The automotive industry is evolving rapidly. While much of the attention is focused on large touchscreens and quick acceleration times, an equally important story is unfolding behind the scenes in service bays and repair shops. How easy is it to repair today’s vehicles once the warranty ends? Will replacement parts be readily available, or will a simple repair result in long delays? In this article, we look at a comparison that is often overlooked: serviceability and parts availability. We also explore the practical realities of maintaining Chinese and European vehicles. If you’ve ever wondered what ownership looks like beyond the showroom floor, read on.

The paperwork problem: who actually owns the manual?

For any independent workshop, the ability to fix a car depends entirely on having the right technical data. European manufacturers have long been integrated into standardised systems, mandated by EU law to provide independent operators with repair information. In late 2025, the European Commission reinforced these rules through the ‘Automotive Package,’ aimed at ensuring data transparency for independent garages. A similar landscape exists in the UK under the Motor Vehicle Block Exemption Order (MVBEO), which protects independent workshops’ access to parts and repair information and is currently scheduled to stay in effect until 2029.

Despite these laws, many Chinese brands are still building their infrastructure. While a mechanic working on a BMW or Renault can log into a portal and download a torque spec instantly, many Eastern models remain a ‘black box’ without localised manuals. This forces workshops into a dangerous game of “trial and error,” particularly risky when dealing with 800V battery architectures. Without clear documentation, a simple 2-hour job often turns into a 2-day investigation, killing the shop’s efficiency and driving up costs.

Logistics: why ‘local’ still wins in the bay

The difference here lies in the business model. European brands rely on a decentralised network where parts are “pushed” to regional warehouses before the customer even needs them. If a workshop in London needs a component, it is likely already within a 50-mile radius. In contrast, many Chinese brands still operate on a ‘pull’ model from centralised Asian hubs. The European Commission highlights that while trade volume is high, the EU is prioritising the reduction of these critical ‘single-source’ dependencies to prevent service gridlocks.

Service Parameter	European Car Brands	Chinese Car Brands
Warehouse Location	Local/Regional (EU-based)	Centralized (often China)
Standard Lead Time	24–48 hours	2–8 weeks (Average)
Aftermarket Support	High (Independent brands)	Low (OEM only)
Technical Data Access	Standardized Portals	Brand-Specific / Closed

Financial impact: the cost of a deadlift

The issue for the workshop is not just the distance the part travels, but the financial paralysis it causes. When a car from a manufacturer without local safety stock enters the bay, it risks becoming a ‘permanent resident.’ According to the UNCTAD Review of Maritime Transport 2025, geopolitical rerouting has increased the average voyage haul to over 5,200 miles, but the real secondary hit comes from customs bottlenecks for non-EU goods, which tightened in late 2025.

For the garage owner, this is a mathematical nightmare. A lift occupied by a vehicle waiting four weeks for a cooling hose is a lift that cannot generate revenue from thirty other routine oil changes or brake jobs. The overheads, such as rent, electricity, and wages, remain constant, but the billing stops. While European OEMs use their century-old logistics to ensure ‘just-in-time’ reliability, the newer players are still learning that in the workshop world, a fast car is useless if the parts to fix it are stuck in a shipping container.

ADAS: the calibration headache

Modern vehicles rely heavily on sensors and driver-assistance systems. When components such as bumpers or windshields are repaired or replaced, these systems must be recalibrated to ensure they function correctly. European brands generally design their systems to work with widely compatible diagnostic and calibration tools. Under the EU’s General Safety Regulation (GSR), updated rules introduced in 2025 have made proper calibration even more important for maintaining roadworthiness and safety compliance.

However, many Chinese brands use brand-specific sensors and specialised calibration tools that most independent workshops do not yet have. If a garage lacks the correct equipment, it may not be able to complete the repair safely. In those cases, the vehicle must be sent to an authorised dealer, which often means extra towing costs and higher labour fees. At the same time, the European Commission’s move toward digital vehicle records and stricter inspections in 2025 has raised the bar for compliance. If driver-assistance systems are not properly calibrated, the vehicle may fail its next technical inspection and cannot legally return to the road.

The toolbox: computers, not just wrenches

Finally, there is the issue of diagnostic tools. Most European vehicles are compatible with pass-through technology, enabling workshops to use a single professional diagnostic system across multiple brands. In contrast, many Chinese manufacturers have been slower to adopt these open standards, instead relying on closed or brand-specific systems that can be more difficult for independent garages to access. This creates several practical challenges for repair shops:

• The cost of tools- a workshop might have to spend £6,000 on a specific tablet just to read the codes on one specific Chinese brand, which many small businesses simply cannot justify.
• Server connections- many Chinese vehicles require a live internet connection to manufacturer servers abroad in order to activate or unlock software modules. These connections can be slow or unreliable during typical European working hours.
• Cybersecurity restrictions- while strong cybersecurity is essential for protecting modern vehicles from hacking, regulators in the United States have noted that security measures should not restrict consumers’ ability to choose where their vehicle is repaired.
• Software integrity- new EU rules for 2025 mandate testing the integrity of safety-related software during inspections. These requirements make it increasingly difficult for workshops to use unofficial or unvalidated diagnostic software.
• Future-proofing- there is a genuine concern that if a brand withdraws from the market, its remote servers could be shut down, leaving workshops unable to communicate with the vehicle’s systems because cloud-based diagnostic access would no longer be available.

Is the bargain worth the wait?

While the new players from the East offer amazing tech for the price, the ‘after-sales’ reality is still catching up. For now, the European brands still win when it comes to keeping a car on the road for ten or fifteen years. The shiny exterior of a new EV is great, but for the person holding the wrench, the real value is in the parts and the paperwork that actually exist.

Sources:

1. https://transport.ec.europa.eu/transport-themes/action-plan-future-automotive-sector/automotive-package_en
2. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/draft-order-the-competition-act-1998-motor-vehicle-agreements-block-exemption-order-2023-mvbeo/outcome/motor-vehicle-agreements-block-exemption-order-government-response
3. https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/eu-trade-relationships-country-and-region/countries-and-regions/china_en
4. https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/rmt2025_en.pdf
5. https://repair.eu/resources/joint-statement-on-repair-in-in-the-proposed-regulation-on-vehicle-design-and-on-management-of-end-of-life-vehicles/
6. https://transport.ec.europa.eu/news-events/news/updated-rules-safer-roads-less-air-pollution-and-digital-vehicle-documents-2025-04-24_en
7. https://www.garagewireeurope.com/news/the-rising-cost-of-staying-relevant-as-an-independent-garage/
8. https://www.nhtsa.gov/speeches-presentations/auto-isac-cybersecurity-summit-keynote-0