Archive for December, 2009
Suzuki WagonR to launch in 2010 first quarter
Kei car fans in China needn’t wait much longer for another kei car fix, Suzuki have already launched the Suzuki Alto (and have an order book of 20,000 vehicles per month already) and will launch a new generation of Suzuki WagonR in the first quarter of 2010. The WagonR is available in China with a [...]
1.4T Skoda Superb heading into China?!
The Skoda Superb is a fantastic looking car, its big too, very big, it currently comes with the choice of a 1.8TSI and a 2.0TSI motor, but SAIC have plans for a 1.4TSI. The 1.4TSI is probably more about bringing the big car down to a lower price of an estimated 150,000rmb, but as the [...]
Chinese Automotive Stimulus to Continue into 2010
2009 has been an impressive year for the Chinese car industry, it started off in turmoil with the January and February sales being at all time lows. The government stepped in and boosted the industry by cutting tax on small displacement cars which had the people heading en masse to the dealerships to pick up [...]
Haima’s Prince to launch early next year!
The Toyota Aygo has had some serious milage in China, although never under Toyota badging. BYD took a shine to it, Geely took a shine to various parts of it for their Panda, and also JAC liked it too. The Prince, or rather the 王子 (Wang Zi), will be put on sale early 2010 according [...]
Buick Excelle Sports Sedan Spotted!
The current Buick Excelle is a top seller for Shanghai GM, its the cheapest model in the range of semi luxurious cars, in November alone the Excelle garnered sales of 22,200 sales in the Chinese marketplace. The above 2010/2011 Buick Excelle is the first time that future sedan has been seen in China, and could [...]
Ford wants more of China
From Freep.com Ford Motor Co. is talking to its partners in China about changing the structure of the three-way Changan Ford Mazda venture in the world’s hottest car market, Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s new president for Asia Pacific and Africa, told the Free Press Monday. He also said that Ford, a latecomer to the Chinese market, [...]
BYD king of the charts in November sales
November sales figures came out yesterday and give the BYD F3 the top slot. Not bad for a company that is only a couple of years old and is showing the top manufacturers how to sell and market cars in China: BYD F3 – 32,000 Buick Excelle – 22,200 Hyundai Elantra – 21,000 VW Jetta [...]
Chinese auto sales to Europe stand at 745 vehicles
If you were looking at the title and thinking, “Surely that must be 700,450 vehicles, or even 7450 vehicles!” then you are completely wrong. The total number is set at just 745 vehicles, which will no doubt keep European manufacturers safe for a year or two until the Chinese get their rears in gear and [...]
BYD SUV Revealed! – Its not a Lexus RV, its not a Lexus RV…
A few months ago a picture of a forthcoming BYD concept car made its way to the internet showing a Porsche Cayenne with BYD logos, although it seems that it might have been a teaser to see what the public’s reaction would be or perhaps even fan art. Later renderings showed a Lexus RX inspired [...]
BAIC gets 2.9bln USD credit from Bank of China – Saab purchase imminent?
Early reports from Reuters are reporting that BAIC, Beijing Automotive Industry Corporation, has received a 2.9 Billion USD credit line from the Bank of China which could indicate that a solo bid on Saab is in the pipes after the deal in which Koenigsegg would take on Saab with BAIC help fell through: Reuters reports: [...]
2010 Buick Lacrosse – Reviewed
Everyone is downbeat about the worlds automotive underdog, naysayers have been saying for years that eventually GM will go bankrupt. In 2008 and 2009, it did for a time look like GM was facing a very bleak future even GM’s most ardent supporters were about ready to throw in the towel and admit that GM [...]
SAIC to gain majority in SAIC-GM Joint Venture
Yesterdays news of a SAIC trading suspension came as a shock to many people, but the reasoning for the suspension was due to SAIC and GM’s plans for the Indian car market, and also due to GM planning to give SAIC the majority of the JV. The deal is reportedly set to give SAIC access [...]
GM and Shanghai GM to take on India
Yesterdays suspension of SAIC shares ahead of a large announcement drove Chinese automotive news sites into speculation over drive with the rumour mill burning rumours of an LDV takeover, a share swap with its JV partners, or perhaps even an announcement regarding SAIC’s international operations. The rumours couldn’t have been further from the truth, it [...]
Dongfeng preparing a new FJ-Cruiser like SUV
Dongfeng are preparing their own FJ-Cruiser like SUV for the Chinese market. Info on the SUV is thin on the ground with only a render for expectations, however, we have learned that the above SUV (known as the Fengshen)will be slightly smaller than the current Hummer H3, and the chassis will be taken from the [...]
Trading in SAIC shares suspended – major announcement due soon
Shares in Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) were suspended today amid plans which will see a major restructuring program at SAIC. SAIC shares fell 0.04% to 25.3rmb and trading will start again after the announcement has been made. SAIC currently has joint ventures with China’s biggest car manufacturers GM, and VW. The Chinese media are [...]
Guangzhou’s X-Power SUV to launch in 2011
Guangzhou Auto has shown an impressive number of concept cars in the past 12 months, which they are slowly putting into production. Their latest concept car is the X-Power SUV that was officially shown off last week: The X-Power SUV is based off the Changfeng CS6 platform, and will launch in 2011 according to reports. [...]
GoNow SUV to launch at 120,000rmb
Zhejiang based pick up truck maker Gonow are ready to start selling their Shuai Bao (Handsome Leopard) SUV with prices starting at 120,000rmb. This SUV was previously featured on CCT as the Gonow GS1 SUV, which in rendered specification looked like a mash up between an Audi Q7 and a Kia Sorento Now it appears [...]
Chang’an Ford sales up over 150% in November
From Ford: CHONGQING, December 2nd, 2009 – Changan Ford Sales Company today reported sales of 22,738 Ford brand vehicles in November, an increase of 152 percent from the same month a year ago, extending its year-over-year monthly sales growth to ten consecutive months. Through the first eleven months of 2009, Changan Ford has achieved total [...]
Suzuki to start motorbike production in the PRC
According to Cai Xun Finance newspaper, Suzuki Motors is planning to start producing motorbikes in China in the second half of 2010, and plan to produce around 500,000 motorbikes per year in China. Suzuki spokesman Takuma Mizuyoshi was quoted as saying that Suzuki are planning to produce new enviromentally friendly small displacement motorbikes in China. [...]
Brilliance signs up with booze maker to produce engines?
The link up between Brilliance and Wu Liang Ye is quite possibly one of the more bizarre joint ventures in China (apart from the car made by a cellphone company) to date. Initial thoughts would be that Brilliance and Wu Liang Ye were planning to use some of Wu Liang Ye’s surplus crops to produce [...]
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