Ford pedigree, ambitions for China

SHANGHAI — As dark clouds hovered over the U.S. auto industry in 2007, Huang Ximing left his Detroit employer, Ford Motor Co., to try his luck in his native country, China, where the auto market was booming.

Two Chinese automakers, SAIC Motor Corp. and Chery Automobile Co., had offered him senior executive positions, but shortly after his plane landed in Shanghai, he changed his mind. He would start his own engineering firm there instead. That venture led to Huang's decision in 2016 to create an electric vehicle company, Bordrin Motor Corp.

Cultural ties

Where are these entrepreneurs coming from? In many cases, they have American experience.

Dozens of EV startups have sprung up in China in recent years. But Huang believes his experience in the U.S. auto industry and the capabilities of his global team give Bordrin a good shot at taking on the world's established leaders.

"Ford is like a training school where I learned a lot," Huang said in an interview in Bordrin's Shanghai office, recalling his work in computer-aided engineering and in noise-vibration harshness on projects such as the Ford Ranger pickup.

He also worked for two years at General Motors. "I had to take care of the whole process, from vehicle prototype development down to fixing problems detected after production," he said.

He has gotten up and running quickly. The startup has a team of more than 600 people, with operations in Shanghai, Beijing and Oak Park, Mich., outside Detroit. The tech center there employs about 90 engineers developing chassis, body structure and ADAS systems.

Investors including institutions, businesses and government-backed fund management companies have supported him in a few rounds of fundraising since 2016. He declines to identify them or specify how much he has raised. But Huang said Bordrin is not seeking additional capital at the moment. He plans to wait until Bordrin advances.

"As it makes further progress in product development, our company will get increasingly higher valuations," he said.

Bordrin's first EV platform is in the subcompact B class, and Huang believes it will be competitive with rival global brands.

He says it will be able to drive up to 550 kilometers (341 miles) on one charge — an advance over current vehicles in the field.

"Drivers won't be relieved of range anxiety unless electric vehicles exceed 500 km in range," he said.

Bordrin's first EV will be shown at the Shanghai auto show in April, and Huang says it will have a sticker price of about $32,000. He anticipates landing in the market on equal footing with the Tesla Model 3.

When it comes to developing the Chinese market, the U.S.-trained engineer realizes that local consumers are fervent users of Internet technology, and he is determined to outperform larger global competitors on infotainment and vehicle connectivity offerings.

Meanwhile, Bordrin is looking beyond China. It has held preliminary talks with a group of European car dealers.

A Bordrin executive also met in Germany with fleet operators, who expressed interest in the new line.

But the U.S. market is different, Huang said. Conditions aren't right for his company to operate there, he says, adding that the United States has yet to set unified standards for EV battery charging.

He also recognizes — having started his career in Detroit — that the American market is a tough nut to crack.

"Unless one is 100 percent sure that he is ready, he should not rashly get into the U.S. market," he said.