No longer your humble delivery van

Perhaps known simply as vans to many drivers, multipurpose vehicles are shedding their image as humble delivery vehicles as they gain in popularity and become an engine for growth in China's auto market. Their sales have surged in all three quarters of the year.

Statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers show that 820,000 MPVs were sold in the first nine months across the country, a 33 percent increase year-on-year, raising its share in the auto market to 7.6 percent for the period.

The robust growth is due in part to a change in the classification of vehicles by the association.