Young Chinese Hit by Unfinished Homes and Cars as First Buyers Become the Last Victims

Young Chinese face unfinished homes and now unfinished cars. First buyers become last victims. Young people in China are flocking to hunt down so-called EV zombies, electric vehicles from bankrupt car makers, with discounts up to 30 percent. Big batteries, premium interiors, high specs, all making these cars feel like the deal of the century. But behind the glamour lies a gloomy future. No after-sales service, no spare parts, no software updates. Against a backdrop of economic slowdown, many young people are not just locked into unfinished apartments. They're also snapping up unfinished cars, vehicles from firms that have gone bankrupt or ceased production. These cars lack dealership service centers, lack spare parts, and the software support is abandoned. Yet the steep price drops are tempting. When makers like GUA and Netta collapsed, their leftover stock was being liquidated. For example, the GUA Euro 7 dropped from $32,400 to about $19,700. In the fierce discount war, bankrupt brand vehicles, high spec, low price, accidentally became appealing to youth who prioritize features and cost over brand name. Many are even willing to travel hundreds of kilometers to pick up a car or buy secondhand without warranty, just hoping it lasts three to five years. But complaints are starting to spread widely. A Netta owner reports, the car has no warranty. The spare parts are so scarce, even the official workshop is shut. And the vehicle developed faults after only a few thousand kilometers. But no one to take responsibility. In one case, the car rolled down a slope and hit two other vehicles. Insurance paid only a few thousand yuan, while repair costs were much higher. The Netta V, advertised with over 400 kilometers range, in fact, runs less than 200 kilometers before the battery dies. And if Netta owners have it tough, owners of cars from Evergrande Auto are far worse off. Evergrande declared its full-blown entry into the EV industry in 2018, launching the brand Hengqi in 2019. But by 2021, its debt crisis over $281 billion forced Evergrande Auto virtually to a standstill. Capital cut off, factories shuttered, staff leaving. By 2023, the company had cumulative losses exceeding $15.5 billion, with only the Hengqi 5 still in weak production, fewer than 1,500 units. Apps malfunctioning, spare parts missing, after sales collapsed. The Hengqi 5 became the clearest symbol of a half-built car. The rise and collapse of Evergrande is one of the fastest plummets in China's EV history. Many owners publicly act upbeat, but privately are just coping, with no firm recourse when the maker is gone. When a manufacturer goes bankrupt, purchase contracts, warranties and after sales rights become essentially worthless. The service network collapses, parts become scarce, forcing owners to use third party workshops and salvage or modify components, whose prices surge dramatically. Items like headlamps, control modules or battery packs can cost multiples of original price and involve months of wait. Network services are cut, servers shut down, apps stop working. Features like remote locking, vehicle locating and remote climate control disappear. OTA updates cease completely, leaving software bugs unresolved. Safety and battery risks are rising. Battery degradation is unmanaged, no warranty. Overheating or range drop go unaddressed. Some insurers even refuse coverage for cars from bankrupt brands, so legal recourse is nearly impossible. And frustratingly, problems aren't limited to bankrupt firms, even top brands disappoint. Surveys in 2025 show that for every 100 new energy vehicles, there are on average 226 reported defects, higher than previous years. Early in 2024, fire incidents while parked or charging increased, such as a Li Auto megafire on 23rd of October that triggered recall of over 11,000 units due to poor anti-corrosion coolant systems damaging battery modules. Because of fire risk, many hotels and underground garages have banned EVs. In April that year, China introduced a new national standard for EV batteries. Safety requirements for power batteries used in electric vehicles, effective for mid-July 2026, adding bottom impact tests and short circuit tests after fast charging and mandating that smoke must not be harmful to humans. Yet many ask, is this truly a genuine effort to improve or just a fresh coat of paint hiding cracks? These unfinished cars may only be the tip of the iceberg. Far more hidden issues lie beneath the surface waiting to emerge. China's push to expel foreign investment backfires. Millions panic as companies exit. SAS, an American technology company, is pulling out of China, laying off all 400 employees and terminating contracts before November 14th, 2025. Its Chinese language website has been shut down and the company has halted hiring. SAS entered China in 1999, opened an R&D center in Beijing in 2005, and was honored as a top employer for 17 consecutive years. Many bloggers are upset that foreign companies are leaving, but the slogan don't let foreigners make money only causes China to lose more companies and even international tourists. The number of visitors has fallen to levels last seen in the 1970s. While global corporations continuously innovate by leaving outdated industries to move into the technologies of the future, many Chinese companies are stagnating. In reality, Samsung, Amazon and Google remain leaders despite leaving the Chinese market, showing that China is no longer the decisive factor many imagine it to be. The larger question is whether China can maintain an open mindset and remain competitive, as driving away foreign businesses only eliminates markets and the motivation to innovate. According to bloggers, the real enemy is short-term thinking and fear within the leadership apparatus. Though not named directly, the criticism is clear and risky, reflecting the widespread impact of the current wave of foreign company exits. Celestica's dissolution on June 30th caused a stir because it was once a symbol of foreign business in Dongguan. Spun off from IBM with revenue once at $6 billion, its Dongguan facility was established in 2004 with nearly 10,000 employees and industry-leading benefits in IT. After more than 20 years, the company still had to shut down. Vloggers argue that the fear created by the authorities has driven foreign firms away, discouraged private businesses, caused jobs to vanish, and dragged down industry standards, ultimately hurting workers themselves. They note that many people still fail to see the consequences of foreign companies leaving, and thus remain confused about the real enemy, which is a closed-off mentality. Anti-foreign sentiment, such as criticizing Japan one day, celebrating foreign companies leaving the next, only reveals a misguided choice. Either stay open or self-isolate. In an open world, investment can leave any country. China cannot force anyone to stay. Statements like, welcome all tourists except the Japanese are seen as illogical because once you open the door, you cannot both open it and hold on to hatred. The lesson of World War II is a reminder to avoid falling behind, not to cling to resentment. In this context, on August 28th, Hong Fujian, Foxconn's subsidiary, announced a halt in operations due to a shortage of orders, putting thousands of workers at risk of unemployment. Ironically, at the end of July 2024, Foxconn was still investing heavily in Zhengzhou, yet one year later the Hengyang plant was forced to close, revealing the increasingly unstable business environment for foreign companies in China. The relationship between Foxconn and the CCP has long been complex. The company is controlled, pressured politically, and unable to fully detach from China, even if it wishes to. By 2025, amid trade wars and cross-strait tensions, Foxconn is forced to choose sides, accelerating the wave of Taiwanese companies withdrawing from China. In Kunshan, once producing 70% of the world's laptops, land, labor, materials, and environmental inspection costs have soared, while orders have moved to Vietnam, turning Kunshan speed into Kunshan hardship. Because of rising costs and risks, many Taiwanese companies are shifting to Southeast Asia. Some netizens believe the CCP does not want foreign capital to leave, but is in conflict with the free world. Once it became powerful enough, it revealed ambitions that triggered countermeasures in trade wars. To maintain power, it uses hardline propaganda to hide failures, creating a vicious cycle. The more it fears capital flight, the more it pretends not to need it, and the faster the capital leaves. People are gradually seeing that the government is harming itself, and those who understand the situation are no longer staying silent. In the end, the force weakening the CCP is the CCP itself. China's corruption starts in childhood. Embezzled money counted in tons, while citizens starve. Why are Chinese people so obsessed with becoming officials, to the point of disregarding everything else? Everywhere in the world, people have ambitions for power, but only in China do 80% of college graduates throw themselves into the civil service exam as if hunting for a ticket to change their destiny. What exactly makes them so fanatical about official positions? I want to become the chairman of the Agricultural Development Bank of China and inherit the position from my father. Since my grandfather used to be the chairman of the Agricultural Development Bank of China, and my mother is the vice chairwoman, I want to inherit the family's legacy. Corruption in China has now spread across all levels of society, from the insurance industry, the railway system, and high-tech zones, to even the agencies responsible for fighting corruption. Many officials such as Liu Anlin, Wang Bo, who embezzled more than $63.1 million dollars there, as well as Li Aosong, Han Yuexuan, have been exposed for taking bribes, colluding with businesses, and trading power for sex. Yet these names are only the tip of a massive iceberg. In everyday life, people face another kind of torture, withdrawing money at the bank. A woman trying to withdraw $11,248 was bombarded with questions about how she would use the money, forced to wait more than three hours under scorching heat, and still could not get her cash without providing detailed explanations. The cold attitude and cumbersome procedures turned the simple act of withdrawing one's own money into a burden. From high-level corruption to unreasonable barriers at the bank counter, citizens increasingly fall into a sense of helplessness. Banks are compared to the mythical Peek's You, which swallows money but never spits it out, making public confidence in the financial system ever more fragile and unstable. A Beijing hospital director was arrested after police discovered staggering wealth in his home. Hundreds of millions of dollars in cash that burned through counting machines, over $20 million in foreign currency, piles of gold bars, and luxury goods valued at around $84 to $98 million dollars. He also owned multiple high-end Sihaiyuan properties in Beijing and luxury villas in the U.S. and Switzerland, raising public suspicion that his fortune came from exploiting patients through excessive hospital fees. Meanwhile, in Laiyang, Shandong, poor families entitled to $743 in annual aid received only $112 after officials siphoned off the rest. Dressed in worn clothing, they were forced to pose for staged photos while being handed an amount that equates to just $0.31 per day, far below basic living needs. China quietly withheld over $562 million in livelihood subsidies to cover local debts and government salaries, while widespread fraud in 104 counties led to another $67.2 million being illegally taken. Additionally, more than 3,200 grassroots officials falsified documents to steal $3.2 million. China's sweeping anti-corruption campaign, despite punishing millions since 2012, has not stopped the country's economic decline. Youth unemployment is rising, the real estate sector is collapsing, capital is flowing out to Southeast Asia, markets are falling, private businesses are struggling, and ordinary people face debt, joblessness, and higher living costs. Today, China's biggest crisis is unchecked personal dictatorship. When one person's voice overrides all others, dissent is crushed instantly. Criticism can cost someone their job, freedom, or future, leaving the public resentful but powerless to change anything. Corruption has become a permanent disease, enriching the wealthy and powerful while leaving ordinary people with nothing. Society turns into an exclusive club for elites sustained by this rotten system. In such an environment, even hatred loses its meaning. Therefore, the real solution does not lie in superficial, tiger-and-fly campaigns. As long as the root cause, the system of the Chinese Communist Party remains, corruption and injustice will continue to regenerate. Only by completely ending this system can the people regain their true dignity, and the country obtain a chance for genuine revival. Zhejiang girl gets white lung after one-day fever. Officials warn of fast-rising flu peak. Red alert in China. Twelve-year-old girl develops white lung. After just one day of fever, netizens panic and question, is it related to the COVID-19 vaccine? The influenza outbreak in mainland China is rapidly intensifying, and the Chinese Communist Party authorities have urgently warned that the flu season is expected to peak between mid to late December 2025 and early January 2026. According to reports from Jimu News and several other mainland media outlets, a 12-year-old girl from Zhejiang named Xiaoxiao suddenly developed white lung in her left lung after just a single day of fever. She struggled to breathe to the point that she could not lie flat, and her blood oxygen saturation dropped to around 90 percent, placing her in an extremely critical condition. Prior to that, Xiaoxiao had only shown mild symptoms such as a dry cough and a fever of 38 degrees C. However, hospital examinations revealed that she was suffering from pneumonia accompanied by atelectasis. Believing it to be nothing more than a common cold, her parents did not anticipate that her condition would deteriorate so abruptly. Once they realized how serious the situation had become, the family urgently transferred her to the pediatrics department of the fourth affiliated hospital of Zhejiang University. There, Xiaoxiao's condition worsened rapidly. She experienced persistent shortness of breath. pronounced chest tightness and chest pain, while her body temperature continued to rise to 38.5 degrees C. To maintain adequate oxygen levels, she had to rely on a face mask delivering five liters of oxygen per minute. Subsequent x-ray imaging showed that her left lung had completely progressed into a white lung state, with inflammatory lesions spreading swiftly and continuously. News of the girl's white lung in Zhejiang has caused a stir among netizens. Many people, while sharing their experiences with influenza A, also questioned whether this flu wave could be a side effect of COVID-19 vaccinations. Some netizens commented, Before the COVID vaccine, I'd never heard of white lungs. Since getting the vaccine, I've been sick with one thing after another. After the COVID vaccine, everything has become like this. Recently, Lu Xiao, associate chief physician in the emergency department of the second affiliated hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, shared a video on Douyin through his account, Lu Xiao's Emergency Diary. In the video, he cautioned that this year's flu season has arrived earlier than expected, and that emergency rooms are seeing a steady rise in influenza cases. The predominant strain circulating now is H3N2, a highly contagious type A variant that differs from last year's. If you don't take it seriously, serious problems can occur, he warned. To underscore the risks, Lu Xiao recounted the case of a physically healthy man who dismissed his flu symptoms as trivial. Within days, he developed pronounced chest tightness and shortness of breath. Hospital imaging revealed white lung, a severe and potentially life threatening condition. He was transferred to the ICU and only regained stability after many days of intensive care. Similar cases have been reported elsewhere. In Hangzhou, a 39-year-old woman surnamed Cheng was diagnosed with the flu but declined her doctor's advice to be hospitalized. Instead, she chose to tough it out at home for three days, only to find that several lobes of her lungs had developed white lung symptoms as well. Meanwhile, Hong Kong has reported its own severe cases and fatalities. On October 20th, a two-year-old girl with H1 influenza developed encephalopathy. And on October 12th, a 13-year-old girl infected with influenza B succumbed to her illness. The surge is not limited to adults. On November 7th, a video posted by the Shen Yun News Channel's Douyin account featured a deputy chief physician from the Children's Traditional Specialty Treatment Department of the first affiliated hospital of a non-university of Chinese medicine. He noted that since late October, pediatric outpatient visits have jumped sharply, with fever cases showing the most dramatic growth. In just the two days of last weekend, he reported, our outpatient volume exceeded 4,000. National health authorities have echoed these concerns. According to Xinhua News Agency, China's National Disease Control Administration announced at a November 10th press conference that infections involving influenza, RSV, rhinovirus and other acute respiratory pathogens are all on the rise. Southern provinces are experiencing notably higher influenza activity than northern regions. Among circulating strains, H3N2 accounts for more than 95 percent of cases, with smaller numbers of H1N1 and influenza B also present. Officials expect the flu season's peak to arrive between mid to late December 2025 and early January 2026. We invite you to subscribe, share your thoughts in the comments and join the conversation. Until next time, stay informed and take care.