For more than a decade, China has been the world's leader in car production, leaving far behind such giants as the United States, Japan and Germany. The results of Chinese car producers in the Russian market have been remained modest for a long period of time. After the beginning of the pandemic caused by the spread of a new type of coronavirus, a serious deficit of new cars began in Russia, followed by a significant increase in prices in the local automotive market, allowed Chinese car producers to improve their position. The paper analyzes the processes that are typical for the Russian automotive market due to the COVID-19 pandemic, considers the activities of Chinese car producers within the framework of a general deficit, and makes a short-term forecast about the future of cars from China in Russia.