Although upstart Italian distributors were among the first in Europe to introduce Chinese brands, they generated just 0.3 percent of Italy's total sales through October.

In the first ten months of 2010, sales of Chinese brands in Italy rose 16 percent to 5,353 units, but that is not an encouraging result for carmakers such as Great Wall Motor Co.

When the company's Italian importer, Eurasia Motor Company S.p.A., introduced the brand in 2006, it hoped to sell as many as 12,000 units annually. But Eurasia sold just 1,785 units in 2009, and it doesn't expect to do any better this year.

The importer sells the Hover SUV and Steed pickup, but it needs the Voleex subcompact hatchback in its lineup, said Eurasia Chairman Guido Ognissanti. "We really hope we will get the Voleex sometime next year," he said.

Great Wall plans to start exporting the Voleex to Italy in the first half of 2011. Great Wall also plans to produce the Voleex in a new assembly plant in Lovech, Bulgaria. The Lovech plant is slated to begin production in the first half of 2011, although its output initially will be sold in Bulgaria.

Eurasia boss Ognissanti said it's hard to make plans because Great Wall frequently revises its export plans. Pricing also is an issue, he says. "Great Wall wants to know our potential sales volume before setting the price," Ognissanti notes, "but can we forecast a realistic volume if we were not told the exact price?"

The wrong dealers?

Italian retail entrepreneurs have aggressively marketed Chinese-built cars, but the Chinese brands have failed to attract the country's best dealerships.

Great Wall has 80 dealerships in Italy, a substantial dealer network, compared with rival brands. But the stores tend to be small, family-owned dealerships.

Big dealer groups say they haven't been approached by Chinese brands. The Miranda Group, a major Naples-based retailer that represents Fiat, Ford and VW, has never been contacted by Chinese automakers.

But sales director Francesco De Carolis said this could be the right time to look for a Chinese brand franchise. "A minicar such as the Bubble, priced below 10,000 euros, could be a hit in the Napoli area and I am really interested in getting it," De Carolis said.

Other distributors of Chinese brands are struggling, too. Two years ago Martin Motors began distributing the Shuanghuan CEO -- a near-clone of the BMW X5 -- and also some passenger cars from Lifan, but it sold only a few dozen units.

Now Martin is selling the Bubble, a 3300mm-long four-seat minicar that starts at 9,900 euros (86,000 yuan).

Built by Shuanghuan Automobile Co., the Bubble was supposed to debut at the Bologna auto show in 2007. But Daimler AG sued to block its sale, claiming the car was a clone of the Smart ForTwo.

After a legal battle, Martin Motors says it is allowed to sell a slightly tweaked Bubble in Europe. Martin Motors Marketing Director Viviana Martinelli regrets the legal battle that blocked the Bubble's launch in 2008, when it could have enjoyed healthy sales.

At the time, Italy offered a 2,000-euro scrappage bonus for vehicles that ran on liquefied petroleum gas, a fuel system the company had planned to offer as standard equipment on the Bubble.

Now the scrappage bonus has expired, and Martinelli doesn't want to make any sales projections. "We have a bad track record of failing with our sales predictions," she said, "so we are not making any for the Bubble."