China’s car market has rarely looked busier. New models are arriving at a pace of more than three a day, electric-vehicle penetration is hitting fresh highs and automakers are still fighting for share in the world’s most competitive auto market.

A stake sale by Ford’s longtime Chinese partner is offering a telling glimpse into how quickly the balance of power has shifted in the world’s largest car market.

At the recent Greater Bay Area auto show, seven senior figures from China’s car industry appeared to arrive at the same conclusion: sales without profits are a false prosperity.

For years, Chinese automakers were treated as outsiders to the North American car market. Their brands were unfamiliar, their dealer networks were absent, and Washington’s tariff wall made a direct push into the United States commercially difficult. Yet travel south of the U.S. border and a different story appears on the showroom floor.

China’s luxury-car market is no longer the predictable preserve of German prestige brands. Consumer tastes are shifting, domestic electric-vehicle makers are moving upmarket and the old assumptions about badge power are being tested. For FAW-Audi, the launch of the new Audi A6L is less a routine model change than a signal that the company has begun to rethink how it competes in China.

Mercedes-Benz is facing a wave of complaints in China after an official recall update allegedly reduced the usable battery capacity and driving range of some EQC electric SUVs.