SEAT launch delayed until early 2012

Industry News | Ash | September 27, 2011 at 10:26 pm

VAG Group’s Spanish subsidiary will see its models launch in the Chinese market in early 2012 according to media reports from Chinese auto outlets earlier today, Seat had its brand launch at the Shanghai Auto Show earlier this year with the Ibiza showcasing the brand. It was largely expected that Seat would hit the Chinese market towards the end of 2011 but it appears that the launch will be delayed until early 2012 at the earliest.

Seat’s models will first be imported into the Chinese market although there is a strong possibility that the brand will see local production in the joint venture between FAW and VW at their new Foshan factory in Guangdong province. Guangdong Province has become a major battleground for the majority of Western and Japanese auto makers, traditionally the province was under the control of the Japanese Three (Nissan, Toyota and Honda) but a growing youth market is slowly but surely emerging which Western auto makers are keen to target. PSA and Chang’an also recently set up their new joint venture in Shenzhen city.

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.