Foreign car companies have dominated China‘s middle and high-end auto-market for decades -- while Chinese automakers could only look on in envy. But in Guangzhou, a coastal city in Southern China, some people are daring to challenge that status quo. What gives them their confidence? And will they succeed?

Chinese auto brands have long been associated with words like cheap prices, bad design, and low quality. But in Guangzhou, one of China's largest car-making sites, a group of people are determined to change that stereotype. Wu Song, the general manager of GAC Motor, started the Trumpchi brand six years ago from scratch.

"The biggest challenge is the brand. China produces and consumes the most cars in the world but foreign carmakers have the largest market share here. China’s own auto brands can only fight for consumers in the low-end market due to low brand recognition," said Wu Song, general manager of GAC Motor.

Accelerate, and brake… Wu loves to drive his guests around in his cars. He says it used to be the best way to show them his cars’ high quality. But those days are over. GAC Motor now aims to challenge foreign brands on their own turf -- in China's middle and high-end auto-market .

"We don’t wage price wars. We reject the low-end market. Every 57 seconds a car will come out of our factory. We can produce the world's leading small and middle-sized motor engines on our own. And our research institute ranks fourth in China," he said.

Today, a good, practical car alone cannot satisfy consumers. The cars need to be aesthetically pleasing and beautiful. And that's exactly where Chinese auto brands have lagged behind compared with foreign competition during the past decade.

Zhang Fan was a chief designer of the Mercedes-Benz A class. Five years ago, he came back to China to design Wu's Trumpchi series with a team of just over 20 young men. He says in order to beat foreign competition -- the key for Chinese car designers is to truly understand their customers.

"Designing for China doesn’t mean piling up all the Chinese symbols and icons. You have to meet their underlying demands -- culturally and emotionally. For Chinese consumers, the outside look of a car is for others, and the interior design is for themselves," said Zhang Fan, chief designer GAC engineering institute.

Zhang's team now has over 200 people. Their hard work and success gives him a special sense of pride.

"We Chinese designers are very capable of better designs. We are through with copying and imitating. Now it’s time to show the world our creativity and ability," said Zhang Fan, chief designer GAC engineering institute.

Zhang said, Trumpchi’s goal is to be the next “Huawei” in China’s auto sector. And that day might come sooner than anyone expected.