Geely will make their first foray into the notoriously tough British market in 2012, hoping to emulate the success of Korean brands like Hyundai. While Geely already helps produce the iconic London taxis, the company will face an uphill battle regarding the vehicle’s perceived quality. Their first UK offering, the EC7 compact car, will cost 10,000 GBP…
Saab’s sob story saga might be coming to an end, though the information surrounding their pending acquisition is murky at best. Rumors swirled quickly around the media yesterday that the Bank of China, fourth-largest by market value had planned to acquire just under 50 percent of the company. Those reports are now being corrected— it’s a bank in…
In order to be sold in Europe, the Qoros will have to meet, among other things, NCAP safety standards; a goal has been set of achieving five-star crash status and former Mini design direct Gert Hildebrand has signed up to work on the project, while Austrian company Magna-Steyr is reported to be actively involved.
The automotive market in China right now is an interesting one, with obviously a huge consumer base to pick and choose from. It’s common knowledge that Chinese manufacturers still aren’t up to par with American, Japanese or European counterparts, and some of the major players continue to look at forming partnerships with established brands. Chinese…
BMWs in certain markets may be getting a “Made In China” code in their VIN numbers starting at the end of 2011, as the company plans to export Chinese made 5-Series sedans to certain markets. The Truth About Cars quotes the CEO of BMW’s Chinese operations as stating “We will find some markets, maybe in the…
Even as the Occupy movement is being disbanded around the world, one branch of the movement just had a resurgance, as Saab fans “occupied” the Facebook page of General Motors. Saab fans blame GM for holding up the sale of Saab to their potential saviors - whoever they may be (so far it’s been Russian businessmen, American…
GM’s Chinese-market passenger van, the Chevrolet Move N300, is suffering from slow commercial sales. Seeing a potential market for export, the ever-so-resourceful American automaker has decided to deliver 5,000 of these Chinese complete-knock-down van kits to Egypt. While Egyptian import duties has made building vehicles in North America difficult, CKD kits (Complete Knock Down) provides…
Reports from the Guangzhou Auto Show state that the Chevrolet Volt has been approved for sale in China with a starting price of 498,000 yuan, or $73, 800 USD. TTAC’s resident expert on China, Bertel Schmitt, astutely remarked that the kind of subsidies we see on our shores for the Volt are “…for made-in China vehicles…
Last year, Germany’s Daimler AG and the Chinese BYD Auto have formed a 50-50 joint R&D venture called “Shenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Co. Ltd.” to pursue a new brand that will focus on the development of pure electric vehicles for China. Now, the two automakers have revealed intentions to introduce a new electric vehicle concept…
BMW and Mercedes-Benz have always been the German luxury brands for the well-to-do set in the United States, but in China, the two companies have been considered cars for the new money and retirees respectively. Audi and Buick continue their dominance over the hearts and minds of Chinese consumers. Buick has historically been a hot…
The IZOD IndyCar Series will be brought to China for the first time in a race scheduled on August 19, 2012. Held in Qingdao, China, located between Beijing and Shanghai, this coastal city has previously hosted the 2008 Summer Olympic sailing competitions. Until finances can provide for a proper racing circuit to be constructed, a 6.2…
General Motors has announced that it will cut ties with Saab over its pending sale to two Chinese automakers. The threat has some very real consequences with GM stating it would cease manufacturing of the 9-4X crossover for Saab, as well as stop delivery of the parts it currently supplies the Swedish automaker with. “Although…
A few years ago, a Chinese car company by the name Geely bought the Swedish luxury car brand Volvo. As part of Geely’s plan to move the Volvo brand forward, they hired famed car designer Peter Horbury to look after the design direction of this luxury car brand. Horbury, who hails from Britain, was no…
After much back and forth over the past months between Swedish Automaker Saab and Chinese suitors Pang Da Automobile Trade Co. and Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co., it seems like funding for Saab is very much back. The Chinese companies have both agreed to buy the Swedish automaker, providing the company with some much needed…
There’s a new kid in Los Angeles, BYD. The Chinese battery and electric car manufacturer opened its California office today. BYD says it will bring 150 green-collar engineering and management jobs to the city. The event highlight, however, is a deal between BYD and Hertz to provide airport shuttles to the rental agency. This could prove…
While currently operating brands Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac, and Wuling in China, the very first China division GM crossover, the Buick Envision, will come to market next year, according to a report from the Beijing Times Newspaper. Shanghai GM first introduced the Envision concept at the 2011 Shanghai Auto Show and presented a very progressive shape,…
U.S. private equity firm North Street Capital will give Saab a $70 million investment, including an equity stake worth $10 million and a $60 million loan to the ailing car maker. With Chinese-backed financing looking increasingly unlikely, the investment from North Street Capital, a firm run by auto enthusiast Alex Mascioli, will give Saab the…
The administrator in charge of the Saab bankruptcy proceedings has told a Swedish court that the process must stop. “The money is not enough to continue the reorganization,”said Guy Lofalk in an interview with Reuters. “Now, an application [to terminate the reorganization] has been mailed. It should be on the court’s desk tomorrow.” Lofalk said…
For the past decade, China’s economy has continued to expand with little sign of slowing down. Volkswagen took advantage of an opportunity to continue offering its past models such as the Volkswagen “Jetta King” (Mk2 Jetta), the Volkswagen Bora Classic (Mk4 Jetta), as well as various Audi vehicles in the Chinese market in order to…
For the second year in a row, General Motors has sold 2 million vehicles in China, with 10 weeks left in the calender year 2011. GM reported strong demand for Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac vehicles, up 24, 18 and 73 percent respectively. General Motors’ SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture also reached a milestone, selling its 1 millionth…
General Motors unveiled their new family of small displacement engines, a group of three and four cylinder engines ranging from 1.0L to 1.5L in displacement. The engines were designed in concert largely with GM’s Chinese subsidiaries. GM didn’t divulge which vehicles will get the new engines, but did say that North America won’t be an…
A contracting economy and a governmental push to limit the number of new cars in certain metropolitan areas has led luxury car makers like BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz to offer discounts of up to 20 percent on their cars in China. While the three car makers are hoping to post record sales numbers, many “aspirational”…
U.S. private equity firm North Street Capital, has purchased Spyker, after a deal to sell the Dutch outfit to Russian investors fell through. The Financial Times reported the news after viewing a preliminary draft of the announcement. It’s unclear how the Spyker sale will impact parent company Swedish Automobile, and its attempts to restructure Saab,…
A report by Roland Berger Strategy Consultants claims that by 2015, Brazil will be the world’s third largest auto market, with China and the United States occupying the first and second slots respectively. Brazil will displace Japan as the third largest market, as sales are expected to double to 6.6 million vehicles by 2020. The…
