We Told You So! Roewe to enter Korean market via Ssangyong

Chinese Car News, Roewe, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation | Ash | February 22, 2007 at 9:54 am

We’ve had this thought for a while. SAIC owns a good chunk of Ssangyong, we think its 43% or so, they have a controlling interest anyway! Seeing as Ssangyong already has a worldwide dealership network set up and in place we thought it would be very easy for SAIC to push the Roewe brand via this well developed network. According to the Chinese business website CNEIE, it seems that Korea will be the test bed foreign market for Roewe. How will the Koreans react to this Chinese British vehicle? Will they buy it over their Hyundais and Kias? China Car Times did show some Roewe brochures to a Korean friend after it was unveiled in Beijing Car Show and they didn’t think too much of it.

The article quotes a Ssangyong representive as saying (in rough translation)

Ssangyong is preparing for the SAIC group to have over 30 different kinds of cars by 2010. Although the Roewe 750s chassis is used by other vehicles, we believe that because of the investment of Ssangyongs technology SAIC and Roewe can be successful, we are preparing for the Roewe brand to become greater and greater.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.