Rami Levy enters car sales with BAIC models in its stores

Rami Levy and Rami Levy Stock, together with Daham Motors, announced a partnership to sell Chinese BAIC vehicles in the chain’s branches. The first offer is expected to include an electric family sedan priced below 100,000 shekels, full-electric family SUVs, off-road vehicles, premium cars, commercial vehicles and pickup trucks, and later also models from BAIC’s premium electric ARCFOX brand.

The cars will be sold in a three-step process, beginning with a deposit paid in a store or on a dedicated website, then final settlement with Daham Motors, and finally fast delivery of vehicles that are already in stock within 48 hours. At least some of the models are still waiting for full European homologation, so at the first stage they are likely to be marketed in limited batches, with imports capped at 400 units a year.

BAIC is the newest major Chinese manufacturer to enter the European and Israeli auto markets. It has tried before to break into Europe and Israel, including shipments for homologation, but those efforts failed at the marketing and regulatory stages. Last year the Kaduri Group said it planned to market BAIC cars in Israel and imported several models for homologation, but the brand recently moved to Daham Motors, whose vehicle business had previously focused on Foton commercial vehicles.

At the start, the joint venture is expected to focus on BAIC’s ARCFOX premium brand, with hundreds of units already in the Israeli importer’s stock and ready for immediate delivery. The current lineup includes the ARCFOX Alpha T, a mid-size electric crossover with front or dual-motor drive and a WLTP range of up to 546 kilometers, and the ARCFOX Alpha S, a large sedan positioned against Tesla Model 3 and similar cars, with a WLTP range of up to 572 kilometers. Later, BAIC is expected to bring to Israel additional rugged SUVs with off-road capability and full hybrid powertrains.