BAW First Developed Car Looks Like a …. Sonata?
A first glimpse of a supposedly self developed BAW car has left us rather dissapointed, as its essentially an old Hyundai Sonata:
It could be that the above car is a test mule for handling, BAW did suprise us with these beauties at last years auto show in Beijing:
BAW are saying that the above cars will be hitting the production lines in 2010, so it could be that ex-Hyundai models will be making up the brand in the meantime. We have to to wonder if its entirely wise to launch an entirely new brand based on an old car, but BAW are hardly new comers to the market, so perhaps they do actually have a plan up their sleeves.
More news, speculation, and spy pictures as we get them.
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does BAW have or had a JV with Hyundai? I thought it was the Beijing Hyundai, or am I wrong?
Yes, BAW does have a JV with Hyundai.
Hyundai licensed EF Sonata chassis and agreed to share its old Beta II engine output in order to satisfy communist party’s thirst for foreign tech. However, Hyundai intends to keep a two generational(roughly 10 years) technology gap between itself and BAW, and may not even build its latest YF Sonata in China to protect its latest tech.
@IHC.
That is the point of JV, just like in the case of Lada and Fiat.Maybe it is really about the communist party’s thirst but it also involved the willingness of Hyundai, I mean if Hyundai is feeling it is being treated unfairly then it can also pull out of China, I think the Communist party does not force Hyundai to stay, sharing technology is quite common, just like how Mitsubishi helped out Hyundai before.
@mememe
> I think the Communist party does not force Hyundai to stay, sharing technology is quite common,
That’s why Hyundai’s licensing old tech only, trying to protect itself in someway.
> just like how Mitsubishi helped out Hyundai before.
And Mitsubishi collected a nice 5% royalty on each Mitsubishi engineered Hyundai sold.