China Auto News of the Week (August 10 - 14, 2009)

China to extend 'old car for new' plan to 2010

Shanghai, August 14 (Gasgoo.com) China will extend its stimulus package for the automobile industry including "replace old car with new" program and "vehicles going to countryside" project beyond the end of this year, the government's industry regulator said Thursday.

The minister of industry and information technology Li Yizhong said at a news conference in Beijing yesterday that "China's subsidies to encourage residents in rural areas to replace their old cars with new ones should continue to help support the auto industry, as well as its nationwide "replace old with new" program."

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Fiat's new JV in China to sell vehicles in 2011

Shanghai, August 14 (Gasgoo.com) Italian automaker Fiat Spa recently said that its joint venture with China's Guangzhou Auto will start producing and selling Fiat vehicles in 2011, reported Shanghai Securities News today.

The Guangzhou-Fiat joint venture project is expected to get China's regulatory approval later this month, and construction on the project is scheduled to last one year and a half. The venture may start production and sale of Fiat vehicles by the second half of 2011.

GM to export Wuling mini-vans under Chevy brand

Shanghai, August 13 (Gasgoo.com) General Motors said today that it will sell mini-commercial vehicles made by SAIC-GM-Wuling, one of its joint ventures in China, to emerging markets in North Africa, South America and the Middle East, media reported.

GM and its Chinese partners have signed deals to export the Wuling N200 and N300 series of vehicles and sell them under the Chevrolet brand through GM's distribution networks in those regions. The first shipment of 150 Chevrolet N200 series vehicles was scheduled to depart from the port of Guangzhou today.

Toyota to sell new Prius in China from early 2010

Shanghai, August 12 (Gasgoo.com) Toyota Motor plans to start selling its latest generation Prius cars in China next year, possibly as early as March, the Wall Street Journal reported today, citing Toyota executives.

The decision by the Japanese auto giant comes despite poor sales of the gasoline-electric Prius hybrid car in China in recent years. Toyota is targeting sales of 3,000 new Prius cars a year in China. That was also the annual target for the original Prius, launched in China in late 2005.

Beijing's Chrysler facility to make Benz E-Class

Shanghai, August 12 (Gasgoo.com) The hot sales of China-made Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedans have put its production line in Beijing running at full capacity, and now Beijing Auto's Daimler venture has revamped its Chrysler production line for making the all-new Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedans, Beijing Youth Daily reported today.

"Since Chrysler pulled out of Daimler's Chinese venture with Beijing Auto -- Beijing Benz-Daimler Chrysler (BBDC) -- last year, the Chrysler production line in Beijing has been revamped and will be used for producing Mercedes-Benz C-Class and all-new E-Class sedans as well as Beijing Auto's own brand "Beijing" sedans.

Official says vehicle tax cut won't be extended to next year

Shanghai, August 11 (Gasgoo.com) A senior official from China's industry regulatory body said it the government would reform the current vehicle purchase tax system but will not extend it to next year.

"We won't extent the tax cut when it expires at the end of this year but will make some adjustments in policies," the unnamed official of Chinese National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), who is responsible for making industry regulations, said.

Austria dealer to import Geely and BYD cars from 2010

Shanghai, August 11 (Gasgoo.com) The Austrian car dealer Denzel said it plans to import cars made by Chinese manufacturer Geely Holding Group Co and BYD Auto from 2010, Austrian newspaper kurier reports.

Denzel signed partnership contracts with the two Chinese manufacturers back in 2008 but is still waiting for their car models to pass the Euro NCAP crash test. Denzel will start to sell these models in Europe when everything is ready.

BYD on the move to expand lineup and capacity

Shanghai, August 10 (Gasgoo.com) China's battery and auto maker BYD Co has started to expand its product line-up and capacity by launching a series of moves recently, China Daily reported.

On July 24, BYD signed a deal with Foshan Weishang Technology Industry Development Group in Guangdong province to purchase the group's total stake in Hunan Midea Coach, an ailing bus-maker from Changsha city of Hunan province, for 60 million yuan.

China carmakers to tie up for electric vehicle R&D

Shanghai, August 10 (Gasgoo.com) The booming development of new-energy vehicles is bringing Chinese car companies together. The country's top 10 automakers are set to join hands for the research and development (R&D) of electric vehicle (EV) powertrains and components, xinhuanet.com said, citing an industry expert.

The project will be coordinated by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), which will arrange for the top 10 Chinese automakers to set their intended standards concerning the electric vehicles and related auto-parts. The joint R&D program will help these companies cut EV costs.