Chinese JV Fujian Daimler to change name to Fujian Benz

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai February 28) - In order to emphasize the quality of its vehicles, commercial vehicle joint venture Fujian Daimler will officially be changing its name to Fujian Benz, Beijing News reported today. The joint venture will be the second in China to use the Benz moniker, following Daimler and BAIC collaboration Beijing Benz.

According to a source from within the now Fujian Benz, the JV has considered the name change issue for a long time now. Following several surveys, the JV decided its low brand awareness was significantly limiting its sales. Reportedly, several JV dealers have placed domestically produced Mercedes-Benz vehicles in the front of their outlets to combat this problem.

"The name change will help decrease the gap between the enterprise and its consumers," the aforementioned source said, adding that it will aid in increasing the number of Daimler commercial vehicles sold in China.

The name change has gained the managerial team's approval, and has been used in a recent list of manufacturers and their models appearing on the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's website.

China is the sixth largest market for Daimler commercial vehicles worldwide, as well as the largest market in Asia. Fujian Daimler has been responsible for spearheading the German manufacturer's sales in the country.