GM Takes OnStar to China
November 29, 2007

SHANGHAI -- Anyone who has visited – or worse – driven in China knows how difficult it is to find one’s way around -– even bus drivers and cabbies get lost -- and how dangerous driving there is. China has one of the world’s highest rates of fatalities from car accidents.

So General Motors’ announcement that it will take OnStar to China should be a welcome one.

The OnStar services that will be offered initially in China and likely other Asian markets eventually are similar to those long offered in the U.S. and Canada. They include automatic crash notification, roadside assistance, remote door unlock, hands-free calling, vehicle diagnostics and turn-by-turn navigation. 

GM and its Chinese partner, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp., announced Thursday they had created a joint venture called Shanghai OnStar Telematics Co. to offer OnStar services in Asia. The joint venture is 40%-owned by both OnStar and SAIC and 20%-owned by Shanghai GM, which is a 50-50 joint venture between GM and Shanghai Automotive.

Shanghai OnStar is set to roll out automotive safety and communication services in 2009, initially for vehicles manufactured and distributed in China by Shanghai GM.

“China represents a huge opportunity to bring the safety, security, and societal benefits of OnStar to a whole new audience – Shanghai GM customers,” OnStar President Chet Huber said in a statement.

This is the ninth joint venture in the past decade between GM and SAIC. It is OnStar’s first venture outside of North America in its 11-year history.

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