our own dummies, we can not only more accurately protect Chinese consumers but also take the initiative in safety assessment," said Liu Zhixin, senior chief expert at CATARC.
As reported by CCTV+, China is consistently building one of the world's most advanced automotive testing and validation systems. From compliance with Euro-7 standards to its own crash test dummies and robotic complexes for testing intelligent cockpits, these steps not only help Chinese brands enter international markets but also strengthen consumer confidence in the quality and safety of Chinese cars.
